Matt and Jeff Hardy spoke with ESPN’s Extra Mustard blog this week to hype Sunday’s TNA Bound For Glory PPV. The “Boyz” from Cameron, North Carolina will face The Decay this weekend for the TNA Tag Team titles. Matt told ESPN that Decay “perpetrated blasphemy” when they visited his compound for the Delete or Decay spectacle. This Sunday, they’re out for revenge. “We are not only going to render Decay obsolete, we’re also going to delete them until their vessels have perished,” Matt said.
Whatever happens at Bound For Glory and whatever the future holds for TNA, a lot of fans want to see Matt and Jeff back in WWE. Their TNA contracts expire in February and Jeff says the possibility of him returning to WWE really depends on what happens between now and February with TNA.
“If it feels right and good, I don’t see anything wrong with staying,” said Jeff. “When you commit to a WWE contract, you’re committing to some serious time away from home. If it were under my terms, there might be a chance, but I’m really not sure. Of course it would be nice, but what we’re doing right now is so much fun. I don’t want to go back to WWE and burn out within four or five months, and having another run as TNA world champion would feel just as good.”
“Broken” Matt has essentially been given complete creative freedom in TNA. The results speak for themselves. Matt’s Broken Brilliance, Senior Benjamin, Vanguard-1, Baby Maxel and the”DELETE!” phenomenon have caught on in the pro wrestling world unlike anything we’ve seen out of TNA in a long time. In WWE, he might not have that freedom.
“I am very content at Impact Wrestling,” said Matt. “I don’t know if I trust that Meekmahan, or if he’ll try to stifle my broken brilliance. I’m able to live in my broken universe here at Impact Wrestling to the fullest extent, and Impact Wrestling needs me as their savior, so I’ll do everything I can to help them grow. They’ve had many setbacks in the last few years, but things are changing. I don’t have an end game. Being a celestial being, I live for the moment to fight the Great War, and that is to light the darkness. Right now, I’m able to do that at Impact Wrestling.”
Other topics discussed include Matt Hardy’s rebirth as Broken Matt, Jeff Hardy’s time away after his dirt bike incident last year and the creativity behind the Broken Matt persona and the universe he’s created around it. Check it out at SI.com.
– Drew Galloway revealed on Twitter that he’s currently out of action after taking a bad shot last week during a match. Galloway is scheduled to face Aron Rex at Bound For Glory to crown the first Impact Grand Champion. He tweeted on the injury:
– The main event of next week’s TNA Impact on POP will feature Lethal Lockdown with Team EC3 vs. Team Lashley, with the winner picking the stipulation for their World Championship Match at Bound For Glory on 10/2. Next week’s go-home show will also feature DJZ defending the X Division Championship against Eddie Edwards.
Jim Ross has weighed in on today’s news that WWE reportedly wants to sign Matt Hardy next year, saying fans would be even happier if the company could get back both Hardy brothers. In his latest blog entry, the WWE Hall of Famer says he doesn’t know the validity of the report, but was in favor of Matt returning to the company with or without his brother Jeff.
“Matt has developed the freshest, most unique pro wrestling TV persona in the biz, which is a tribute to a talent with an established persona recreating himself with a new persona,” Ross wrote. “If more talents would think outside the box like this, more talents would have less to complain about regarding their elusive “push.” Matt Hardy will be joining me on the Ross Report Podcast in November so stay tuned for that show. “
J.R. noted that Hardy will be joining him on his Ross Report podcast in November. Hardy has appeared on recent podcasts fully in-character as “Broken” Matt.
Ross also touched on the cruiserweight division on RAW that debut this week, advising the new WWE stars that it takes more than high spots to have success. “The Cruiserweights longevity is directly tied to how well they connect to the fan base including how good their verbal skills are perceived,” he said. Ross added that this new division has “amazing potential” and that he hopes the athletes take advantage of the opportunity.
Posted September 22nd, 2016 in WWE. Tagged: Matt Hardy.
Top WWE officials are reportedly interested in signing Matt Hardy when he becomes a free agent next year. Hardy has completely revitalized his career over the past year, transforming himself into “Broken Matt” and producing some of the most entertaining segments from any wrestling promotion. According to the Wrestling Observer, intermediaries of Triple H have made it clear to Hardy that he’d be welcomed back in WWE. He hasn’t worked for the company since 2010.
Hardy’s TNA deal runs through Spring 2017. While the notion of Broken Matt back in the WWE Universe is full of entertaining possibilities, there are several hurdles standing in the way. Aside form whatever efforts TNA would make to keep the deranged performer, Matt currently has free reign over the creative direction of his character. He would have far less creative control in WWE and he’s very aware how different things would be with WWE’s creative writers scripting Broken Matt.
There is also the issue of WWE’s travel schedule. He currently works limited dates for TNA and commands top dollar on the independent scene without having to endure everything associated with life on the road full time.
Thursday night’s episode of Impact Wrestling featuring Delete or Decay, the sequel to TNA’s Final Deletion, averaged 337,000 viewers on Pop TV. The segment featured Reby Sky and The Hardy Brothers vs. Rosemary and The Decay, and went head-to-head against the NFL’s season opener between Denver and Carolina.
This is down from last week’s 351,000 viewers, and down from the original Final Deletion’s 400,000 viewers back in July. Delete or Decay was produced with a larger budget than the original, and the company hopes to garner the same sort of internet buzz for the segment. Both segments were produced by Jeremy Borash, Billy Corgan, and Matt and Jeff Hardy.
The show ranked #119 on the Cable Top 150 rankings, which is up from last week’s #124.
Jeremy Borash appeared on Wrestling Observer Live this week and said tonight’s “Delete or Decay” match with The Hardys and Reby Sky vs. Abyss, Rosemary and Crazzy Steve will not be the Final Deletion Part 2 because it will be a very different match. Borash also called it the first battle in the great war that leads to The Hardys vs. The Decay for the TNA Tag Team Championships at Bound For Glory on 10/2.
Tonight’s Impact on POP will also feature a big announcement from President Billy Corgan, Jade & Gail Kim vs. Sienna & Allie and a BFG press conference with Ethan Carter III and World Champion Lashley. Here’s a teaser for the press conference:
The sequel to TNA and Matt Hardy’s “Final Deletion” segment is scheduled to air on next Thursday’s Impact, and will be titled “Delete Or Decay.” The segment will see The Decay travel to Matt Hardy’s estate to do battle.
The Final Deletion segment in July garnered over 400,000 viewers for Impact on Pop TV, their most to date on the channel. Delete Or Decay was produced with a bigger budget than the original and the company hopes for another increase in viewership. The original Final Deletion was reportedly developed and produced by Jeremy Borash, Billy Corgan and Matt & Jeff Hardy.
– In a new interview on WWE.com, Mick Foley and his daughter Noelle talk about their WWE Network series Holy Foley and it’s future. Foley reveals that Vince McMahon seeing the chemistry between Mick and Noelle in another video is what lead to the show, and that the series helped his relationship with the company and lead to his role as the GM of RAW. The former WWE World Champion says he would love to do another season if the demand for it is there.
– Speaking of Foley, he made an error in a Tweet he sent out to promote his appearance at Sunday’s Days Of The Dead Horror Convention in Kentucky. Instead of Tweeting the poster for the event, Mick accidentally sent out the poster for TNA’s “Delete or Decay” segment with Matt Hardy. This prompted “Broken” Matt Hardy to reply to “Brother Francis.”
– This week’s TNA Impact on Pop TV saw two title changes – Maria Kanellis captured the Knockouts Championship after making Allie lay down, and DJ Zema Ion captured the vacant X Division Championship by winning Ultimate X over Mandrews, Rockstar Spudd, Braxton Sutter, Trevor Lee and Andrew Everett. This is the first championship reign for Maria and the second for DJZ.
– Next Thursday’s Impact will feature a big “#DELETEorDECAY” match with Abyss, Crazzy Steve and Rosemary vs. Reby Sky, Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy. A teaser can be seen below:
SHARE & RT this #BROKEN brilliance with the World.
Matt Hardy says his current ‘Broken’ character is an attempt to emphasize the entertainment element of sports entertainment, and WWE has been unable to successfully emulate his ‘Final Deletion.’
On episode 91 of the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast, Hardy spoke at-length about his character, and says WWE’s Wyatt Compound segment was “blasphemy.”
Hardy says that he feels pro wrestling has been stale for the last few years, and referred to internet wrestling fans as “arrogant ants” who are very opinionated. Hardy feels that online fans want “some kind of athletic contest full of spot monkeys,” and he’s bringing wrestling back to a “different universe” where it is more entertainment.
On the subject of The New Day and the Wyatt Family facing off in an empty field on RAW, Hardy feels it’s a direct copy of TNA’s Final Deletion segment. He says that WWE’s vast resources were unable to produce a segment with “heart and soul.”
“I saw that blasphemy, that sacrilege,” Hardy said of the Wyatt Family Compound segment. “Nero, Wyatts, I know what they’re doing. Oh, they are copying. They are mimicking. They saw the greatness of The Final Deletion. I went out and I deleted Brother Nero, the man who was a thorn in my side. They tried to jump on it, thinking they could use WWE and McMahon and his money to produce some masterpiece that could blow away what we put together as Final Deletion. That is not what is going to happen because ours was truly heart and soul.”
Hardy noted that Bobby Lashley is next on his list of people to “delete.”
You can listen to the entire podcast with Hardy here.
While Jeff Hardy is adamant that he wants to face The Undertaker before he retires, his brother has a different WWE star in mind as a future opponent. In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, Matt Hardy revealed that he wants to step in the ring with none other than WWE’s Bray Wyatt. Hardy, somewhat in character as “Broken” Matt Hardy, said that he has “fondness and appreciation” for “the Bray Wyatt.”
“I see that he is driven by a higher power, much like I am driven and motivated and inspired and given strength by the Seven Deities,” Hardy said. “I respect how he doesn’t walk the normal path, he carves his own. I would love, one day down that road, to show up in WWE and have a match with the Bray Wyatt. I would love to bring him to my battlefield and delete him–that would be my honor.”
Hardy and Wyatt had a brief Twitter spat, following WWE airing a “Wyatt compound” segment that some felt was in reaction to TNA’s “Final Deletion” segment.
Bray Wyatt took to Twitter on Tuesday night and commented on the controversy surrounding his Wyatt Family compound segment from Monday’s RAW and the similarities to TNA’s “Final Deletion” match with The Hardys.
– DJ Zema Ion won a Ladder Match on last night’s Destination X themed edition of Impact Wrestling to become the new #1 contender to the X Division Title, currently held by Eddie Edwards.
– As noted, a new #1 contender to the TNA World Heavyweight Champion for the main event of Bound For Glory will be determined by an eight-man BFG Playoff match. Participants for that match will be determined via qualifying matches, set to begin on next Thursday’s Impact episode. Matches confirmed so far include James Storm vs. Matt Hardy, Eli Drake vs. Ethan Carter III and Bram vs. Drew Galloway.
– Speaking of #1 contenders, DJ Zema Ion won a ladder match last night to earn a shot at the TNA X Division Title. That belt is currently held by Eddie Edwards and as noted, he will defend against World Champion Bobby Lashley in a title vs. title rematch inside Six Sides of Steel next week. That match will be taped tonight in Orlando and we will have full spoilers later.
– Matt Hardy had a “Final Deletion” viewing party segment on last night’s Impact and it was filmed at his North Carolina home this week. Appearing in the segment were former WWE/TNA star Shannon Moore, Reby Sky’s close friend as Rita the servant and indie booker Brad Stutts as Matt’s butler.
Monday’s RAW saw The New Day visit the Wyatt Family Compound, a segment that bore a striking resemblance to last week’s Final Deletion on TNA Impact involving Broken Matt and Brother Nero. Broken Matt took notice of the Wyatt Family Compound brawl, noting that his brilliance is trendsetting and now he has more Brother Neros to delete.
Tonight’s Destination X edition of Impact Wrestling will feature a new segment from Broken Matt’s home, with a promise that the Public Deletion is about to being. (Impact Preview)
Discussion: Which was the better segment – the Final Deletion or the Wyatt Family Compound? Which one did you enjoy more and which one do you think is better for business? An argument can be made that Final Deletion was far more entertaining, but Wyatt Family Compound was more serious and will actually lead to a high profile match that will draw money.
TNA has announced several more matches for next week’s Destination X edition of Impact Wrestling on Pop TV. With TNA looking to capitalize on the momentum of last week’s Final Deletion show, here’s what we can expect:
Title vs. Title Match: X Division Champion Eddie Edwards vs. World Champion Lashley
Knockouts Title Match: Sienna vs. Gail Kim vs. Marti Bell vs. Jade
X Division Contenders Ladder Match: Trevor Lee vs. Braxton Sutter vs. Andrew Everett vs. Rockstar Spud vs. Mandrews vs. DJZ
Drew Galloway vs. EC3
Plus, Broken Matt will speak about his Final Deletion victory and the termination of Brother Nero.
Impact Wrestling’s “Final Deletion” angle between Jeff Hardy and Broken Matt Hardy drew 410,000 viewers, and according to PWInsider.com, TNA officials were ecstatic about that number. Up from last week’s 322,000 viewers, this week’s show was their most-viewed since joining Pop TV.
According to PWInsider, TNA creative came up with the concept for the segment because Dixie Carter wanted there to be spoiler-free content on Impact. The segment was filmed at Jeff and Matt’s actual properties in North Carolina. Jeremy Borash drove in from Nashville to direct and edit the segments. There was more material that was filmed but not used.
All of the props for the segment were already at Matt’s house, including the birthday party setup for his son. Referee Kevin Keenan was used at Matt’s request because he liked him from their time together in WWE. Senor Benjamin will likely be on TV again as a part of Matt’s storylines.
Viewership was up significantly for this week’s TNA Impact Wrestling on Pop, which featured the Final Deletion angle with Matt and Jeff Hardy. The July 5th episode of Impact Wrestling averaged 410,000 viewers, way up from last week’s 322,000. This was the most-watched episode of Impact since moving to Pop back in December.
All around, this is great news for TNA and a sign that the buzz on social media translated to a spike in viewership. TNA’s strategic decision to provide select members of the wrestling media an advance preview of the segment paid off. The positive reviews that followed certainly had an effect on the increased interest.
Next week, TNA looks to keep the momentum going with Destination X, featuring TNA World Champion Bobby Lashley vs. new TNA X Division Champion Eddie Edwards and EC3’s grudge match against Drew Galloway.
Following TNA’s “final deletion” angle between Matt and Jeff Hardy on Tuesday night’s Impact, Lucha Underground executive producer Eric Van Wagenen took to Twitter to voice his opinion on the angle. Van Wagenen wasn’t a fan, and had this to say shortly after Impact Wrestling went off the air:
TNA, Matt and Jeff Hardy certainly got the wrestling world talking about Tuesday night’s Final Deletion storyline, which ran throughout this week’s Impact broadcast and culminated with a match at the end of the show. The buzz on social media and our own discussion thread was overwhelmingly positive.
Drones, holograms, fireworks used as weapons, Broken Matt, a huge bump by Jeff Hardy, the Final Deletion had it all. As over the top and campy as it was, they produced a very memorable show that got people talking about TNA like we haven’t seen in quite some time. Here are some reactions from the wrestling world:
I lost.There4. . . . . . . . . . ?
— #BrotherNero DELETED (@JEFFHARDYBRAND) July 6, 2016
Meanwhile, it wasn’t all positive. Lucha Underground executive producer Eric Van Wagenen took a shot at TNA over the segment, while Jeremy Borash was quick to throw some shade at LU and the limited availability of the El Rey Network.
Tonight’s episode of TNA Impact Wrestling is getting a ton of buzz for the “Final Deletion” match between Matt and Jeff Hardy. This is being billed as the blowoff to their heated rivalry and has gotten rave reviews from people who have seen it. It’s being billed as a must-see segment and we want to know what you think about it.
Tonight’s Impact will also feature:
TNA Knockouts Streetfight: Marti Belle vs. Jade
KOTM Champion Eli Drake vs. James Storm
The Bromans & Raquel vs. Decay
Tune in to Impact Wrestling on Pop TV tonight at 9pm EST and join us here for the live discussion!
– Matt Hardy spoke to TMZ Sports to promote tonight’s Impact Wrestling “Final Deletion” match against brother Jeff Hardy and gave his prediction for CM Punk’s MMA debut at UFC 203 in September. Hardy believes Punk will be “deleted” just like Jeff will be tonight.
– Joey Ryan says he sold more merchandise during Pro Wrestling Tees’ 4th of July sale than the entire TNA brand. He tweeted the following comments today:
– The dark match prior to Tuesday night’s Impact Wrestling tapings from Orlando Chelsea Green of WWE Tough Enough fame defeat Mickie Knuckles, who wrestled for TNA a few years back.
– Next week’s Impact will feature Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy in a Six Sides of Steel cage match. Based on the booking at the tapings, the match appeared to be set up as the blowoff to their feud.
TNA is reportedly in the process of locking in several of their biggest stars to new contracts. According to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer Newseletter, TNA is currently negotiating new deals with Matt and Jeff Hardy, Bobby Lashley, and Drew Galloway.
The company, which is reportedly in financial peril and possibly on the verge of new ownership, wants to lock those names in to exclusive deals that would allow them to control the talents’ outside bookings and earn commissions from them.
Back in May it was reported that TNA wanted to sign stars to exclusive deals in order to raise the company’s value in the event of a sale. Caleb Konley, Sienna, Crazzy Steve, Robbie E and Jessie Godderz all re-signed with the company early last month.
Meltzer previously reported that TNA was months behind on paying some of their behind-the-scenes staff, and was in negotiations with three possible buyers. Company president Dixie Carter reacted to the reports in an interview, saying “There’s so much incorrect information out there about the financial situation of TNA.”
Nashville-based model and branding specialist McKenszie Mitchell is now handling the weekly Impact Breakview segment, looking back on this week’s episode.
Following Impact, here’s the final card for Sunday’s Slammiversary PPV:
TNA Champion Drew Galloway vs. Bobby Lashley (Submission or KO only)
Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy (Full Metal Mayhem)
Knockouts Champion Jade vs. Sienna
Tag Team Champions The Decay vs. The Bromans
X-Division Champion Trevor Lee vs. Eddie Edwards vs. DJ Zema vs. Andrew Everett
King of the Mountain champion Eli Drake vs. Bram
Mike Bennett vs. EC3
Maria Kanellis vs. Gail Kim
Grado & Mahabali Shera vs. The Tribunal (with Al Snow)
– There’s talk of TNA hosting the 2017 Lucha Libre World Cup. This year’s event was hosted by AAA in Mexico. Team TNA was eliminated early by Team Mexico International. The finals saw Team Lucha Underground defeat Team AAA.
– Below are matches for tonight’s TNA Impact episode, the final show before Slammiversary:
Sienna vs. Madison Rayne in a #1 contenders match to determine Jade’s next opponent
Mike Bennett and Maria Kanellis vs. EC3 and Gail Kim
TNA X-Division Champion Trevor Lee vs. Eddie Edwards