Jeff Jarrett has looked back on a very emotional night on AEW TV.
Following Jeff Jarrett being announced as a competitor in the 2024 Owen Hart Cup, the Hall of Famer cut an impassioned promo about what Hart meant to him and his close bond with the late wrestler. Shortly after the promo aired, the once-despised Jarrett became a firm favourite in the eyes of the fans and many wanted to see the veteran go all the way to Wembley Stadium.
Unfortunately, this would not be Jarrett’s night as wildcard entry Adam Page was revealed to be The Young Bucks’ hand-picked entry and defeated Jarrett to advance to the next round on the July 3rd episode of AEW Dynamite, crushing the hopes and dreams of the fans and Jarrett.
Looking back on the events that unfolded on his My World podcast, Jeff Jarrett admitted that while he gave it everything, it will be a night he will never forget:
“I gave it my all. Sometimes, life doesn’t always turn out the way…I said that in some comments this weekend, doesn’t always turn out the way we expect it to. But what are we to do except look at life as no obstacles, just opportunities? I can tell you this much, you don’t get paid on effort alone, but the effort that I put in last Wednesday, I will say this, Karen came over to me, and she said, ‘I’m not gonna come back around you again until it’s time to go out. I love you.’
She knew I was dialed in, and I was definitely dialed in. Didn’t work, didn’t turn out, but the effort was there, the emotion was there, the Wintrust Arena…I’ll remember that. I will remember the match, I’ll remember that night. Didn’t turn out the way I wanted, but I will definitely remember that night.”
Jarrett continued, stating that many would have been surprised at the calibre of the match he put on that night and added that locking the Sharpshooter on Page only made the match even more unbelievable:
“It was special to me, not so much for the mechanics…. In 2024, I don’t think you can expect a banger out of ‘The Last Outlaw,’ but also I think in 1986, you might not have expected a banger match, as the kids call it. But as far as the emotional investment in it, that was, because we often talk about all that.
Creative’s subjective, but to me, one of the things that’s not subjective is the way to resonate is the emotional investment, and I was emotionally invested in that. I think the feedback and the voicemails and the texts and the comments, I think at the very core of it, it’s one of the reasons why we all love professional wrestling.
You can get caught up in certain matches, stories, and storylines. But if there is a real set of circumstances that are reality-based, and for me, it was a lot of reality-based, it is easily just, I don’t say you want to believe, you believe. You just get caught up in the moment. For me, that’s what it was all about. The Chicago folks in the house, it was cool. To me, they were emotionally invested. When I locked the Sharpshooter on, man, they came up. In my brain, so did I.
It was a fun moment. Who in the hell would have thought we’d be talking about this in 2024? I got a Sharpshooter in the ring on a former AEW World Champion in his return match. It was a very surreal night for me in so many ways. I’m very grateful for it.”
Jeff Jarrett’s Dreams Smashed By Adam Page
With Jeff Jarrett eliminated from the tournament, Page advanced to the semifinals and defeated Jay White on the next episode of Collision. The finals of the Men’s and Women’s Owen Hart Tournaments have been set with Adam Page vs. Bryan Danielson and 2023 winner Willow Nightingale vs. Mariah May announced for the July 10th episode of Dynamite.
H/t to Fightful.