AEW star Matt Hardy says he wouldn’t be who he is today without his experiences as part of WWE and learning from WWE Chairman, Vince McMahon.
Matt Hardy made his name in WWE alongside his brother Jeff as part of the burgeoning tag team scene during the Attitude Era. The Hardy Boyz battles with the likes of The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian are legendary as the teams introduced the world to the perils of Tables, Ladders, and Chairs.
The elder Hardy brother went on to have a memorable singles run where he captured the US Championship and ECW Title but is probably best remembered for his heated and incredibly personal feud with Edge.
The Hardy Boyz returned to WWE in 2017 at WrestleMania 33 where they became Raw Tag Team Champions. Although Jeff Hardy remains part of WWE to this day, Matt Hardy sought out pastures new and left the company again in the spring of 2020.
Just weeks later Hardy made his AEW debut on the same night that Brodie Lee made his first appearance in the company as The Exalted One.
Speaking on AEW Unrestricted Matt Hardy discussed the differences between AEW and WWE but says he has great appreciation for his former employer and Vince McMahon:
“I wanted to go back because I do owe all those guys. I have a great appreciation for WWE, Vince McMahon, and all those people because I wouldn’t be who I am without them.”
“But I think one thing I’ve learned, the reason AEW is experiencing so much success now as opposed to WWE, and people are putting them in the same conversation. Even though AEW has only been around for two years, is because for the longest time WWE, they kind of had fans invest in watching their product, but they didn’t give them the proper payoffs.”
“And I feel like AEW does that time and time again, and a lot of that comes from Tony Khan. Because in his heart, he is a diehard wrestling fan, and he’s very much on the pulse of what wrestling fans want in 2021. So I feel like the majority of fans, watch AEW are people that truly love pro wrestling and feel like they want to be rewarded.”