Tag: The Hardy’s

Matt Hardy Hopes To Return to WWE, Says Jeff Hardy Wants To Prove He’s Changed

In an interview with Busted Open Radio (via Fightful), Matt Hardy spoke about he and his brother Jeff winding down their careers and noted that he hopes they end up back in WWE. Here are highlights:

On how he wants their careers to end: “I would like to do TNA and have a hell of a run there, and then I almost feel like now, just the destiny has revealed itself in many ways, I almost feel Jeff and I, we end up returning to WWE, do something small and then go onto the Hall of Fame. That’s a best case scenario.”

On Jeff Hardy wanting to prove himself: “That’s a great question. I think Jeff really wanted to come back to TNA to continue to build equity, and he knows that TNA and WWE are working together. I have friends in the WWE, I have spoken with people in WWE. So I think Jeff just wants to once again just show people how he is a different human being. The way to put equity into that is to go to TNA, have a kickass run, and show people he’s on his best behavior.”

Source: 411Mania

The Latest On Jeff & Matt Hardy’s TNA Wrestling Status

Fightful Select has shared an update on the developments regarding The Hardy Boys.

Jeff Hardy returned to TNA Wrestling at Against Odds 2024 last Friday, reuniting with his brother Matt Hardy. Jeff’s AEW contract had reportedly expired at midnight on Friday, June 14, leading to his TNA return.

Matt and Jeff are currently free agents working in TNA without contracts. According to sources, there had been speculation about Jeff’s imminent appearance in TNA, although no official confirmation was provided before June 14.

Matt’s initial agreement with TNA was reportedly short-term; however, additional dates and plans have been included.

The report also mentions that there have been discussions about Reby Hardy potentially competing in a match, although this has not been confirmed. Reby last competed in a TNA match in 2016.

TNA sources expressed satisfaction with the post-show speech by The Hardys, Nic Nemeth, and Joe Hendry at Against All Odds 2024.

Source: eWn

Matt Hardy Teases A New Direction For The Hardys

On the latest episode of his “The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy” podcast, Matt Hardy discussed a wide range of topics.

During the podcast, Matt noted that fans will see the most realistic version of himself soon and teased a new direction for The Hardys. He said,

“Let them go nuts. Let them have fun. If you’re one of those fans online that get mad that all the internet wrestling reporters post stuff and make headlines because we talk about interesting viewpoints, interesting opinions, if you get mad about all that and you don’t like me and you think I’m a pariah, fine. Have it your way. There’s plenty of people that don’t, and those are the people that I am catering to now. Because once again, even at AEW, myself and Jeff, we’ve been very, very nice for a long time. We were willing to give back and give back and give back, but now, we really haven’t been shown the respect that we should have been getting all along, so now we’ll stop giving, and we’ll start taking. So we’re not becoming heel. We are becoming real. You are gonna see the most realistic version of Matt Hardy that you’ve ever seen coming up in the future.”

Source: eWn

Matt Hardy Provides Update On Jeff, Teases “Broken” Return

AEW wrestler Matt Hardy has provided an update on his brother Jeff, and continues to tease that his “Broken” character might be in the works.

Jeff Hardy has been off AEW television since June 14th, when he was written off due to an arrest for driving under the influence and then beginning rehab. Since then, we haven’t had many updates about Jeff’s progress until now.

Speaking on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, Matt was asked about Jeff and he had the following to say, “He’s basically been doing the same thing he’s been doing. He’s doing exactly what he needs to be doing to get where he needs to be in life. More or less, we’ve just got to get these legal issues behind him before we move forward, so that’s kind of where we’re at with Jeff, and we’re hoping that happens sooner rather than later.”

Matt has continued to appear on AEW television since his brother’s absence, teaming with Private Party and being absorbed into The Firm. Hardy and his Firm cohort Ethan Page have had their issues of late, which has led to Matt teasing a return of his “Broken” persona. When asked about it, Hardy said,

“I can say I am not a big fan of Ethan Page. I think he’s an a**hole. Very creative guy. I do think he’s an a**hole. It’s hard to call him an FI because he’s got a pretty good head on his shoulders, he just uses it for all the wrong things. So yeah, there’s was a point in there where I snapped a little bit. It could have been a flash of Damascus popping out of my mortal vessel. I don’t know. If we continue along this same path, and he keeps punishing and doing things to Private Party that negatively affects their career, then I might end up ‘Broken’ before it’s all said and done. I promise you, Ethan Page – if we end up going down this avenue, this is going to be something you will regret.”

Source: EWrestlingNews

Backstage News On AAA TripleMania Main Event Plans Follow Jeff Hardy’s Arrest

AAA are still hoping to have Matt Hardy involved in the main event of TripleMania this weekend, according to Dave Meltzer on the latest edition of “Wrestling Observer Radio.”

The Hardy were scheduled to compete in the main event of the show this Saturday in Tijuana against Dragon Lee and Dralistico, but that match is now up in the air due to the recent news of Jeff Hardy being arrested for a DUI emerging. But, the company does still want Matt to be involved, and they would ideally like to find a new partner for him.

As of now, nobody has been determined for that, as it is short notice for someone to make that trip, but they have reportedly asked for a bunch of guys as AAA are hopeful of making this match work still. There is still no confirmation on the match happening though, including Matt’s status.

Jeff was reportedly bonded out of jail Monday evening with a $3,500 bond being paid via the assistance of a bail bondsman. He was previously slated to appear in court Tuesday at 1:30 pm ET, but that appearance is currently listed as “canceled.”

The Hardys were originally scheduled to compete at “AEW Dynamite” this week in a triple threat ladder match for the AEW Tag Team Championships, and the status of that encounter is still up in the air as well. The company has reportedly asked Warner Bros to pull all advertising of this match and Jeff in general, but no official statement has yet to be made by AEW or Tony Khan on this situation.

The lineup for TripleMania this weekend is as follows:

* The Hardys vs. Dragon Lee & Dralistico (This is currently up in the air)

* Ruleta de la Muerte Semifinal: Villano IV vs. Psycho Clown (The loser advances to the finals)

* Ruleta de la Muerte Semifinal: Blue Demon Jr. vs. Pentagon Jr. (The loser advances to the finals)

* AAA World Cruiserweight Champion Laredo Kid vs. Rey Fenix vs. Hijo del Vikingo vs. AAA Latin American Champion Black Taurus vs. Bandido

* Elimination Cage Match: Chik Tormenta vs. Sexy Star II vs. Reina Dorada vs. Lady Shani vs. La Hiedra vs. Lady Maravilla vs. Flammer vs. another competitor to be announced.

* Final Elimination Cage winners will face each other in a Mask vs. Mask Match

* TripleMania Cup: Competitors TBA

Matt Hardy Breaks His Silence On Jeff Hardy’s Arrest

Matt Hardy has issued his first statement since his brother Jeff Hardy was arrested yesterday morning in Volusia County, FL. Jeff was pulled over and later incarcerated following several charges which included his third DUI in ten years and on Tuesday his older brother took to Twitter to comment on the well-being of his brother.

“It was disheartening to hear the news about my brother yesterday,” Matt tweeted. “Recovery isn’t a linear process & I’ll continue doing whatever I can to help my brother be healthy. Being healthy & well is the most important thing for Jeff, his wife, his children & our family at this time.”

https://twitter.com/MATTHARDYBRAND/status/1536725719451160578

Jeff was bonded out of jail on Monday evening after paying $3,500 bond via the assistance of a bail bondsman. According to PWInsider, Hardy was slated for a court appearance later today, but that court appearance is currently listed as canceled.

The Hardys were set to participate in a three-way ladder match this Wednesday at “AEW Road Rager” for the Tag Team Titles against The Young Bucks and the Champions Jungle Express, but since Jeff’s arrest, that match has been pulled. In addition, it’s being reported that AEW has requested WarnerMedia to remove Hardy from any promotional material moving forward.

Matt and Jeff were also scheduled to compete at AAA TripleMania against Dragon Lee and Dralistico, but that match has also been pulled. Dave Meltzer is reporting that AAA would still like Matt Hardy to compete on the card and would ultimately like to find him a new partner to work with.

Jeff Hardy first showed up in AEW on the March 9 episode of “AEW Dynamite” in an effort to help his brother Matt. He has since competed in tag matches and was a singles participant in the Owen Hart Cup. The last match he worked was a tag team match against The Young Bucks at Double or Nothing.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE And GFW Assigned Trademark Attorneys For Matt And Jeff Hardy

WWE’s applications for trademarks relating to Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy filed on June 19 were assigned to a trademark attorney on July 27, according to PWInsider. This means they’ll bypass the three-month wait period that applies to most applications.

Global Force Wrestling’s applications for trademarks relating to the Hardys were filed on April 28 and were also assigned to a trademark attorney on July 27.

WWE’s application for Matt Hardy received an initial refusal due to potential confusion with the “Broken Matt Hardy” application, which was filed first by Hardy himself. All other actions will be frozen until Matt’s application is finalized. A similar situation happened with GFW’s application.

Both of WWE’s applications also received an initial refusal due to WWE not providing consent from Matt and Jeff to trademark their respective names. They quickly responded with consent from both of them.

WWE’s application for a trademark on the Hardy Boyz name was filed in April and is set to be published for opposition to the public at the end of August.

Source: WrestlingINC

Update On GFW – ‘Broken’ Universe Trademarks

All four Broken Universe-related trademarks that Global Force Wrestling filed for registration have been given an initial refusal by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), according to PWInsider.

The trademarks, originally filed by TNA Entertainment (prior to the name change/re-brand), were refused for a variety of reasons.

Matt Hardy filed the trademark for “Broken Matt Hardy” first, which the USPTO could see as confusingly similar. If GFW is going to get it, they’ll have to prove there is no conflict between the two. They’ll also need to indicate whether “Broken Matt” refers to a living person and if it does, Matt will have to sign off. Since Matt filed the trademark first, his application will hold precedence.

The trademark for “Brother Nero” was refused because Global Force Wrestling failed to indicate whether or not it was to identify a living person. If it does, they will need the consent of Jeff Hardy, whose legal middle name is Nero.

The trademark for “Broken Brilliance” was refused because GFW failed to specify whether or not the term has any significance in professional wrestling or if it is just a “term of art” in the wrestling business.

It’s likely the trademark for “Vanguard1” was refused because it is confusingly similar to a non wrestling-related trademark.

Further, all four trademarks also received initial refusal because the wordings used for identification and classification of goods and services in the initial filing were too broad. The USPTO requested additional clarification.

Source: WrestlingINC

Impact Wrestling President Releases Portion Of Matt Hardy’s Contract, Reby Hardy Sends Threats

The issues between the Hardys and Impact Wrestling got even uglier tonight. Impact Wrestling President Ed Nordholm sent PWInsider a log of the communications between the company and Matt Hardy over the ownership of the “Broken” gimmick. Nordholm included an alleged four-page excerpt from Hardy’s contract and highlighted passages which stated that the company owns all intellectual property after their relationship ended.

Nordholm also posted an email exchange with a WWE employee who stated that WWE had “no interest” in getting involved with acquiring the gimmick.

Below is the email that Nordholm sent to PWInsider:

Good afternoon,In response to on-going speculation concerning our position with respect to the “Broken Brilliance” creative, I am providing this detailed log of our communications on the subject and the contractual structure of our relationship with Matt Hardy with respect to intellectual property matters (which is standard to our roster and in the industry).

There has never been any argument from Impact Wrestling that the Hardy’s were key contributors to the development of the characters and story line, or that Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy executed on their roles in spectacular fashion. But the position taken by the Hardys is a massive disservice to the contributions of the rest of the creative team at Impact Wrestling, including Jeremy Borash, Dave Lagano (sic), Matt Conway and Billy Corgan, and is totally at odds with the terms of their contracts.

The Hardys would have you believe that Anthem is somehow avoiding their lawyers to address this. This is the log of our communications with the Hardys and/or their lawyers. It is clear that we have not been avoiding them.

* March 10 – EBN speaks with executives at ROH about “Broken Brilliance” being used in ROH shows. I indicated willingness to provide an arrangement that would allow the creative to be used in ROH shows and encouraged ROH to have Matt speak with me if he wanted to pursue that discussion
* March 11 – EBN spoke at length with Matt by telephone about the structure of an amicable arrangement for use of the Broken Brilliance creative
* March 14 – Matt sent text message to Ed Nordholm at 4:05pm:

“Tried giving you a call, it rang & went busy. I’m open to working things out amicably as we spoke about. The lawyer who represent me is interested in seeing your offer. My lawyer’s email is {redacted} which you could send the offer to for review. Thanks.”

And I responded by text at 6:41 pm

“Thank you Matt. I was supposed to be [flying] into NYC today and am a little twisted. I will pull something together with [our] lawyers and try to get it over to your lawyer tomorrow or Thursday at latest”

* March 16 – At 8:25 pm I sent an update text to Matt:

“Hi Matt. My lawyer got me a draft too late to get reviewed for today. I will look at it in the morning. Sorry for the delay”

And he responded at 9:16 pm

“Ok, he’s ready for it. Thanks for the update.”

* March 17 – counsel for Anthem Wrestling delivered draft proposal to counsel for Matt Hardy
* March 24 – counsel for Anthem Wresting followed up with Matt Hardy counsel requesting comments on the proposal
* March 27 – counsel for Matt Hardy responds that they have been away and have not reviewed the proposal but will be back “in the next few days”

After which no further communication until

* April 18 – counsel for Matt Hardy leaves a voice mail message for counsel for Anthem Wrestling asking to arrange a meeting
* April 20 – EBN contacts WWE by email to determine veracity of internet rumours concerning WWE interest in Broken Brilliance
* April 21 — WWE respond by email that there “is no interest on our end” {redacted email exchange attached}
* April 21 – counsel for Matt Hardy sends a follow up message requesting a meeting
* April 27 – lawyers speak to arrange a meeting
* May 16 – lawyers meet but no agreement reached

Finally, I am attaching a copy of the relevant provisions of Matt’s contract with Impact. The clause is virtually identical to the corresponding provisions of every wrestler under contract with Impact.

The facts are that we tried to accommodate the Hardys for their Ring of Honour engagements, and have tried to elicit an indication from WWE whether they have an interest in using the Broken Brilliance creative in WWE. We are not hoarding it from WWE; WWE is not interested in it.

We fully respect the decision of Matt and Jeff to return to WWE and appreciate all of their contributions to Impact Wrestling. We wish them every success.

Our focus is on the future and we will not have any further public comment on this matter.

Ed Nordholm

Reby Hardy responded to Nordholm’s leaks and timeline of events, and threatened to release some of their phone calls, as seen below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: WrestlingINC

Reby Hardy Contacts Lawyer Regarding Impact Drama, Matt Hardy On TNA Never Paying Senor Benjamin

Image result for Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Reby Hardy & Senor Benjamin

Matt and Reby Hardy continue to battle publicly with Impact Wrestling regarding the ownership of the “Broken” gimmick. In an interview with the LAW earlier this week, which is owned by Anthem, the parent company of Impact Wrestling, Impact Wrestling president Ed Nordholm said that it was “unquestionable” that they owned the gimmick.

“I think it’s unquestionable that the ownership of the characters in the storyline resides in Impact Wrestling,” Nordholm said. “I don’t think even the Hardys would dispute that. They’ve all signed contracts. Their contracts are standard contracts. Not only in the wrestling industry, but in the entertainment industry, generally, the producer of the show owns the content and it doesn’t really matter who in the creative team came up with the idea of what the character should be. The person that owns the storyline and the character is the person who invested to take that idea and put it on TV. That’s what we did. Impact put those characters on TV, and the contracts with those people are indisputably contracts that provide their IP to Impact.”

Impact Wrestling Creative Consultant to Head of Creative Dutch Mantel, who has been bickering with the Hardys on Twitter lately, responded to Nordholm’s comments and thanked him for “clearing it up.”

Matt Hardy’s wife, Reby, responded to the former Zeb Colter (Dutch Mantel) and shared a text message that she sent to her attorney, as seen below:

Matt chimed in, noting that Senor Benjamin was never paid by the company despite being promised, and he never signed a release to allow the company to air footage with his likeness:

Source: WrestlingINC