Matt Hardy
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Matthew Moore Hardy (born September 23, 1974 in Cameron, North Carolina) is a professional wrestler. He worked for World Wrestling Entertainment on the RAW brand until April 2005. He performed as a singles wrestler under the name Matt Hardy - Version 1.0.
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Career
Before his then-WWF debut with his brother Jeff, Matt was trained by former wrestler Dory Funk, Jr. Before signing with the WWF, Matt and Jeff ran their own wrestling promotion, OMEGA Wrestling, in which Matt competed under the name High Voltage. Other wrestlers associated with OMEGA include Christopher Daniels, the future Lita, Shannon Moore and The Hurricane. Once signed, the brothers formed an acrobatic tag team and became known as The Hardy Boyz. Although they had several managers during their tag team run, the five-time WWE Tag Team Champions were most prominently accompanied to the ring by Lita. The three together became known as "Team Extreme." Hardy and Lita were an off-screen couple for six years, and used to share a home in North Carolina. Unfortunately, their romance came to an end in late February 2005 (according to Matt's official website) due to Lita's affair with fellow WWE superstar Edge.
On the August 12, 2002 episode of RAW, Matt turned against Jeff, pitting him in a match against Rob Van Dam. A short time later he joined the SmackDown! roster. On the October 3, 2002 edition of the show, Matt used outside interference from Brock Lesnar to defeat The Undertaker.
With his MF'er (Mattitude Follower) Shannon Moore in his corner, Matt defeated Billy Kidman at the 2003 No Way Out in Montreal, Quebec to claim the WWE Cruiserweight Championship and, at WrestleMania XIX in Seattle, defended it against Rey Mysterio. The Mattitude stable also included the late Crash Holly as Shannon Moore's "Moore-on." Matt later disbanded the stable and returned to RAW in order to be able to travel and work with then-girlfriend, Lita.
Along with his friend Rhyno, Matt Hardy was released by WWE on April 11, 2005. Matt's release was officially due to his public handling of the Lita/Edge incident (posting disparaging remarks towards Edge on his website) his release was confirmed publicly by WWE. It has also been speculated that Hardy was going to confront Edge during a RAW episode, but these claims are largely unfounded. However, it was further speculated that Hardy was released because management did not generally like him, and an excuse to fire him had been presented. In fact, Triple H, allegedly said of Hardy's release: "he never drew money anyway." Hardy countered this statement in an online interview stating that he and his brother Jeff, as the Hardy Boyz, had been top sellers of merchandise.
It should be noted that some people believe that Hardy's release is part of an elaborate work. The WWE have frequently referenced the Hardy situation on televised broadcasts, whereas normally they would not acknowledge real-life situations which reflected badly on the WWE onscreen. However, given Matt's vitriolic interviews and the fact that Edge's wife accused him of steroid abuse, this seems increasingly unlikely.
Matt Hardy has released two character promotional vignettes, that he was planning to use unless a return deal to the WWE comes together. Hardy is now calling himself The Angelic Diablo with the tagline "the scar will become a symbol" in reference to the way in which he has been treated by WWE/Lita.
Hardy's first wrestling appearance since his release will be the July 16 Ring Of Honor show in Woodbridge, Connecticut, where he will face Christopher Daniels.
On the June 20 edition of RAW, during the storyline wedding of Edge and Lita, Matt Hardy's entrance music and video were played when the priest asked if anyone had a reason why the wedding should not go on. Moments later, it was revealed as a joke played by Edge and Lita.
Trademarks
- Signature finishing move: The Twist of Fate (a slight variation of the three-quarter facelock bulldog)
- Other signature techniques include the Side Effect (Side Slam variation), a Northern Lights Suplex, and a Middle-Rope Leg Drop that is dubbed the "Downfall"
- Had a computerized entrance thanks to editing via television effects.
MattFacts
As Matt Hardy "Version 1.0," he has enlightened his fans weekly in the WWE with an always-expanding set of MattFacts. Presented below are some selections.
- Matt has beaten The Undertaker two straight times.
- Matt Hardy was the Fear Factor Champion.
- Matt is a good juggler.
- Matt has wrestled in 44 states.
- Matt was the MVP of the '99 No Mercy Ladder Match.
- Matt thinks Michael Cole is biased (stated while doing commentary).
- Matt was the longest-lasting Smackdown! superstar in the 2003 Royal Rumble.
- Matt is the star of the Hardy Boyz book, Exist 2 Inspire.
- Matt has a valuable Spider-Man comic book collection.
- Matt is appearing in his fourth Wrestlemania. (during Wrestlemania XIX)
- Matt's book is on the New York Times best-sellers list.
- Matt has status on FIVE airlines.
- Matt strongly dislikes mustard.
- Matt has a heated toilet seat.
- Matt loves Mongolian Barbecue.
- Matt hates cleaning his carpet.
- Matt has never locked his keys in his car.
- Matt thinks sweet potatoes are delicious.
- Matt usually exceeds the speed limit.
- Matt is annoyed by snow and ice.
- Matt has wrestled with strep throat.
- Matt defeated Kidman and Rey Mysterio on consecutive pay-per-views.
- Matt eats slowly to savor his food.
- Matt's favorite sushi is freshwater eel
- Matt loves corduroy clothing.
- Matt likes pepper better than salt.
- Matt digs tortilla soup.
- Matt can eat more sushi than Tajiri.
- Matt has never betrayed a close friend
- Matt has more money than you.
- Matt's countertops are all granite
- Matt hates being lied to and having his trust broken.
- Matt thinks he is a sexy beast
- Matt thinks the text messaging is very efficient.
- Matt is a huge fan of Arizona.
Title History
- WWF World Tag Team Champion (5)
- 6/29/99-7/25/99 (with Jeff Hardy)
- 9/24/00-10/22/00 (with Jeff Hardy)
- 10/23/00-11/6/00 (with Jeff Hardy)
- 3/5/01-3/19/01 (with Jeff Hardy)
- 11/12/01-11/18/01 (with Jeff Hardy)
- WCW World Tag Team Champion (1)
- 10/18/01-10/23/01 (with Jeff Hardy)
- WWF European Champion (1)
- 4/24/01-8/27/01
- WWE Cruiserweight Champion (1)
- 2/23/03-6/3/03
- WWF Hardcore Champion (1)
- 4/24/00-4/25/00
- OMEGA Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Championship (1)
- 12/5/97-12/1/98
- OMEGA Pro Wrestling Tag Team Championship (1)
- 7/24/98-1/29/99 (with Jeff Hardy)
- NWA 2000 Tag Team Championship (1)
- 3/7/98-6/29/98 (with Jeff Hardy)
- NCW Light Heavyweight Championship (2)
- 7/24/97-12/1/98
- ???-???
- NEWA Heavyweight Championship (1)
- 5/8/95-???
- NFWA Tag Team Championship (1)
- 4/??/95-??? (with Venom)
- NDW Light Heavyweight Championship (1)
- 7/17/98-???
Awards
- Matt has won three PWI Awards. He won Tag Team of the Year in 2000 with Jeff. He also was part of the Match of the Year in 2000 and 2001. Both matches were the Hardy Boyz vs. the Dudley Boyz vs. Edge and Christian.
Books
- Hardy, Jeff; Hardy, Matt; and Krugman, Michael (2003) The Hardy Boyz : Exist 2 Inspire, ISBN: 0060521546
References
- WWE releases Hardy, Rhyno (http://www.wwe.com/inside/news/20050411_rhynohardy.jsp). Retrieved Apr 11 2005.
External links
- Official site (http://www.thematthardy.com)
- Template:Imdb name
- "Angelic Diablo" promo (http://www.motoxdvd.com/AngelicDiablo.html)