Jeff Hardy

Jeffrey Nero Hardy (born August 31, 1977) is an American professional wrestler, painter and musician. He is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he is one-half of the TNA World Tag Team Champions in his fourth reign. He is also known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation/WWE and All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is a six-time world champion, the ninth Grand Slam champion in WWE and a 24-time tag team champion with his older brother Matt Hardy.

 Career 
Hardy says that Sting, The Ultimate Warrior, and Shawn Michaels were the reasons why he wanted to get into wrestling as a child. Jeff was on WWE (then known as the World Wrestling Federation, WWF) television as early as age 16. His first WWF match was against The 1-2-3 Kid and came on May 25, 1994 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Early on, Jeff, along with his brother Matt and friends, started their own wrestling organization, the TWF (Trampoline Wrestling Federation). In it they would perform many of the moves they saw on TV. The federation eventually became a part of a county fair in North Carolina, U.S.. Jeff, Matt, and friends then began to work for other independent wrestling companies. They drove all over the East Coast of the United States, working for many small companies.

 World Wrestling Federation/WWE 
 The Hardy Boyz (1998-2002) 
The Hardy brothers eventually caught the eyes of the World Wrestling Federation. Jeff was only 16 at the time. After being signed to a contract in 1998, they were trained by Dory Funk, Jr. in his Funkin' Dojo. They were trained with other notable wrestlers such as Kurt Angle, Christian, Test, and Matt Bloom. When the team was finally brought up to WWF TV, they formed the tag team called The Hardy Boyz. During this time, they were managed by Michael Hayes. In 1999, they fought mainly with Edge and Christian.

The team of Matt and Jeff won the WWF/E Tag Team Championship six times. Because of this, they would be known as one of the most successful tag teams in WWF/E history. In 2000, Matt and Jeff found a new manager in their real-life friend Lita. Together, the three became known as "Team Extreme".

Jeff was well known for his high risk stunts in many of the Hardy Boys' matches. He made a name for himself because of the risks he took during this time. In 2001, Jeff would also hold the WWF Intercontinental, Light Heavyweight and Hardcore Championships.

 Singles competition (2002-2003) 
After years in the tag team division, Jeff fought The Undertaker in a Ladder match for the Championship. Jeff did not win, but earned the Undertaker's respect. He competed for singles titles several times, but did not win.

Jeff was released from WWE on April 22, 2003. The reasons given for the release were Jeff's strange behavior, drug use, and not showing up for matches. Hardy also said "burn out" and the need for time off were reasons for leaving WWE.

 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2004-2006) 
He started wrestling in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling on June 23, 2004 at the TNA pay-per-view, the Second Anniversary Show. He was in a match against A.J. Styles for the X - Division title. The match ended in a no-contest when Kid Kash and Dallas interfered. Hardy returned to TNA on July 21 and was given a chance to fight for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Hardy challenged for the title on September 8 but lost to NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett.

 Return to WWE (2006-2009) 
On August 4 2006, WWE announced that Hardy was working with the company again. He returned on the August 21 episode of RAW. On the day of his return, Hardy defeated Edge by disqualification when Lita pulled Edge out of the ring. After failing to win the Intercontinental Championship from Johnny Nitro over the next few weeks, Hardy finally defeated Nitro to win his second Intercontinental Championship on the October 2 edition of RAW. On the November 6 episode of RAW, Hardy lost the Intercontinental Championship back to Nitro, but won it again on the November 13 edition of RAW. This started Hardy's third reign as Intercontinental Champion.

On the November 21 episode of ECW Jeff teamed with his brother Matt for the first time in almost five years to defeat the Full Blooded Italians.

Still feuding with Nitro in 2007, he was challenged once again at New Year's Revolution 2007 for the Intercontinental Championship. Hardy once again defeated Nitro. He later lost the title to Umaga. On the September 3 edition of RAW, Jeff successfully captured his 4th WWE Intercontinental Championship by defeating Umaga for the title. At Armageddon 2007, Hardy beat Triple H to get a WWE Championship match at the Royal Rumble. This match was seen to many as the most important match of Hardy's career, as his win against Triple H moved Hardy into the top level of the roster and the race for the WWE Championship. However, he lost to Randy Orton at the Royal Rumble. At No Way Out on February 17, Jeff Hardy came second in the Elimination Chamber match, being beaten by Triple H. He was going to WrestleMania XXIV to fight in the Money in the Bank ladder match. Jeff lost the Intercontinental Championship to Chris Jericho on the March 10 edition of RAW. The next day, it was confirmed that he had been put on 60-day suspension, as he failed his second drug test. This meant that he did not compete at WrestleMania.

Hardy returned in the May 12, 2008 edition of RAW, when General Manager William Regal told him he was to pay for his "sins" by fighting Umaga. He won with a "Whisper in the Wind". On December 14, 2008 at Armageddon, he won the WWE Championship, his first world championship. During the next month, he had several accidents, including a car accident and a pyrotechnics accident. Hardy's brother, Matt was revealed as the person behind the accidents, and interfered in his match at the Royal Rumble, causing Hardy to lose the WWE Championship to Edge. Matt defeated Hardy in an Extreme Rules match at WrestleMania XXV, but Hardy defeated Matt in an "I Quit" match at Backlash. At WWE Extreme Rules, Hardy defeated Edge in a ladder match to win the World Heavyweight Championship, but lost the championship immediately afterwards to CM Punk, who cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase. He then was in a two-month feud with CM Punk. Ultimately, he lost when he entered a Loser Leaves Town Match in a steel cage.

 Return to TNA (2010–2017) 
Hardy returned to TNA on January 4, 2010. On March 8, he saved Hulk Hogan and D'Angelo Dinero. He returned when he defeated the TNA World Heavyweight Champion AJ Styles in a non-title match. On April 4th, he was revealed as part of Hulk Hogan's team for Lockdown. At the event Team Hogan (Hardy, Abyss, Jeff Jarrett and Rob Van Dam) defeated Team Flair (Sting, Desmond Wolfe, Robert Roode and James Storm). On October 10, 2010, Hardy won the vacant TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Bound For Glory and became part of Hogan and Eric Bischoff's stable Immortal. This started Hardy's first long run as a heel. He held the title for 91 days, losing it to Mr. Anderson on January 9, 2011, before winning it back in a ladder match at Against All Odds on February 13, 2011. On February 24, he lost the title to Sting.

At No Surrender on September 9, 2012, he won the Bound for Glory Series for a right to a title match at Bound for Glory. There he defeated Austin Aries on October 14, 2012 and won the title for the third time. At Lockdown on March 10, 2013, he lost the title to Bully Ray. 

On March 9, 2014 at Lockdown, Hardy made his return under the ring name Willow. On July 24, Kurt Angle announced the return of Jeff Hardy with his old ring name. After his brother Matt returned to TNA, they formed a tag team again. On the April 17, 2015 edition of Impact, taped on March 14, The Hardys won an Ultimate X match for the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championship against Austin Aries and Bobby Roode, Bram and Ethan Carter III, and the Beatdown Clan (Kenny King and Low Ki). On May 8, 2015, the Hardys had to give up the TNA World Tag Team Championship because Jeff was injured and it was impossible for the Hardys to defend the titles. After his brother became a heel in 2016, they started a feud with each other. The feud ended on July 5, 2016, when Jeff lost to his brother, forcing Jeff to remove the Hardy name. For a while he performed under the ring name Brother Nero and had to serve as an assistant to Matt Hardy. The brothers then feuded against Decay (Abyss and Crazzy Steve) for the TNA World Tag Team Championship. At Bound for Glory, the Hardys defeated Decay in what was called "The Great War" to win the TNA World Tag Team Championship for a second time. On February 27, the Hardys announced they would leave TNA and the TNA World Tag Team Championships were vacated.

 Second return to WWE (2017–2021) 
On April 2, 2017, Jeff and his brother Matt made their surprise return to the WWE at WrestleMania 33. In a Fatal Four Way Tag Team Ladder Match against reigning champions Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows, The Bar (Cesaro & Sheamus) and Big Cass & Enzo Amore, the Hardy Boyz won the Raw Tag Team Championship. They lost the titles to The Bar at Extreme Rules on June 4, 2017 after a 63-day reign. On April 16, 2018, Hardy won the WWE United States Championship from Jinder Mahal on Raw. As part of the 2018 Superstar Shake-Up, Hardy and his championship moved from Raw to SmackDown. After 90 days, Hardy lost his United States title to Shinsuke Nakamura on July 15, 2018. On April 9, 2019, Hardy and his brother Matt won their ninth championship together in WWE: They beat The Usos for the SmackDown Tag Team Championship on the first edition of SmackDown after the major event WrestleMania 35. However, their reign ended after just 21 days as they gave up the titles because of an injury to Jeff. 

On March 13, 2020, almost after a year of his injury, Hardy made his comeback to SmackDown. On August 21, 2020, he won his fifth Intercontinental Championship. For this he defeated AJ Styles. The reign lasted 37 days and Hardy lost the title to Sami Zayn on September 27, 2020. On October 12, 2020, he moved to Raw in the WWE draft. On September 20, 2021, he won a match against Sheamus. This got him a chance at the United States Championship. On September 26, 2021, he fought in a triple threat match for the title at Extreme Rules, but reigning champion Damian Priest won the match. On October 1, 2021, he was drafted back to SmackDown in the WWE Draft. He was released by WWE on December 9, 2021. 

 All Elite Wrestling (2022–2024) 
Jeff Hardy debuted for AEW on the March 9, 2022 edition of Dynamite in Fort Myers, Florida. He saved his brother Matt from an attack by Andrade El Idolo, Private Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen), and The Butcher and The Blade. On June 14, AEW suspended Hardy after being arrested for driving under the influence the day before. He returned on April 12, 2023, saving his brother, Isiah Kassidy, and Hook from an attack by Lee Moriarty, Ethan Page, and Big Bill. On the February 14, 2024 episode of Rampage, Hardy was defeated by Sammy Guevara in a no disqualification match. This was Hardy's last AEW match, and his contract expired on June 14.

 Second return to TNA (2024–present) 
At Against All Odds on June 14, 2024, Hardy made his return to TNA. At Bound for Glory on October 26, The Hardys defeated The System (Brian Myers and Eddie Edwards) and ABC (Ace Austin and Chris Bey) in a three-way Full Metal Mayhem match to win their third TNA World Tag Team Championship.

 In wrestling 
 Finishing moves

 Reverse of Fate (Inverted facelock neckbreaker slam) - used rarely
 Spine Line (Armlock cloverleaf) – OMEGA; used as a regular move in TNA
 Swanton Bomb / The Swanton (High-angle senton bomb)
 Twist of Fate / Twist of Hate (Front facelock dropped either into a cutter or a stunner)
 Signature moves
 Alley Oop facebuster
 Baseball slide
 Diving clothesline, sometimes from the barricade
 Double leg drop to an opponent's midsection
 Handspring Stinger splash
 Hardyac Arrest (Rope-aided corner dropkick)
 Mule kick
 Plancha
 One-man Poetry in Motion
 While he is positioned at either the top rope or on another ladder, Hardy performs a diving leg drop or a splash after leapfrogging over a ladder
 Sitout inverted suplex slam
 Sitout jawbreaker
 Split leg pin
 Whisper in the Wind (Turnbuckle climb into a rebounded corkscrew senton to a standing opponent)
 Managers
 Gangrel
 Michael Hayes
 Lita
 Trish Stratus
 Terri

 Championships and accomplishments 
 All Star Wrestling (West Virginia)
 ASW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Broken Matt
 The Baltimore Sun
 Feud of the Year (2009) 
 The Crash
 The Crash Tag Team Championship (1 time)  – with Broken Matt
 House of Glory
 HOG Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 International Wrestling Cartel
 IWC Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 MCW Pro Wrestling
 MCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 National Championship Wrestling
 NCW Light Heavyweight Championship (4 times)
 New Dimension Wrestling
 NDW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 NDW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 New Frontier Wrestling Association
 NFWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 North East Wrestling
 NEW Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 NWA 2000
 NWA 2000 Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 OMEGA Championship Wrestling
OMEGA Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 OMEGA New Frontiers Championship (1 time)
 OMEGA Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Broken Matt/Matt Hardy>
 OMEGA Heavyweight Championship Tournament (2015)cite web|url= https://www.cagematch.net/?id=26&nr=3265&page=2
 Pro Wrestling Illustrated
 Comeback of the Year (2007, 2012, 2017) 
 Match of the Year (2000) with Matt Hardy vs. The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian in a triangle Ladder match at WrestleMania 2000
 Match of the Year (2001) with Matt Hardy vs. The Dudley Boyz and Edge and Christian in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match at WrestleMania X-Seven
 Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2008, 2009)
 Tag Team of the Year (2000) with Matt Hardy
 Ranked No. 7 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2013
 Ranked No. 418 of the top 500 greatest wrestlers in the PWI Years in 2003
 Ring of Honor
 ROH World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 Holy S*** Moment of the Decade (2010s) –  – with Matt Hardy
 Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
 TNA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)
 TNA World Tag Team Championship (4 times, current) – with Matt Hardy
NWA World Heavyweight Championship #1 Contender Tournament (2004)
TNA World Heavyweight Championship Tournament (2010)cite web|url= https://www.cagematch.net/?id=1&nr=54097
 TNA World Tag Team Championship Tournament (2015) – with Matt Hardy
TNA World Tag Team Championship #1 Contender Tournament (2014) – with Matt Hardy
 Bound for Glory Series (2012)
 Race for the Case (2017 – Green Case)
 TNA World Cup (2015) – with Gunner, Davey Richards, Rockstar Spud, Crazzy Steve and Gail Kim
 TNA World Cup (2016) – with Eddie Edwards, Jessie Godderz, Robbie E and Jade
 TNA Wrestler of the Year (2012)
 Universal Wrestling Association
 UWA World Middleweight Championship (1 time)
 World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE
 WWE Championship (1 time)
World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)
 WWF/E Intercontinental Championship (5 times)
 WWE European Championship (1 time)
 WWE United States Championship (1 time)
 WWF/E Hardcore Championship (3 times)
 WWF Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
 WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 WWE Raw Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 WWF/World Tag Team Championship (6 times) – with Matt Hardy
 WCW Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 NXT Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy
 18th Triple Crown Champion
 Ninth Grand Slam Champion (under original format; Ninth overall)
 Terri Invitational Tournament (1999) – with Matt Hardy
 Brisbane Cup (2007)https://www.cagematch.net/?id=26&nr=8314
 Slammy Award (2 times)
 Extreme Moment of the Year (2008) giving Randy Orton a Swanton Bomb from the top of the Raw set
 Extreme Moment of the Year (2009) jumping from a ladder onto CM Punk through the Spanish announce table at SummerSlam
 Wrestling Observer Newsletter
 Best Flying Wrestler (2000)
 Feud of the Year (2009) vs. CM Punk
 Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic (2008) WWE teasing a drug overdose to remove him from a Survivor Series title match
 Worst Worked Match of the Year (2011) vs. Sting at Victory Road
 Wrestling Superstar
 Wrestling Superstar Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Matt Hardy

 Notes 

 References 




 Other websites 


 The Hardy Show 
 The Hardy Show at MySpace

 Jeff Hardy at WrestlingRevealed.com 

Category:1977 births
Category:Living people
Category:All Elite Wrestling alumni
Category:American painters
Category:American professional wrestlers
Category:American rock musicians
Category:Former WWE wrestlers
Category:Sportspeople from North Carolina
Category:Total Nonstop Action Wrestling people