WWE superstars haven’t had the best year in terms of releases from the company and drama in the headlines, and it appears yet another popular superstar is in the news after a concerning incident. The WWE reportedly sent veteran Jeff Hardy home from its current tour after a concerning incident during a match at a recent live event.
The WWE performed in Edinburg, Texas, on Saturday, December 4th, and featured a match in which Xavier Woods, Drew McIntyre, and Jeff Hardy were in a three-way tag match against Roman Reigns and the Usos. Hardy allegedly appeared sluggish during his entrance, and that behavior continued through the course of the match. Footage of the event showed Hardy moving slowly around the ring and falling in a way that appeared unnatural and out of sync with the usual appearance he gives fans.
Jeff Hardy eventually tagged out of the ring, but what occurred after seemed the even more bizarre. Hardy jumped the barricade and made his way into the audience, and security quickly followed behind. Check out the video of the moment, which occurs around the 10:50 mark.
PWInsider.com later reported that the WWE sent Jeff Hardy home following the incident and that Hardy was not present at the following night’s performance in Corpus Christi, Texas. Rey Mysterio stepped into Hardy’s place for the match the next night.
It’s unclear what occurred with Jeff Hardy, but obviously, there’s some concern in the wrestling community about his well-being. Hardy publicly admitted past struggles with alcoholism, and he recently confirmed (via Broken Skull Sessions) his past release from the WWE in 2003 was in part due to drug addiction and a refusal to go to rehab. Again, it’s unknown if any of this incident involves anything of that nature, but given the odd behavior and the star's openness in terms of talking about his past, it's worth mentioning.
Jeff Hardy’s been in and out of the WWE a couple of times but has been with the company in this latest stint since 2017. He’s still wildly popular with fans, even currently where he’s performing without working in the same organization as his brother, Matt Hardy.
Jeff Hardy is considered one of the all-time greats of the wrestling business, so it’s hard to imagine fan love for him will ever fade, but with his unexpected absence, there are some questions about his future in the WWE. In a year in which around 80 superstars were sent packing for budget cuts, one has to wonder: If Hardy is having problems, how will the WWE respond to that? We can only wait and see, and of course, hope for the best for Hardy, whatever the circumstances may be.
Monday Night Raw airs over at USA on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. ET, and SmackDown airs on Fox at the same time on Fridays. Hopefully, we see Jeff Hardy back in action soon and can look back on this incident as just a weird bump in the road in an otherwise great run for the wrestler.
