Matt Hardy defends WWE

On SmackDown before SummerSlam, John Cena officially ended run as a heel in WWE and went back to being the popular babyface that fans have known for so long. He competed in a high-stakes instant classic match with Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam, pulling out all the stops before finally losing the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Cena would receive a standing ovation after the match.The surprise appearance of Brock Lesnar and him attacking Cena, finally put an end to what had been an indifferent run since his heel turn at the Elimination Chamber.

While many have criticized WWE for its handling of Cena's heel run, tag team legend Matt Hardy has come out and appreciated the promotion for giving it a shot. Speaking on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy, he shared his thoughts on the entire angle.

“It was an experiment. It was an attempt to do something, and I applaud him for trying it. Who knows if something is going to catch on fire or not. You know, he’d been such a polarizing figure, where he was cheered and he was booed, but they attempted it, and I can’t wrong them for attempting it. I can’t wrong John for doing that,” he said. [1:00:38-1:00:57]

Matt Hardy also mentioned how fans feel a connection with John Cena and they still love him. He added that he appreciated WWE rolling the dice with him, but when they realized it wasn't working, they course corrected and "made things right."

John Cena's next WWE match is official

After being attacked at SummerSlam by a returning Brock Lesnar following his match with Cody Rhodes, many fans believed Cena's next opponent would be The Beast.

However, on SmackDown things took a different turn. As John Cena opened the show to address the fans and challenged Lesnar, he was interrupted by Logan Paul.

After exchanging words, Paul challenged John Cena to a match, saying he wanted the legend at Clash in Paris. Following SmackDown, the match was made official for the premium live event on August 31.

If you use quotes from this article, please credit The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.

About the author

Sherjeel Malik is a writer at Sportskeeda and covers pro wrestling. He was hooked on the product from the moment he saw The Hardy Boyz jumping off ladders during the Attitude Era. While he comes from an engineering background, Sherjeel’s love for pro wrestling and content writing led him to pursue a career in sports journalism. Before assuming his current role at Sportskeeda, Sherjeel worked at other reputable organizations for five years.

While writing articles, he ensures that he only relies on credible sources for information and covers relevant subjects that do not project an agenda against a particular person or association. WWE legend Paul Heyman once shared Sherjeel’s work on his social media handle.

Sherjeel’s earliest memory of pro wrestling is watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker square off for the WWE Title in the main event of a pay-per-view in 1998. His favorite wrestlers are Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy. While he admires Orton for his character work as a heel, he looks up to Jeff because of his unique wrestling style and risk-taking ability.

If he could go back to the Attitude Era, Sherjeel would like to manage Ken Shamrock and be his mouthpiece. He feels Shamrock’s promo skills prevented him from becoming a main event-level act in WWE. Hence, he would like to help the UFC Hall of Famer get over with fans.

When not writing about pro wrestling, he likes to read classics and fiction books.

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Edited by Arsh Das