What’s the story?
Matt and Jeff Hardy may currently be the RAW Tag Team Champions, but it is unlikely that the nostalgia act is going to last longer than it has to. Wrestling Observer Newsletter has reported that whilst Matt may well segue into using the ‘Broken’ gimmick in the near future, Jeff may well be in line for a major main event push.
Vince McMahon is reportedly still extremely high on The Charismatic Enigma, and matches against Finn Bálor and WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar are very much on the table.
In case you didn’t know...
The Hardy Boyz returned to WWE at WrestleMania 33, entering the RAW Tag Team Championship ladder match to everyone’s surprise and managing to pull out the victory along the way. The reception the brothers received in Orlando was staggering, and almost a decade after they left, most fans are thrilled to see Matt and Jeff back home.
The duo still holds the RAW Tag Team Championship, but the prevailing feeling is that they have long outgrown teaming with each other and is arguably more suited to singles roles in the company in 2017. Matt reinvented himself in 2016 as Broken Matt Hardy, with Jeff eventually following suit as Brother Nero.
Those gimmicks are expected to make it to WWE eventually, but Jeff may well not require it.
The heart of the matter
It is somewhat easy to forget, but when Jeff Hardy left WWE in 2009, he was one of the most popular babyfaces in all of professional wrestling. A three-time former world champion in WWE, Jeff Hardy has a singles pedigree that is difficult to ignore.
The Rainbow Haired Warrior took on Cesaro in singles action this past Monday, and the commentary team went to great lengths to talk him up as an individual star. This could mean that a major run in the future could be a possibility.
The WWE roster has changed a lot over the last eight years, and as such a whole host of fascinating and fresh matches are available to Jeff and the booking team. Fans have thought of Jeff Hardy taking on Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler or Shinsuke Nakamura for years – now they might get the chance to see these matches happen.
Reports suggest that Vince McMahon is particularly keen on booking Hardy against two of the three WWE Universal Champions to date, Finn Bálor and Brock Lesnar.
What’s next?
As of right now, The Hardy Boyz are the RAW Tag Team Championships. They will defend those titles against Cesaro & Sheamus at Payback, and whilst they might not drop them then and there, it is unlikely that the brothers will go on to threaten The New Day’s record reign.
If WWE is to schedule another draft for 2017, it would be no surprise to see the brothers go their separate ways, and for Jeff to get a major push later in the year.
Author’s take
Jeff Hardy was a huge deal when he left WWE back in 2009, and there is obviously still a lot of gas left in the tank when it comes to Jeff as a singles star. My only worry would be his physical condition.
Jeff is 39-years-old and has been wrestling for 24 of those, taking some of the biggest risks imaginable in mainstream professional wrestling. Reports suggest he is banged up, and a major singles main event run may well put unnecessary pressure on his bones. The man deserves it though, without a doubt. Time will tell.
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