Matt Hardy is enjoying his time as a free agent.
Earlier this month, it was confirmed that Hardy had entered into free agency following the expiration of his AEW contract. Hardy, who was offered a new AEW deal, said he was still interacting with the promotion and had not ruled out returning.
Hardy spoke about the free agency process on the latest episode of his Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast (Patreon early release), noting that he's having a great time and isn't in a rush to sign anywhere:
Incredibly enjoying it. I'm having a great time. It's like, this might spoil me a little bit. You know, like, I'm in no huge rush to sign anything to be an official employee. I'm digging what I'm doing. I had a couple signings these last couple weeks. WrestleCon was off the chart with me and Jeff, and I think most people know that. It was insane. This last week, I had Astronomicon which was in Detroit. I did Saturday and Sunday there. It was crazy as well. Thank you to everyone who came out in Astronomicon. It was insane on Saturday, and both days were really, really good. It was great hooking up meeting so many people that are big Hardy supporters.
Yeah, man -- I'm enjoying this. And just being home, not having the stress of going to the airport, catching that early flight, whatever, it's been really nice. I think you'll see in my Matt Fact, I'm in no rush to leave the Hardy Compound.
Asked about teases he's been doing on social media hinting at a WWE return, Hardy said that, as a free agent, he's trying to create hype around himself. Hardy noted that he's been speaking with both AEW and WWE:
I mean, full disclosure, I am doing what I should be doing as a free agent -- creating hype around myself. Yes, I have been speaking with AEW constantly. I have been speaking with WWE. I’ve been speaking with several people across several different platforms. So I think the next couple of weeks are going to be fun. The next few weeks are going to be fun. As I said before, I think we’re getting to the point where we’re going to be doing some pretty cool stuff coming up.
So yeah, I am doing what I should be doing. And my job as a brand, which I have to look at myself as a brand, a lot of my social media stuff is 'Matt Hardy Brand.' My job as a brand is to promote myself and to create buzz around myself, and I feel like I do a pretty decent job with it whenever I am just able to kind of freelance and do whatever.
Though he's liked the freedom he's experienced as a free agent, Hardy said that hasn't dissuaded him from signing a contract. He does plan on choosing a team and signing somewhere.
Hardy debuted for AEW in 2020. His brother Jeff Hardy didn't join the company until 2022.
More must-reads: