Jeff Hardy Blames Himself For AEW Run Fiasco

The Hardys were recently guests on the Ariel Helwani show. In conversation, Helwani brought up their AEW run, asking the duo about why it never took off.

“My personal problems. Getting in trouble with the law. I think I never got a fair chance to redeem myself. Coming back, at least that’s how I felt. I totally understood why they didn’t want to give me that chance,” Jeff said taking the blame.

He made his AEW debut in 2022, saving his brother Matt from an attack by Team AHFO. With a stellar entrance and with equally intriguing performances in the subsequent Dynamite episodes, wrestling aficionados were certain that the younger Hardy will leave a mark. However, things quickly took a left turn weeks later when AEW president, Tony Khan, announced that Hardy was indefinitely suspended without pay after being arrested for driving under the influence.

Notably in a report filed by the Florida Highway Patrol, when Hardy was asked to pull over, he seemed “confused, belligerent, and smelled of alcohol”. Moreover, he was unable to complete any of the field sobriety tests and had a blood alcohol level of 0.291, well above Florida’s legal limit of 0.08.

Jeff Hardy was warned by AEW that he would only be invited back only if he completed his alcohol rehabilitation treatment and maintained his sobriety. While he made his comeback in 2023, it did not last long. While Hardy acknowledged his mistakes, he admitted that he didn’t get a fair chance because of that.

“They probably can’t trust me. I’m just a liability. I was telling myself all these terrible things about getting what I got and getting arrested again. There is so much guilt and shame involved in that. Naturally, I beat myself up about it. I just don’t think we ever had a fair chance because of that. I blame myself all the time,” he said.

“He Did Pretty Good To Prove Himself”

Matt, on the other hand, was quick to come to his brother’s support. During the same interview, he mentioned that Jeff tried his best to prove himself, despite not being given the adequate opportunities to do so.

“That probably factors into things, I think. He was back and I feel like he did pretty good to prove himself. I figured there would be a little bit of a testing period with him,” he said. “I figured they would at least have us in the ring and if we’re doing something together, it would be a hell of a segment because there is so much value in the four of us being together because of our history. It didn’t happen…I don’t know if all of us factored in.”