WWE Fired Matt Hardy Then Turned The Scandal Into A Storyline

By 2005, WWE had found itself in a comfort zone. The Monday Night Wars were long over, the Attitude Era was through, the PG Era was still not quite a thing, and John Cena was beginning to turn into WWE's next top star, despite the fact that fans were starting to turn on him. Beyond that, it was business as usual for WWE, which made it the appropriate time for things to be shaken up a bit. And that's exactly what happened when a real life scandal involving three long-time WWE stars became one of the top stories of the year. It would lead to a firing, a re-hiring, the whole situation being adapted into a storyline, and, when it was all said and done, the creation of a new top heel within WWE's hierarchy.

If one is familiar with 2000's wrestling lore, they'll know that Matt Hardy and WWE Hall of Famer Lita were a long-time couple; they'll also know that despite being rivals in the ring, Hardy was close friends in real life with Edge, aka Adam Copeland. As such, they'll also remember that the friendship was shattered early in 2005, when Hardy learned that Lita and Edge had developed something a little bit deeper than friendship. Recovering from an injury at the time, Hardy channeled his pain over the breakup by lashing out at Lita and Edge through the internet; soon, wrestling fans became aware of the story, resulting in Edge and Lita receiving hostile reactions from crowds, with Lita in particularly taking the brunt of some rather sexist taunts. Those reactions were also inspired by WWE's decision to fire Hardy while he was still injured, blaming him for the commotion, and turning him into even more of a martyr.

In most professions, the story ends there. But this is wrestling. The noise and support for Hardy only got louder as he waited out his 90 day noncompete clause, and it became apparent WWE was second guessing their choice. Soon, Lita and Edge were paired together onscreen as a couple while they feuded with Kane. Then WWE teased Hardy's return during Edge and Lita's onscreen wedding by playing his theme song to a massive reaction. If it was all a focus group to see if fans truly wanted Hardy back, it worked; he returned to WWE on July 11, attacking Edge in angle that blurred the lines something fierce. Throw in Hardy's Ring of Honor appearances over the next month, which he plugged during his "Raw" return, Hardy calling into WWE's internet program "Byte This" to argue with Lita, and more surprise attacks on Edge in a similar vein over the next several weeks, and WWE successfully turned the Edge-Hardy-Lita saga into a worked shoot.

Ultimately, the storyline saw Hardy and Edge wrestle four singles matches against each other between SummerSlam and the October 3, 2005 edition of "Raw." Though Hardy picked up a victory over Edge in a Steel Cage match in September, it was Edge who emerged victorious in the feud, winning the SummerSlam match and the ladder match, which banished Hardy to "SmackDown." In the end, it was hard to argue Edge benefited the most, even though the angle was rough on him. While Hardy's continued to have a successful career, and Lita became a WWE Hall of Famer, Edge would use the heat from fans to become WWE's central antagonist, becoming an 11 time World Champion and WWE Hall of Famer, who continues to wrestle today for AEW. Despite success prior, it's hard to argue that the real life scandal turned wrestling storyline didn't wind up helping Edge take the next step in his career.