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Wrestling fans have reacted to a legendary wrestler showing off his shredded physique amidst WWE return speculations. The star in question is Matt Hardy.
The Sensei of Mattitude departed from AEW after a four-year stint in the promotion earlier this month. Despite being extended an offer by the Tony Khan-led company, Hardy has chosen to opt for free agency instead, and has been having conversations with both AEW and WWE.
Ever since he exited All Elite Wrestling, fans have been speculating on Matt Hardy's future in the industry. In recent weeks, the 49-year-old star has been seemingly teasing his interest in the return of Uncle Howdy on WWE programming.
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Hardy shares a memorable history with Howdy's brother, the late great Bray Wyatt, with whom The Broken One had held the RAW Tag Team Titles during his run in the Stamford-based promotion in 2018. Amid widespread conjecture suggesting that he may be WWE bound again, The Angelic Diablo took to X/Twitter to share a photograph of himself, showing off his ripped physique.
Fans reacted to Hardy's tweet, with several users speculating on his potential WWE comeback as well as on his potential alliance with the returning Uncle Howdy and Wyatt 6, a stable that was meant to be led by Bray Wyatt prior to his unfortunate passing.
The North Carolina native also received praise from several users for his remarkable physical condition, as well as from former WCW veteran Crowbar, Hardy's AHFO stablemate Jose the Assistant and AEW's ringside physician, Doc Sampson.
WWE legend Matt Hardy on AEW's failure to pull in more viewers
Matt Hardy is revered as a legend in pro wrestling for his groundbreaking in-ring performances and character work. He was a key player in AEW since his debut in 2020, and left the company this year after his contract expired.
All Elite Wrestling has received a lot of criticism due to the slump its product is experiencing in weekly ratings and the steady decline in live attendance figures. Several experts and veterans have shared their opinion on the subject, including Hardy, who claimed the promotion needed to cater to casual fans instead of a niche audience.
Speaking on the Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, the former US Champion said:
“I think that you have to appeal to more casual fans. I mean, I understand your mindset where AEW is built on the context of having great matches and having five star matches and bangers and whatever else since the place is very wrestling heavy. If you love wrestling, where the best wrestle, you know, they’ve even used that as a catchphrase.(...) I feel like sometimes AEW plays and caters to too much of a niche audience sometimes and I think they just need to broaden who they play to sometimes," Matt Hardy said. [H/T - WrestlingNews.co]
It remains to be seen what the future holds for Hardy.
Thoughts on Matt Hardy's physical shape at age 49? Sound off by hitting the discuss button!
