WWE SmackDown before SummerSlam 2020: 5 reasons why Jeff Hardy became the Intercontinental Champion

#4 A redemption arc for Jeff Hardy

An injury angle

The way Jeff Hardy has been handled since his return has been nothing short of odd. When CM Punk - a man who Jeff Hardy had legitimate heat with - says that WWE took it too far by making his addiction problems into a storyline, it's clear that it might have been overdone.

Since it was the central theme of his feud against Sheamus, it became uncomfortable to watch for many - including his own brother Matt Hardy, who expressed his concern for his brother potentially relapsing. Jeff Hardy doesn't need a constant reminder of what he's been through and it was brought up last week when he confronted AJ Styles as well.

The positive is that he got the redemptive win over Sheamus in that Bar Fight and he now got the Intercontinental title win over AJ Styles. It's not every storyline in WWE where we see a payoff, but in the case of Jeff Hardy - it's two times in a row now.

It would have been incredibly disappointing had he ended up losing to both Sheamus and AJ Styles. We will give credit to WWE where it's due, even though we still feel that they went a bit too far in making Jeff Hardy's addiction issues a part of the storyline.