Reby Hardy offers insight into breakup of Matt, Jeff and TNA Impact
The relationship between TNA Impact and Matt, Jeff, Reby and King Maxel Hardy is broken.
The Broken One and his troupe are free agents as of Wednesday, and not part of a story line in the promotion they've called home for years.
How it came to this point saddens Matt's wife, Reby, who spoke to FOX Sports from House Hardy on Wednesday.
"He's fine, we're fine, it is very sad," Reby Hardy said while chasing King Maxel outside their North Carolina compound. "We had such a good thing going, so perfect and it is sad that it has to come to an end."
Negotiations did not seem headed toward divorce in December, and Matt Hardy publicly seemed enthusiastic about the organizational changes that were occurring. TNA had been continually shrouded in uncertainty and was reportedly in financial peril, but Anthem Sports & Entertainment became the new majority owners of the company and pledged to take IMPACT Wrestling "to even greater heights."
"Matt had negotiated terms back in December," Reby Hardy said. "We even had some of the Anthem guys come to our house. Matt came with a number, they countered and Matt was fine with it. All the financial details were good ... for sure we had a deal."
And then strange things -- not story line strange — began to happen, or more accurately not happen. Throw in some variables, like who is in charge of talent relations and who is doing what within the company, and concerns were raised.
"A couple things were changed and everything was agreed on and then we didn't hear anything for weeks," Reby Hardy said. "Radio silence.
"There were a whole bunch of red flags," she continued. "Matt was like, 'Well damn, I guess I don't matter to these people ... why would I work for people that don't think I am that important?"
The Hardys believed they had agreed on the terms of a one-year contract. When the paperwork arrived, it called for two years and there was a troubling clause, according to Reby Hardy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NC6y33W4MC4
"Ten percent of anything you do ... TNA would get a management fee," Reby Hardy said. "That was never mentioned, never talked about, never agreed upon. When we showed the finalized contract to our lawyer ... our lawyer was kind of dumbfounded."
TNA did not reply to a request for comment.
There is one problem with the parting: Matt and Jeff Hardy are TNA tag team champions. They were willing to do the right thing and lose the titles on air as part of giving TNA an exit strategy on how to explain the ongoing plot.
"Matt and Jeff both separately said they won't re-sign, but offered to do whatever (when it came to losing the titles)," Reby Hardy said, "And the response he got was, 'You've got to be delusional if you are coming without a contract.' When someone is trying to do right by the company, that is not the kind of reaction you expect. Two guys who have given their all, have been nothing but trustworthy, nothing but honest. We're offering to do the right thing, and TNA is like, we have to have someone come to the house to pick up the titles. "
Reby Hardy was having none of that. She said enough is enough.
"I would melt them down and turn them into hoop earrings," she said, "and show up wearing them at another show."
One of the great characters in pro wrestling history will move on with Matt Hardy, who actually mirrors the Broken One in many ways.
"He loves the gimmick, it is his brainchild," Reby Hardy said. "It is like the Spice Girls movie from the '90s, a crazy exaggerated version of themselves. Broken Matt is a way, crazy amplified, different dialect of him. He's out there. He's got the weird beliefs; that is part of what makes it work. He's crazy ... he goes for it."
https://twitter.com/MATTHARDYBRAND/status/836803764359204864
There doesn't appear to be any hope for a last-minute reprieve.
"The time for that would have been weeks ago when Matt was asking what's up and what's going on," said Reby Hardy, who is pregnant and due with a boy in June.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1db2tBpU_Ns
Expect some sort of Hardy video to surface between now and April.
"We have already filmed something that will be released before April , I cant disclose what," Reby Hardy said. "The platform is to be decided."
What does the future hold?
"The sky is the limit." Reby Hardy said. "It is very obvious there is interest from everywhere. The ability is there ... he can have his pick of whatever he wants. Matt has some stuff up his sleeve for sure, we are catching our breath and relaxing but there is something in the works.
"I am just standing my ground that a full-time schedule is not possible," Reby Hardy said, which could complicate a potential move to WWE for the Hardys. "As the head of the house, I would not want that. I want this kid to know who their dad is. That is not what either of us want for the family."
Reby Hardy said no one should question her husband's dedication to his craft.
"Wrestling is his heart and soul," she said. "He will be doing this until literally the day he dies ... it is not his love it is his life."
(Shopmatthardy.com. will be open for one final week. There is a blowout clearance sale ongoing Additionally, there will be a Broken Hardy Tailgate Party in Orlando with the entire platoon on April 2, the date of WrestleMania 33).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7bPHoby00s
