Jeff Hardy is by far a great wrestler, in the ring. Once the bell rings he can take any opponent and work them like no other star in the business today. Fans all over the world love him. He almost has a cult like following of neon painted, black make up wearing, weirdos following him wherever he goes. Then there's the other side of Jeff Hardy. The side of him that's more interested in playing music that would hardly be suitable on a street corner. The side of him that's frequently no-showed event after event. The side in my view that has lost his passion for the business. A few years ago in the WWE, Jeff was being built up as a new age Shawn Michaels. A kid who could perform at an all time high every single night he entered the ring. He started winning major singles titles and even got a few shots at the World Heavy Weight title. When "Good Old" J.R. was constantly comparing Jeff to Shawn Michaels I really don't think he realized how much alike these two really are. Not in a good way, but in the worst way imaginable.

The list of Michaels' accomplishments is almost too long to even write about. He is a great wrestler. He has also been a flamboyant jerk most of his carer. From his early days as a party animal with Marty Jannetty, to his faking injury after injury and dropping titles, to his days with the Kliq, and even now with his newly found born again Christan attitude. To sum it up, he was and still is a pain in the ass. The only reason Vince McMahon tolerated his antics was because of the fact it made his wallet bigger and who could blame him"

Now with that being established about Shawn Michaels, lets take a look at Hardy's past. He started off in the WWE as a glorified jobber with his brother Matt Hardy. The two of them never won many matches in the beginning. Their work ethic was enough to earn the respect of many of the guys in the locker room. Who knows, except for the WWE, what Jeff Hardy was up to at that time. No one cared to write about the Hardyz or even knew who they were. They were just low card stars that didn't matter to the public or the press. Once the Hardyz did make a name for themselves, they were soon broken up by the WWE. It's still unclear why they would break up one of their greatest tag teams, but it was more than likely due to give Jeff Hardy a push much like what was given to Shawn Michaels years ago when he and Jannetty split. With the push Jeff was given also came a much heavier work load. Headlining WWE event after event was apparently more than Jeff had hoped for. He soon started missing shows and causing a lot of trouble in the back with the other stars. In Jeff's final days with the WWE, they turned him heel. They didn't add much to his story line, except for the fact that he was a sore loser. Rumors started flying around about Jeff Hardy's drug use being his major cause of trouble with the WWE. It's unclear if these rumors are true or not. It wouldn't matter to me either way. Jeff was caught in the middle of a downward spiral, drugs use or no drug use. In April of 2003, Jeff was released from the WWE.

Almost a year later he appeared in NWA-TNA wrestling. In internet interviews with Jeff he stated that he liked the lighter work load which allowed him to have a life outside the business. Until recently it looked as if Jeff had found an employer who could put up with his half hearted work ethic. There have been rumors since joining TNA that Jeff has had some trouble with appearances. Since TNA doesn't have the fanfare that the WWE has, it was easy to cover up his no-shows at events. Then Jeff Hardy decided not to show up at TNA's Hard Justice pay-per-view. He had a much anticipated match scheduled against Raven, but was substituted by Sean "X-Pac" Waltman. As of right now TNA has suspended Jeff for his actions, and rightfully so. I know that a lot of people paid good money to see Jeff Hardy in action at that pay-per-view and were very upset to see a him being replaced by Waltman, even though to Waltman's credit put on a good show.

Much like Shawn Michaels, Jeff has let his own ego get the better of him. In professional wrestling there's not much of an in between in wrestling. You're either a wrestler 24-7 or your an old star who can't live without coming back into the publics eye every few weeks or months because you can't live without it. There's no doubt in my mind that Jeff will return to TNA very soon. The company needs him. He's one of their best talent and biggest stars. Also with the plans on bring in Matt Hardy, TNA would be dumb not to bring into play a Hardy reunion at some point. The fact is Jeff Hardy will more than likely continue to slowly downfall into his own pathetic ego trip. TNA can't let him go. Hardy will continue to do whatever he wants and get away with it. Just like Shawn Michael's has done over the last decade, Jeff will continue to be pushed for his skills and only the fans will suffer from his actions.

by T.C. Anderson ..