Matt Hardy Believes His SummerSlam 2005 Loss To Edge Was Partly To 'Pay Penance' For WWE Hiring Him Back

It is 20 years since Matt Hardy lost to Edge in under five minutes at SummerSlam 2005, with fans shocked and upset at the result after a highly personal and real feud led to a highly anticipated matchup at the PPV. 

Reflecting on this match many years later, Matt Hardy spoke on his Broken Life Of Matt Hardy podcast, delving into why he feels as though he was booked to lose. 

“If I was booking it, I probably would have done differently… I think in the beginning I need to get f—ed so we have stuff to continue to do. So I do think me losing in this scene was the right call… But I would have probably made the finish different where he f—ed me, and I look strong in getting defeated. And Vince was trying to pitch that here. But I think part of this was me going to be paying penance for making them hire me back too. That’s not lost on me also. So it is what it is, man, and I went out and made the most out of what we had to work with… I’ve been around long enough, and I was wise enough at this time, I knew they were going to make me earn it, because I forced them to hire me back. And Vince and company ultimately don’t like to admit that they were wrong.”

Hardy recently reflected on his time in AEW, and believes CM Punk may have stopped him from making some Collision appearances. 

H/T WrestlingNews.Co

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