MJF

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

Matt Hardy Hoping for Dream Match

It's been nearly three years since the Hardy Boyz last wrestled a match together, but Matt Hardy is hoping that can change. 

In an interview with Ishan Chavan of EssentiallySports.com (h/t Eric Mutter of Wrestling, Inc.), Matt said he "would love" to bring his brother Jeff to AEW and do a tag-team match with Sting and Darby Allin. 

Matt Hardy has carved out a strong niche for himself since joining AEW in March 2020. He's currently leading the Hardy Family Office stable with the Butcher, the Blade, the Bunny and Private Party. 

Jeff Hardy would certainly be a boost to AEW's talent roster, but there would be some concerns. 

Mike Johnson of PW Insider reported Hardy was sent home by WWE after disappearing into the crowd in the middle of a six-man tag match during a Dec. 4 house show. 

Per Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling, Inc.), WWE released Hardy on Dec. 9. 

Sapp noted WWE offered help and rehab, but Hardy declined. 

During a Twitch live stream on Dec. 6 (h/t Middleton), Matt said his brother was at home and doing OK. 

"I did speak to Jeff for a little bit today, and he’s OK, he’s good, and I think he’ll be fine, but once again this isn’t my business, and if he wants to go into it in more detail, then he’ll do it himself," Matt said.

Jeff has a well-documented history of legal issues. He was arrested twice in 2019, once for public intoxication and once for driving while impaired. 

If wrestling was the only consideration, bringing Jeff to AEW would make all the sense in the world. The Hardy Boyz are one of the most successful tag teams in WWE history. They were still one of the most popular acts in the company during their most recent run from 2017 to 2019.

Vince McMahon's Text to Baron Corbin

There are many stories about the schedule that Vince McMahon keeps, but it's safe to assume that WWE is frequently at the front of his mind. 

For instance, Baron Corbin recently told Ryan Satin on Out of Character (h/t Abishek Kar of RingsideNews.com) about a late-night text message he received from the WWE chairman during his Sad Corbin gimmick. 

"The worst part was not being able to cut the hair or the beard," he said. "I get a text message at like 2 a.m. from Vince. It’s like, 'Don’t shave or cut your hair' and I’m going, 'OK, where’s this going?'"

Corbin began portraying the sad version of his character on a July 16 episode of SmackDown. He was broke, often disheveled in dirty clothes and trying to find money for himself, but the world conspired against him. 

It wasn't until a run in Las Vegas at the end of August that Corbin's luck turned around. 

Since winning his fortune, Corbin has adopted a happy persona by driving luxury cars, and wearing a fedora and suits to the arena. 

As WWE comedy gimmicks go, Corbin's is one of the better ones that has been thought up in recent years. 

MJF Taunts CM Punk

The war of words between MJF and CM Punk is going to escalate when they are in the same ring in a trios match on Dynamite tonight. 

Before they lock horns, though, MJF took another shot at his rival on Twitter with some help from Saturday's Jake Paul-Tyron Woodley fight:

MJF vs. Punk is arguably the best rivalry in AEW right now because of their work on the microphone. It's not a surprise that putting two of the best talkers in wrestling in promo segments would make for compelling television. 

Wednesday will mark the first time they are in the same match with each other. Punk is teaming with Sting and Darby Allin to take on MJF and FTR. 

MJF is closing out the year on a roll. He's won five straight matches, including beating Allin at Full Gear last month. Putting him in a feud with Punk is only going to raise his profile as he potentially builds toward a championship match at some point next year. 

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: profanity).

It didn't take long in All Elite Wrestling's young lifespan to see that MJF was one of wrestling's next great things. 

MJF, shorthand for Maxwell Jacob Friedman, of course, is all of 25 years old and already one of the best talkers on the mic in the business—even on the planet. 

That's not hyperbole meant to generate hype, either. His work ever since AEW launched has always been really, really good. But it's the recent spotlight given to him via a must-see feud with CM Punk that has pushed things over the top. 

AEW, naturally, shared their first jaw-dropping promo that got the feud going: 

Three million views and counting explain just how special this moment really was. 

So much so, in fact, even WWE has taken notice. Fans familiar with the war between the two promotions know just how rare that is. 

Wrestling Observer Live's Andrew Zarian reported (h/t Randall Ortman, Cageside Seats) that "non-wrestling people" at various networks took notice of the promo. That notice has organically led to WWE taking an interest, too. 

Being the character that he is, MJF has naturally worked this into an angle already: 

And talk about a huge win for AEW. MJF can literally touch on this topic for the next two years while channeling his inner CM Punk, whose arguably most iconic wrestling moment ever was the extended storyline in which he went to leave WWE, stealing one of Vince McMahon's titles on his way out, exiting through a hometown crowd. 

Like Punk back then, MJF's flirtation with actually leaving AEW would be totally believable, too. So far, it has strictly been AEW signing former WWE Superstars, not the other way around. But imagine if somebody as talented, over and popular as MJF were the first to establish the AEW-to-WWE pipeline? 

Chaos. The sort of win WWE just hasn't been able to brag about in any sense. And the storyline potential—MJF is guaranteed to be in AEW's top title scene by 2024—is enormous. 

But maybe that's getting too far ahead of things. MJF is, after all, only just getting started. Once he's through this feud with Punk, win or lose, fans will get to see the inevitable-feeling betrayal by Wardlow. He can still go on extended feuds with Bryan Danielson, Adam Cole and Kenny Omega. 

While it's hard to predict what the title scene will look like by 2024, there's surely a "Hangman" Adam Page feud in there somewhere, too. Based on the way AEW built up Page since the company's first show, and how it's doing the same for MJF, it almost feels right for the two to headline with each other right around MJF's supposed contractual expiration. 

No matter the path or feud, it speaks to MJF's talent that he's generating this much interest. And if there's one thing that speaks to WWE above all else (which would explain a lot of the company's booking problems, but that's another story), it's "non-wrestling" attention. MJF's so captivating on the mic and as a character it doesn't matter if he's in a wrestling ring—he's just that entertaining. 

None of this has even touched on MJF's ability in the ring. He's good, if not bordering on great. That sure doesn't hurt. The fact he's only 25 without a ton of wear and tear on his body this early in his career only helps when he inevitably drums up a bidding war. 

We won't spend a lot of time speculating where MJF might actually go when his contract expires (and if). It's hard to imagine AEW lets that happen, though he'd benefit by drumming up a bidding war. From an outsider's perspective, there's a reason so many Superstars have jumped ship from WWE to AEW. But while the latter permits more creative freedom, an easier schedule and less stressful working environment, the former provides a bigger launching pad to international exposure, be it sheer wrestling or off into other non-wrestling ventures. 

To say AEW needs this is an understatement, too. MJF flirting with achieving household-name status right as wrestling is getting cool again would work wonders for the smaller promotion.

The bigger point is that it's stunning to see this fast of an ascension for MJF. It's also a testament to AEW's plan—and it's hard to imagine he would have ever achieved the same heights in WWE's ecosystem, which just gutted the old NXT and is more than content to roll out the same old main-events ad nauseam. The closest fans might ever get to seeing MJF in WWE is from an old "Tough Enough" promo WWE uploaded. 

Where things stand now? It's worth advising fans to just enjoy the ride. It's not often a Superstar like MJF comes around, and it's not often it's so telegraphed in advance that his prime is going to be something so special. That this layup of a natural storyline involving a war between two promotions fell into AEW's lap—and is sure to be a hit because of MJF's sheer talent—is just a nice capper on a great time to be a wrestling fan.

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

Danielson's Thoughts on How WWE Reacted to AEW

AEW star Bryan Danielson believes WWE went too heavy on signing wrestlers during the initial rise of AEW.

In an interview with TV Insider's Scott Fishman, Danielson broke down the role he feels AEW played in WWE bloating its roster:

"I don't ever focus on if something didn't happen that already happened. But I think this is a natural reaction to what has gone on. What we do know is people who were paid regular contracts will not have them anymore. For WWE, I think there was an overreaction when AEW started.

"Even when Ring of Honor got real hot with Cody [Rhodes] and the Young Bucks, WWE felt they needed to sign up all the talent. They realized, 'our business is fine.' AEW is catching up. They've done incredible for a company that has been around for less than three years. WWE is still making a billion dollars, so they don't need to hoard all these talents."

It wasn't long ago that WWE had its biggest talent roster ever with hundreds of wrestlers under contract, which is a big reason why so many releases have occurred since last year.

Just this year alone, WWE has released nearly 80 in-ring performers. Even with all those cuts, WWE still has a large roster between Raw and SmackDown as well as NXT 2.0 and its developmental prospects.

It did seem at one time as if WWE was hoarding talent to prevent other wrestling promotions from getting them, and that continued when AEW officially launched in 2019.

Somewhere along the way, WWE was no longer concerned with that, which has led to many releases and many performers signing with AEW.

Aside from those who let their WWE contracts expire before signing with AEW like Danielson and Adam Cole, some of the biggest names that were cut by WWE and then signed with AEW include Malakai Black, Andrade El Idolo, Miro, Ruby Soho and FTR.

AEW has been successful, but its weekly television viewership is still far off from Raw and SmackDown, which may be why WWE is no longer hesitating to part ways with talent it has no long-term plans for.

Rumors on NXT 2.0 in WWE 2K22

WWE's recent run of releases may be impacting the previous plans for the WWE 2K22 video game.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Michael Perry of Ringside News), WWE 2K22 developers had planned to have a "robust" roster of NXT Superstars in the video game, but that may no longer be the case due to how many changes the brand has undergone.

In addition to NXT being rebranded as NXT 2.0 with a brighter color scheme, many former NXT Superstars have been released over the past year.

Some of the most notable ones include Bronson Reed, Bobby Fish, Hit Row, Mercedes Martinez, Franky Monet and Ember Moon.

WWE has opted to focus more on younger, less-experienced performers, which has led to the rise of Superstars such as Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Cora Jade, Tony D'Angelo, Grayson Waller and Toxic Attraction.

Fightful Select also got some insight into the process of integrating characters into the WWE 2K22 video game by speaking to released former WWE Superstars.

Those wrestlers said there was a strong commitment to accuracy, as they had a great deal of input into their in-game characters, especially move sets, and were tasked with giving feedback to the developers.

WWE 2K22's launch is a huge deal since there was no WWE 2K21 after WWE 2K20 was widely panned for being filled with glitches and other issues.

WWE and 2K are looking to make a big splash upon their return in March, but the game may be different than initially intended because of the changes WWE has made this year.

MJF Talks Possibly Signing with WWE

MJF continues to tease signing with WWE when his AEW contract expires in 2024.

In an interview with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, MJF was asked about Edge and The Miz alluding to his recent promo with CM Punk during a promo of their own.

In the MJF vs. Punk promo battle, Punk called MJF a "less-famous Miz," which led to Edge noting that people on other shows are using Miz's name to "get a cheap reaction."

When asked for his thoughts about the segment involving Edge and Miz, MJF expressed no hard feelings and left the door open for eventually joining WWE:

"They're just trying to make their show the best they possibly can. I'm not mad, I completely understand it. And who knows, I might be working with those two guys in 2024.

"And that line by Punk about me being a 'less famous Miz,' that resonated because people used to actually think that. But I'm smart enough to know better. My match last month at Full Gear against Darby Allin proved otherwise. I am equally as outstanding in the ring as I am on the stick. That match with Darby proved I'm anything but one-dimensional."

MJF is one of the brightest young stars in professional wrestling, and he is already one of the top guys in AEW at just 25 years of age.

He has worked with the likes of Cody, Jon Moxley, Chris Jericho and Punk, which speaks to how highly AEW President Tony Khan thinks of him as a heel.

It stands to reason that just about every wrestling company will be interested when MJF becomes a free agent, including WWE.

One can only assume AEW will do everything in its power to keep him, but MJF could be the beneficiary of one of the first true bidding wars between WWE and AEW.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: profanity).

MJF defeated Darby Allin in a highly personal grudge match at AEW Full Gear on Saturday night.

The card-opening match turned out to be an instant classic, with Allin taking a great deal of punishment.

He shot through the ropes like a missile at a distracted MJF near the beginning:

Allin soon tried to hit the Coffin Drop on MJF, who slid out of the way:

Allin's spine continued to take punishment when MJF powerbombed him onto his left knee:

MJF later delivered a tombstone piledriver:

In the end, MJF got the win after delivering a side headlock takeover.

The two men have been at odds since the release of a T-shirt that depicted Allin, MJF, Jungle Boy and Sammy Guevara as the four young pillars of All Elite Wrestling.

MJF attempted to goad Allin into getting physical with him by throwing out every insult in the book, including making mention of his uncle dying in a drunk-driving crash while Allin was in the car with him.

Allin kept his cool despite MJF's best efforts, but The Salt of the Earth refused to move on and upped the ante even more.

A group of masked assailants attacked Allin backstage on an episode of Dynamite, and it was clearly The Pinnacle who were behind it.

After MJF crossed the line, all bets were off, as Allin and Sting went on the offensive against the heel and his stable in the weeks leading up to Full Gear.

On one occasion, MJF trolled the crowd by pretending Allin and Sting were coming to the ring only for it to be his Pinnacle stablemates, Shawn Spears and Wardlow, instead.

That led to Allin and Sting actually showing up and cleaning house, much to the chagrin of an embarrassed MJF.

One intriguing subplot that played out during the build for Full Gear was MJF's penchant for bailing and allowing Wardlow to be on the receiving end of attacks from Allin and Sting.

Wardlow even voiced his displeasure with MJF over that, but the group leader came up with the excuses and claimed he was in "fight or flight" mode.

The possibility of Wardlow refusing to play ball for MJF existed and led to the belief that Allin may have had the upper hand going into the PPV.

Despite that, MJF prevailed and perhaps took another step toward an eventual AEW World Championship opportunity in the near future.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).