Jeff Hardy has made his first public appearance since being released from WWE last week.
At an untelevised show in Texas earlier this month, Hardy left the ring before the main event was complete and walked out through the crowd. He was sent home from WWE’s tour, and as The Post and other outlets reported, WWE presented him with the chance to go to rehab. He declined and was released from his contract.
Hardy, 44, appeared on his brother Matt’s Twitch show Monday. Jeff removed a pair of headphones, said he had been listening to “Release Me” by Wilson Phillips – a song whose title has obvious thematic relevance – and promoted some concerts where he will be playing acoustic guitar in the midwest later this week.
Later in the stream, Matt Hardy, who wrestled for a number of years in WWE and is now in rival AEW, had a message for anyone concerned about his brother’s health after he had the bizarre moment at the house show and declined to go to rehab.
“For the people who are worried about Jeff, concerned about Jeff, I am here to tell you he is good and there is no reason to be worried or concerned about him,” Matt Hardy said. “I’m gonna say this, I’m gonna preach here for a second: in 2003 when my brother was first released from the WWE, I was worried about him then. He was in a very dark place. We were still young, we were new and this stuff was all kind of new to us. I was very legitimately worried and concerned for my brother then. It took a couple of years but he kind of got through that stage, and then later on there were obviously points in time where Jeff and myself, we both had issues because our bodies were so beat up with pills and whatnot.”
Matt and Jeff Hardy appear together on the former’s Twitch show.
Matt Hardy said those issues are in the past, and that Jeff is the “best version of himself” that he’s ever seen.
“We both got past that and Jeff does not have any kind of issue with that,” he continued. “I do not. We will not. Never will. And then in 2019 there was a time when there was so much drama going on and Jeff had his issues with alcohol, which are very well-documented, and WWE ended up having him go to rehab, at that point.
Ex-WWE wrestler Jeff Hardy in 2017 Getty Images“After he got through that period, that was a very good experience for him and he learned so much. I could communicate with him a lot better because I also had experienced that same type of deal. We had that in common that we could talk about. Our relationship was also strained then because myself and my wife were doing all that we can to hold Jeff and his family accountable because we were concerned about them over his behavior, and I was concerned about Jeff then. But for the last year-and-a-half, couple years, Jeff has been the best version of himself that I’ve ever seen.”
So, what happened at the event in Texas when Jeff left the ring early?
“That is Jeff’s story to tell,” his brother said.
Matt confirmed that WWE released his brother after he declined to enter rehab: “Jeff did say he wasn’t going to go to rehabilitation because he didn’t feel he needed to, and I don’t think he did either, and that’s the honest to God’s truth.
“Sometimes those parameters you work within in WWE can be very overwhelming. When you go there, you know what you sign up for.”
