TNA World Tag Team Champion and pro wrestling legend Matt Hardy recently covered several topics on an episode of his podcast, “The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy.”
One of the main discussions was about whether Chris Jericho should return to WWE after his AEW contract expires.
Hardy said, “I mean first off, I’ll start by saying I love Chris Jericho. I think Chris has contributed so much to the business over the years. It was really cool, he did an interview with us. And myself, Jeff, and the Duds[ley’s]. We all did Talk Is Jericho, and it was great just catching up with him there for a few minutes. I almost think it’s one of those things where — I just think the AEW fan base has had their share of Chris Jericho in many, many ways. And I think creatively, he’s done pretty much everything he can do there. I mean, unless they want to put him back into the main mix. But I don’t think the fan base would be up for that, even though they could probably make that work in some capacity. Chris has always been really good at understanding when it’s time to go away, or take time off and come back and recharge or refresh. And I feel like the time is right. I feel like if he came back to WWE it’d be a huge moment, especially in a Royal Rumble, whatever. Wherever that appearance [is], it would be massive. And then I feel like there would be a good run he could do, even if it is his last run and he retires at the end of it like Cena did. But I think they would honor him and do right by him. And I think it’d be a big deal for WWE, especially in the immediate future.”
On whether Jericho should get the John Cena treatment:
“I don’t know. I’m just saying, I think that’s a possibility, something they could do. I think this full-on retirement tour with John Cena will probably open up some ideas for other people that might want to do that in reality. But I do think Chris could go back there. I think he could work as a character. He could do an amazing run for a year and work. I think you use him sparingly. You put him in positions to succeed. Highlight his strengths as a character, as a talker, everything else. And he can still get in the ring and go at a pretty high level. And I think that’s part of the business that has changed. You have a lot of guys that have taken a lot better care of themselves when they were younger. And they can still work on a much higher level at an older age. Chris Jericho is an example of that. Myself and Jeff, we’re examples of that. Edge and Christian, they’re examples of that. And there’s still a lot of benefit to those guys, in top positions in some ways. So I think if you use them smart. If you put them in a position to succeed, you have a smart booker who knows what they’re doing with them. I think he’s a huge, huge contributing factor to any company.”
You can check out the complete podcast in the video below.
(H/T to 411Mania.com for transcribing the above quotes)
