As previously noted, Jeff Hardy had been scheduled to face Karrion Kross in a rematch on the July 26th 2021 edition of WWE RAW but was pulled from the show due to allegedly testing positive for Covid-19. Kross ended up defeating Keith Lee in a match.
According to Fightful Select, there were plans for Kross to lose to Hardy a second time. The site noted the following:
“We weren’t told of a specific creative direction following this, but that several members of creative, and even more of the roster were baffled by the idea to beat Kross once, let alone a second straight week.”
After beating Lee, Kross cut a backstage promo for WWE’s social media accounts and teased another match with Hardy:
“I would say Jeff Hardy cheated, but then again he might be the smartest man in WWE because if I were him, that’s exactly what I would’ve done. He lit a fire in me. I need to understand and not lose sight, that people will do anything they possibly can to get out of that ring in one piece. But Jeff Hardy and I, we’re not done yet, not by a long shot.”
