10 Fascinating WWE SummerSlam 2005 Facts
9. Matt Hardy Was Re-Signed Just Before His Non-Compete With WWE Expired
If you think the recent internet reaction to Talking Smack's cancellation was something fierce, you should've been around in April 2005, when WWE axed Matt Hardy. The breaking of Matt's WWE deal came at a time when Edge and Lita had been outed as having an affair, and general public sentiment sided with Hardy. However, WWE was upset that Hardy put the dirty laundry out there, and fired him on April 11, 2005.
TNA at the time was putting out a rather-enjoyable alternative to WWE, and employed Matt's brother Jeff. It seemed like a forgone conclusion that there'd be a Hardyz reunion in Orlando. That was, until Matt suddenly reappeared in WWE to attack Edge on the July 11 Raw, which would've been around the 90th day of his non-compete period.
Rather than let a scorned Hardy go to TNA (at a time before TNA became a barely-functional running gag), WWE brought him back, stuck him with Edge at SummerSlam, and let Edge just about handily win the feud. Gotta admit, that's pretty savvy.