10 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE Raw From 2008
5. Jeff Hardy’s Dream Match Lived Up To Hype
High-flying daredevil Jeff Hardy was on fire during the first half of 2008. In truth, he was on it for the entire year (give or take a few regrettable decisions away from the ring), but this entry is exclusively obsessed with Jeff's time on Raw between January-June's Draft. The guy was putting on clinics near-weekly.
His steel cage war with Umaga on the 7 January episode included a terrifying Whisper In The Wind dive spot from atop the structure as an amazed Randy Orton looked on from ringside. That earned Hardy the win, and he'd win out once more against a true great on the 11 February edition of Raw too.
There, Jeff wrestled Shawn Michaels in what was billed as a true dream match scenario. The match main evented, and Hardy picked up the victory during a rather giving portion of HBK's career. Jeff’s Intercontinental belt wasn’t on the line, weirdly, but it was still an epic watch and went nearly 20 minutes.
If you can source it, then give it a watch. Some "dream matches" fall a little short and can't deliver on heavy hype going in, but Shawn's smile during the early staredown made it clear that he and Hardy were about to tear the house down. It's incredible that Michaels found time for bouts like this in '08, because he was steadily producing the year's finest rivalry elsewhere.
Meanwhile, for Jeff, matches like this one from February played a huge part in getting him into the WWE Title scene over on SmackDown later on.