10 Tiny Details About Wrestling Characters You Never Noticed

5. Vanguard 1 Is A Homage To Matt Hardy's Career

Matt Hardy Vanguard 1
YouTube/Impact Wrestling

When Matt Hardy suddenly let humidity take hold and rocked a hairstyle like Monica from Friends, wrestling fans took notice. His new 'Broken' gimmick was responsible for some heavy clicks on Impact Wrestling's YouTube channel, and fans marvelled at Matt's rambling insanity. It was silly, over-the-top and thoroughly entertaining.

What would you know, it also had some hidden depth.

That drone circling overhead that almost acted as a sentient member of the Hardy clan was called 'Vanguard 1'. Was this some far-flung pop culture reference to make the nerds happy? No, not quite. It's actually more likely to be a reference to Matt's past. Vanguard 1 shortened is 'V1', as in Matt Hardy 'Version 1'.

That was a character he played in WWE many moons ago, and this was a cool way to tip a cap towards those good old days. Vanguard 1 represents a connection to Matt's lost identity more than some fans might imagine. Strangely, despite being a flying object, it's there to ground him in the past.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.