10 Ways WWE In 2017 Could Have Been COMPLETELY Different

9. Flat Broke

Kevin Owens
WWE.com

A end-of-year treat after months of legal wrangling between the man himself and Impact Wrestling finally came to a close, the emergence of Broken/Woken Matt Hardy on WWE television was as big a gift to Bray Wyatt as it was the wider wrestling fanbase.

Unquestionably the biggest beneficiary though - and deservedly so - is Matt. Gaining renewed life on an even greater platform than the one he erected for himself in 2016, the character looks set to triumph yet again as an other-worldly delight in an company propped up by mundanity.

And really, what could those over-worked creative heads done for him that would have competed with merely a chuckle and deranged grin from his out-there alter-ego?

To Matt's credit, he'd never fully abandoned the character, if only for his own amusement. In hindsight, that was one of the smartest moves of his entire career.

After Jeff went on the shelf this summer, Hardy spent months working as the token tag partner of any performer WWE were heaping more focus on. He'd been a useful utility player once too often everywhere he'd worked - it was now or never for MEEKMAHAN to take a chance or for the gimmick to lose the great war once and for all.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett