It's fiercely debatable whether this match or the Sharmell/Morasca fiasco deserves to be at number one, but this was ultimately a terrible encounter for a wider range of reasons. The previous entry may be (very slightly) worse from a pure wrestling standpoint, but the Sting vs Jeff Hardy title match at Victory Road 2011 was a major blow to TNA's already shaky reputation. Additionally, the fans who bought the PPV - as well as those actually in attendance - were completely ripped off and deprived of a proper main event. The story is well known by now. Hardy showed up in no condition to wrestle (speculated to be in a drug-addled state) and was sent out to work a match anyway. Heel authority figure Eric Bischoff got in Sting's face prior to the opening bell - actually in order to relay information about the new finish of the match - and things got underway with Hardy barely able to stand. After a few seconds of posturing, Jeff was finally able to lock up with the veteran...who almost immediately hit him with the scorpion death drop and held his shoulders down for a three count. If you watch Hardy during the pinfall, he very clearly tried to kick out a few times as the count was made. Sting grabbed his belt and left to a chorus of boos. Amid chants of "bulls***", he very audibly yelled "I agree!" to a group of fans in the front row. It was an incredibly unprofessional situation, almost a relic of wrestling's shady carnival past, and something completely unthinkable in the modern era. TNA were rightly panned for the fiasco - it's arguably a blemish from which they'll never recover. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V6ulxTRSDc Thanks for reading, and be sure to leave your own nominations for the worst TNA matches of all time in the comments section below. We're sure you'll have no shortage of options to choose from.
