5 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (4 May)

Downs...

4. Jeff Hardy Struggles Past Bobby Fish

Jeff Hardy is hardly Jeff Hardy anymore - and that's okay. The man has had a long, hard career working a physically demanding style full of big bumps and insane, tenure-shortening bumps. That which makes Jeff Jeff takes a toll and that these things are such a fundamental part of his act is why he's still doing them 29 years later.

But the 2022 version of Jeff Hardy isn't always compelling viewing. His matches don't come to life when he isn't paired with a faster, more dynamic performer who can help generate pops beyond signature spots, which was the case last night.

Hardy was over, yes, but he and Bobby Fish laboured. Lacking in urgency, their opener registered as plodding, particularly during Fish's control segments. Jeff's selling has become janky. His movements are juddery and jolty and where once he was fluid, now, he is aged.

And it's a shame. Layout-wise, the duo concocted a noble offering calibrated for Hardy to play the hits and score the win, but the execution wasn't there. Perhaps Jeff will fare better should AEW now pivot to the Hardys vs. The Young Bucks, which was teased after the bell.