Matt Hardy's Career Told In Photos, Through The Years

Pro Wrestling is not everyone's cup of tea as it takes a toll on the bodies of the wrestlers every time they step inside the ring to compete. Not every wrestler can expect to have a lengthy career, as early retirement is a high possibility in the business. But some wrestlers have held it together and have been in the business for multiple decades, cementing their legacies as the pioneers of the trade.

Matt Hardy is among those legendary wrestlers who have been in the business for a long time and are still going strong in the ring. He's made a name for himself across multiple promotions throughout his career and has claimed multiple championships to his name.

RELATED: 10 Things About Matt Hardy's Career That Make No Sense

With that said, let's take a trip down memory lane and look at the career of Matt Hardy by means of pictures taken over the years.

10 Training & Debut

Matt Hardy's first stint in wrestling came in 1992 when he, along with his brother Jeff Hardy and some friends, started Trampoline Wrestling Federation, a backyard promotion, where they started mimicking the moves they saw on television.

By 1994, he and Jeff Hardy began competing for several North Carolina-based independent promotions. They had multiple alter egos throughout their time in the independent circuit, and Matt Hardy went by the names High Voltage, Surge, and The Wolverine.

He continued working through the indies and also worked as an enhancement talent for WWE between 1994 and 1998.

9 First WWE Contract

Matt Hardy signed his first WWE contract in 1998 alongside his brother Jeff, and the company sent both of them to train under Dory Funk Jr before making their debuts.

He started working with Jeff Hardy as The Hardy Boyz, and their high-flying action drew tons of fans towards them. They defeated Edge & Christian at the 1999 King of the Ring PPV to become No.1 contenders for the tag team championships and then went on to dethrone the APA to win their first championships in WWE.

They revolutionized the tag team division along with the other teams on the roster and competed in the first-ever TLC match.

8 Various Gimmicks & Release

Matt Hardy split up with his brother Jeff for the first time by the end of 2001, and the following year saw Matt Hardy turning heel on Jeff and repackaging himself as Matt Hardy: Version 1.

He also went on to capture the Cruiserweight Championship and also formed the Mattitude faction with Shannon Moore and Crash Holly. His storyline with Kane and his then real-life girlfriend Lita took a disastrous turn after Hardy found out she was cheating on him with fellow WWE superstar Edge.

RELATED: Every Version Of The Hardy Boyz, Ranked From Worst To Best

He addressed the issue on his website, which didn't go well with the management, resulting in Matt's release from WWE in April 2005.

7 Return To WWE

WWE was quick to rehire Matt Hardy after facing severe fan backlash, and coupled with the real-life controversy, it was free real estate for Vince McMahon, and the Chairman used it as an on-screen storyline to facilitate Matt's return.

Hardy had a heated rivalry with Edge, resulting in a series of matches between the two, which culminated in a Loser Leaves Raw match on the Raw Homecoming special on October 3, 2005, which Edge won and sent Matt Hardy packing to SmackDown.

6 Hardy Boyz Reunion, Title Reigns & Betrayal

Following his move to SmackDown, Matt Hardy reunited with his brother Jeff for a brief time and went on to capture the Tag Team Championships on the Raw after WrestleMania 23.

After losing the titles to Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, Jeff Hardy took some time off to heal from an injury, which enabled Matt to focus on his singles career. He feuded with MVP over the United States Championship, but in an interesting turn of events, he became MVP's tag team partner and won the tag team championships with him.

He still had the US title on his watch list, and after they dropped the tag titles and following a series of events, Matt Hardy defeated MVP to win the US Championship at Backlash 2008.

Following his US title reign, Hardy then became the ECW Champion, and it was during the time that Jeff Hardy became WWE Champion. WWE once again had the brothers feud against each other, and after Matt cost Jeff the WWE Title, they had an intense feud that was spotlighted at WrestleMania 25.

5 WWE Departure & Impact Debut

Matt Hardy asked for his release from WWE in late 2010, which the company granted. It led to Hardy signing with Impact Wrestling for the first time in his career in January 2011.

He made his debut at the 2011 Genesis PPV and aligned himself with The Immortal faction, and following that, he continued to compete against multiple opponents and staked his claim for the Impact World and Tag Team Championships, but to no avail.

His first run with Impact came to an end in June 2011 after the company released him after he got arrested for DUI.

4 Return To Impact & Hardy Boyz Reunion

Following the release, Matt Hardy made several appearances in Ring of Honor and Omega before Impact Wrestling rehired him in 2014. He returned on July 24, 2014, and reunited with his brother Jeff Hardy to reform The Hardy Boyz.

Together, they feuded against the other tag teams on the Impact roster and captured the TNA Tag Team Championships in March 2015. But he had to relinquish the titles in May after Jeff Hardy sustained an injury.

RELATED: 8 Things About The Hardys' Careers That Make No Sense

Hardy then focused on his singles career and soon found himself in contention for the Impact World Championship.

3 Impact World Champion & Broken Universe

Matt Hardy won the Impact World Championship for the first time at the 2015 Bound for Glory PPV but had to relinquish the title for storyline reasons. He took on EC3 in the finals of the World Title Series tournament but failed to win the championship.

He finally defeated EC3 to win the championship on the January 19, 2016, episode of Impact Wrestling and held the title for 67 days before dropping it to Drew Galloway.

After that, he introduced the Broken Universe gimmick, which became an instant hit among the fans. Jeff Hardy also joined forces with him as Brother Nero, and the brothers set out on an expedition of gold and captured the tag team titles in Impact Wrestling and Ring of Honor before they returned to WWE.

2 Return To WWE & Departure

Matt Hardy returned to WWE alongside his brother Jeff as surprise entrants in the fatal-4-way tag team ladder match for the Raw Tag Team Titles at WrestleMania 33. They won the titles at the event and continued to perform as a team until Jeff Hardy got sidelined with an injury.

Matt Hardy then brought the Broken Universe gimmick to WWE after a legal battle with Impact Wrestling and started a feud with Bray Wyatt. It resulted in the two becoming tag team partners, and they went on to capture the Raw Tag Team Championships.

The team disbanded after Hardy had to take seven months off to heal a back injury, and when he made his return, he had one final reunion with Jeff Hardy in WWE and went on to capture the SmackDown Tag Team Titles.

That would be Matt Hardy's final accomplishment in WWE as he found his way out of the promotion in 2020.

1 AEW Debut

Matt Hardy made his debut for All Elite Wrestling while portraying the Broken Universe gimmick on the March 18, 2020, episode of Dynamite and sided with The Elite's team to defeat The Inner Circle at the Double or Nothing PPV.

He then stopped using the Broken Matt gimmick and instead brought back his classic characters, including Matt Hardy V1 and Big Money Matt. He continued to perform in AEW and, by 2021, formed the Hardy Family Office stable with The Butcher and The Blade and Private Party.

With Jeff Hardy joining the mix in AEW, we can see the Hardy Boyz have one final glorious run before they hang up their boots for good.