Rising to fame with the WWE in the late '90s with their high-flying, death-defying moves, The Hardy Boys won over wrestling fans worldwide. They’ve won multiple tag titles and solo championships, but Matt & Jeff Hardy also come with their fair share of baggage.

From troubles with the authorities to addiction, it certainly hasn’t been smooth sailing for The Hardy Boyz. Making a recent return to the WWE at this year’s WrestleMania, the Hardy’s are back – for better or for worse. They’ve feuded with the WWE brass, with other wrestlers and between themselves, but it’s always entertaining with The Hardy Boyz around.

Let’s dive in to the 15 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About The Hardys.

15 15. Hardys the Jobbers

A few years before their rise to superstardom, many wrestling fans don’t remember that the Hardy’s were used as jobbers, pushing other wrestlers up the ranks. Matt and Jeff were used in singles matches, pushing the likes of Razor Ramon, Owen Hart and The 1-2-3 Kid. When Jeff was only 16 and Matt was 19, The Hardys impressed in their singles matches, but it would be quite some time before they would realize their dream and become the superstars we know them today. Wearing forgettable blue and pink costumes, the Hardy’s would roll over and watch other wrestlers go on to become greats, patiently waiting for their turn to break out. Eventually, they would sign full-time WWE contracts and train under Dory Funk JR, which would help pave the way to their rise to the top.

14 14. Lita’s Affair

A love triangle broke out between two of the WWE’s most successful tag teams, all over Superstar Lita. While still in a relationship with Matt Hardy, Lita began an affair with fellow WWE Superstar Edge, who would wrestle in some incredible matches against The Hardys. Matt Hardy discovered the affair and posted the story to his website. When the WWE found out, they were obviously upset about Matt spilling behind the scenes secrets and released him from the company. However, Matt received an overwhelming amount of support from the fans, chanting his names at WWE events and demanding he be re-instated in the company. Eventually, the WWE would cave and hire Matt back, although they immediately thrust him into a feud with Edge. Maybe…not a great idea.

13 13. Matt In Hot Water

This is the first case of The Hardys troubles outside the ring. We’ll get into Jeff’s troubles in the coming posts, but let’s focus on brother Matt for a moment. In 2014 on New Year’s Day, Matt Hardy and his wife Reby Sky were both arrested on assault charges. Apparently, they beat the hell out of each other, leaving bruises, lacerations and black eyes. The fight was heated, causing injuries to both parties involved. It all occurred at a Hampton Inn, and when the owner called 911, the cops showed, issuing arrests and charges to both Matt and his wife. It seems like this fight is all in the past, as the couple are still together now and have a son named Maxwell. All is well that ends well, I suppose.

12 12. Ladder to the Face

The Hardys could be credited with bringing intense popularity to the use of ladders, tables and chairs in matches; using them as weapons against their opponents in spectacular ways. But, use tables ladders and chairs frequent enough, and somebody is bound to get hurt. That’s what happened at Armageddon in 2006, when The Hardys were competing in a Fatal Four-Way Ladder match. In one stunt, Jeff leapt onto the end of a ladder, thrusting the end into the faces of his opponents. Joey Mercury was unable to move or deflect the ladder in time, receiving the ladder’s wrath, breaking his nose and shattering his orbital bone. It was a gruesome encounter and one the WWE would love to forget. Vince never likes it when the matches get all too real and one of his Superstars gets injured.

11 11. Calling CM Punk a Punk

At the height of their popularity, things started getting rough for the Hardy boys. In this YouTube video posted in 2010, Jeff Hardy begins to belittle CM Punk in a serious of profanity ridden remarks, claiming he ‘made’ the Straight-Edge Superstar who he is. When Punk was one his rise to become one of the biggest Superstars on the roster, Jeff calls him a ‘nerd,’ flipping him the bird and a number of other insults. Eventually, Jeff passes the camera to his brother Matt, who continues to ramble. Both brothers are in an obvious state of intoxication and probably should have never hit record on that camera. It was a poor decision, sure, but it certainly wasn’t the last The Hardys would make in their career.

10 10. The Hardys and a Taser

Maybe…just maybe…somebody should take away The Hardy Boyz’ video cameras. They just keep posting videos to the internet while in a clearly intoxicated state, saying or doing things that should probably just be kept to themselves. This time, a shirtless, slurring Jeff, along with Matt and his wife are seen playing around with a Taser. Yes, while drunk, or high, or both, they’re playing around with a weapon that could cause some serious harm. They hold Reby, Matt’s wife, joking and laughing before they tase her on the arm, causing her to fall to the ground screaming. She’s laughing along with them, sure, but there’s no excuse for such behavior. And posting it to the internet for all their fans to see? The Hardy’s definitely should’ve re-thought this one.

9 9. Third Time is the Charm

In 2011, Matt Hardy would hit an all-time low. In the span of only one month, between August 20^th and September 20^th, Matt Hardy would be arrested three times. THREE TIMES. The first couple times he was pulled over and arrested for driving intoxicated. The third time, the authorities performed a warranted search on Matt’s property, resulting in a discovery of Matt’s secret safe, containing a copious amount of prescription pulls, ecstasy and several vials of steroids. Especially after the Chris Benoit tragedy, the WWE wanted all drug and alcohol abuse problems dealt with swiftly and surely, sending their Superstars with addiction issues to rehab. Apparently Matt has cleaned up his act over the years. Let’s just hope for the Hardy’s recent resurgence in the WWE, for the fans and for Matt himself, he can keep his stuff together.

8 8. A Jeff Hardy Bust

Moving on from Matt’s drug bust, it’s not his brother’s turn. Yes, both Matt and Jeff have had their fair share of drug and addiction issues, both resulting in arrests. In 2009, Jeff was arrested for possession of anabolic steroids and controlled prescription pulls. The authorities found Vicodin, steroids, cocaine and drug paraphernalia. Jeff was charged with felony trafficking in opium, possession and a number of other charges to go along with it. This wasn’t the first time Jeff was in trouble due to drugs. At the time of his arrest he was on ‘strike two’ with the WWE’s Wellness Program. The three time World Heavyweight Champion would struggle with addiction issues, just like his brother, for most of his career. Hopefully, their recent effort to clean up their act will stick this time around.

7 7. Matt Hardy’s Strange Goodbye

This was really, really creepy. Of course, Matt Hardy never did end up taking his own life, like the video suggested he would, which makes it even stranger. Was it a cry for attention? Or something darker? In 2011 at the height of the Matt Hardy mess, he uploaded a very strange, very cryptic message to his YouTube channel reading; "Goodbye, World... My time here is Almost complete... I only have a few hours & minutes... I loved you all... Regardless of how you felt about me... I'll miss you all..." His fans freaked out, with good reason. Of course, almost everybody thought this was his suicide note. Turns out he was metaphorically killing his bad habits, giving birth to a ‘new’ Matt Hardy. Maybe re-think your wording next time, Matt. Thanks.

6 6. Jeff Unable to Compete

While this in fact went down during Jeff’s time with TNA, I’m sure the WWE brass would hate their fans watching this footage. Jeff Hardy was all set for a match with Sting, with the TNA World Championshipon the line. He entered the match, coming down the ramp looking absolutely out of it. Jeff entered the ring, with Sting obviously knowing what was going on, stumbling and exhibiting some very strange behavior. He was in no condition to wrestle, that’s for certain, and after doing his best to avoid Sting, he eventually got his hands on Jeff Hardy and the match ended a few moments later. Sting pinned Jeff, and while Jeff tried to kick-out and continue, Sting wasn’t having it. It was a sincere moment where Sting identified a performer with some serious issues.

5 5. Matt’s Rehab Attempt

The WWE at least tries to help their superstars get better. A number of wrestlers have had drug addiction issues in the past, and there certainly will be more in the future. With the WWE Wellness Program, their wrestlers with addiction issues can check into rehab on the company’s dollar. This is what Matt Hardy did in an attempt to clean himself up, but it didn’t quite go as planned. At the time, Matt wasn’t even on the roster. The Wellness Program reaches out to former employees to straighten out their lives, but it seemed that Matt just wasn’t ready. In fact, Matt would be caught drinking in the rehab facility and was shown the door. Banishing your demons can be a tough task. Only in the right mindset can you fully begin to heal.

4 4. Intoxicated Flight

In 2008, Jeff was once again making headlines for all the wrong reasons. He was on a flight heading from Nashville to North Carolina, Jeff had maybe one too many, and was seen stumbling to his seat. He fell asleep almost instantly, which seemed to be his plan. But he awake to airport security asking him to leave the flight as he was too intoxicated, which caused his brother Matt to stand up in protest. According to Jeff, the whole situation was blown out of proportion and he had ‘been on planes much drunker than that’. Not the best claim to fame, but whatever. He wasn’t suspended by the WWE or fined; it was more of an embarrassment that anything. But the WWE certainly doesn’t like their superstars stumbling around in public.

3 3. Burning Down the House

In 2008, Jeff’s house was burned to the ground. No human-people were hurt, but Jeff did lose his dog in the fire. It was determined that it was faulty wiring in the house that caused the fire and no further investigation was needed. So, naturally, the WWE writers turned that story into a wrestling story. During a strange storyline in 2009, Matt Hardy had to take the place of a returning Christian after the story details were leaked to the internet. While Jeff was attempting to win back the WWE title against Edge, Matt entered the ring, and while the crowd expected Matt to help his brother Jeff win the title, he instead turned on his brother inciting a cringe-worthy brother vs. brother feud. In the feud, it was stated by the WWE that Matt was the one who burned down Jeff’s house. Really guys? Really?

2 2. Jeff Refuses Help

When the WWE realized that Jeff Hardy could break out from tag team matches and really hold his own in singles, the sky was the limit for the Hardy brother. However, it was his own addiction problems that really held him back. Sure, the dude won the WWE Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship multiple times, but the WWE had bigger things planned. That is, until his drug and addiction problems started to boil over into his career. It was reported he was addicted to pain killers along with crystal meth (wow). He was becoming sloppy in the ring, botching moves and showing his fatigue. The WWE offered the superstar rehab in 2003, which he refused, resulting in his termination from the company. Jeff disappeared from the WWE without explanation, leaving fans to wonder what really happened to their favourite high-flying wrestler.

1 1. Until Death Do Us Kane

Seriously, what is it with the WWE and super-weird weddings? Why do they feel the desire to hold fake weddings that have absolutely nobody fooled? Anyways, a wedding was once against part of the story in 2004, along with Matt Hardy, Lita and The Big Red Machine himself, Kane. This storyline was pure bananas. It involved a strange love triangle between the three, a false impregnation, Matt getting the absolute hell beaten out of him on multiple occasions and finally; a Death Do Us Part match, where the winner would marry Lita. Yes, that actually happened, and it was as ridiculous as it sounds. All footage of the storyline has been removed by the WWE, so good luck finding some, probably because of all the implications. Not great for ratings.