Matt Hardy Explains Why AEW All Out 2024 Syringe Spot Stood Out, Bothered Him Most

Matt Hardy is no stranger to extreme violence in wrestling, but even the innovator of the ladder match thinks that the brutality has its limits. 

On the latest episode of "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy," Hardy felt that former AEW World Champions Swerve Strickland and "Hangman" Adam Page took things too far at All Out.

"My initial reaction — the syringe [in Swerve's cheek] kinda stood out to me the most," Hardy said. "I just don't really know where it fell into the story, context-wise. It felt like they were just pulling out a syringe and using a syringe because it was a bit they could do that would be violent."

Hardy compared the moment to one between his brother Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton, where Orton used Jeff's piercings against him, even stretching out Jeff's gauged earlobes with a screwdriver. Orton found the screwdriver in a box of tools under the ring, which Hardy says makes sense, as tools are generally needed to set up a ring.

"I totally get why he could get that screwdriver. Does there happen to be syringes under the AEW ring?" Hardy asked. "A syringe felt very out of context for their match. It hasn't been part of the story."

Hardy feels that the syringe is a very loaded image, especially in professional wrestling where steroids and other drugs have wreaked so much havoc. "There was a time where people were taking ketamine like crazy in the late '90s and syringes had really bad connotations. So that's probably why I had the most push-back on the syringe," Hardy explained.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.