5 Opponents for Jeff Hardy as Intercontinental Champion
Jeff Hardy had the deck stacked against him tonight. AJ Styles took the opportunity to blindside him when he went out to help Braun Strowman fend off RETRIBUTION. Throughout the night, we were shown what kind of condition Hardy's knee was in, and it didn't look like we'd be getting a match.
Cut to his entrance, and Jeff Hardy was, at best, limping to the ring. Throughout the bout, AJ Styles focused on that injured right leg, even going so far as to tear away at Hardy's pants so he could wear away at the brace, forcing Hardy to lose the ability to run.
Despite all that, a lucky shot with the brace allowed him to hit a Swanton Bomb and capture the Intercontinental Championship for the fifth time. With a new champion on the board, who will step up to dethrone Jeff Hardy? We'll start off the list with an easy one, but one that we don't mind seeing again.
#5 AJ Styles gets one opportunity to take his title back from Jeff Hardy
Alright, yeah, it's kind of obvious that we're getting a rematch between Jeff Hardy and AJ Styles soon, which is why this one is so low on the list. We're just going to get it out of the way.
Look, AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy, together, are very good. They're both big flyboys, they both have immaculate hair, they're both incredibly impressive performers even at their age.
These two have fought several times in their careers, mostly in TNA/IMPACT. However, this match isn't played out like WWE tends to do with most "iconic never before seen dream rivalries." How many times do we see the company miraculously find themselves with a special matchup, something that wrestling fans have rarely had the chance to see, only to show it six times in the next two months?
We've already got a great little side story for this one, too. It's this "stats" deal that AJ has going with Joseph Park. Use that. Bleed it dry over the next month. Don't have AJ get a rematch at SummerSlam or Payback. This need to milk this a bit.
Let's get Styles and Park in some interesting storylines. Moneyball parodies and all. Joseph Park is incredibly entertaining, as is AJ. A month's worth of skits could liven up the Blue brand, and send Styles in a completely new direction.