WrestleMania 33 took place on April 2, 2017, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida, in front of an announced crowd of 75,245 fans . While the event featured several iconic moments—Roman Reigns defeating The Undertaker in what appeared to be The Deadman’s retirement match, Brock Lesnar finally avenging his loss to Goldberg to win the Universal Championship, and John Cena proposing to Nikki Bella after their mixed tag team victory—the single loudest pop of the night belonged to The Hardy Boyz .
📜 The Road to WrestleMania: A Return Shrouded in Secrecy
In early 2017, Matt and Jeff Hardy were competing on the independent circuit and in Ring of Honor (ROH) following their departure from TNA (then Impact Wrestling). Their contracts with TNA had expired, and they were widely expected to return to WWE—but when remained the subject of intense speculation among fans .
In the weeks leading up to WrestleMania, the Raw Tag Team Championship was scheduled to be defended in a Fatal 4-Way Ladder Match featuring the champions Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson (The Club) against three challenger teams: Cesaro and Sheamus, and Enzo Amore and Big Cass . The fourth team had not yet been announced.
Behind the scenes, the Hardys had signed their WWE contracts just days before WrestleMania. To maintain the element of surprise, they were hidden from the public and kept separate from the rest of the roster until their music hit .
⚡ The Match: A Fatal 4-Way Ladder Match for the Raw Tag Team Championship
The match was the seventh contest on the main card. WrestleMania hosts The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods) came to the ring to introduce the tag team title match . The New Day teased the crowd by pretending that they would be the fourth team entering the bout, generating a mixed reaction.
Then came the surprise.
As The New Day stepped aside, the unmistakable opening notes of “Loaded” —The Hardy Boyz’s iconic WWE theme song—blared through the stadium. The crowd exploded in what many called the loudest pop of the night . Matt and Jeff Hardy emerged on stage, making their first WWE appearance together since 2009 . Jeff, who had last been with WWE in 2009, had been gone for eight years; Matt had departed in 2010 .
The Competitors:
| Team | Notes |
|---|---|
| Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson (c) | The defending champions, aligned with AJ Styles |
| Cesaro & Sheamus | Former champions, a powerhouse European duo |
| Enzo Amore & Big Cass | The charismatic underdogs from Brooklyn |
| The Hardy Boyz | Surprise entrants, returning to WWE |
💥 The Action: A Spot-Filled Spectacle
The Fatal 4-Way Ladder Match lasted 11 minutes and 5 seconds . Despite the short runtime, the action was relentless and packed with memorable moments:
- Enzo’s High-Flying Risk: Enzo Amore climbed to the top of a very tall ladder and leaped onto a pile of competitors on the floor, crashing into Luke Gallows .
- Jeff’s Bump: Jeff Hardy absorbed a devastating Brogue Kick from Sheamus that sent him crashing into the other competitors at ringside .
- Matt’s Twist of Fate: Matt Hardy delivered a Twist of Fate to Karl Anderson from the top of a ladder .
- The Deciding Spot: The match’s signature moment came when Jeff Hardy climbed a large ladder positioned outside the ring and delivered his signature Swanton Bomb onto both Cesaro and Sheamus, who were lying on a table . The crowd erupted as Jeff crashed through them.
The Finish:
With the ring cleared, Matt Hardy climbed the ladder and retrieved the Raw Tag Team Championship belts. The official match time was 11:05, and The Hardy Boyz were crowned the new Raw Tag Team Champions in their first match back with the company .
🎤 The Aftermath: Backstage Reactions and Legacy
Following the match, the Hardys celebrated with the titles as “DELETE!” chants—a reference to Matt Hardy’s popular “Broken” character from TNA—filled the stadium .
Backstage, the reaction from WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was one of genuine excitement. Matt Hardy later recalled on his podcast The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy:
“We came back through the curtain and I remember he just stood up and he came stuck out his hand, slapped his hands, each of us, pulled us in for a big hug, ‘That was fing awesome! That was fing awesome! F! Great! F* yeah, we’re back in business.'”*
Matt noted that knowing Vince’s reputation for brutal honesty with talent—such as his infamous “no” response to Kevin Owens after his WrestleMania match that same night—made the praise especially meaningful .
In an exclusive backstage interview with WWE, Matt Hardy leaned into his “Broken” character, declaring their return:
“DELIGHTFUL! WONDERFUL! And the best thing about it of all was we DELETED The Club’s title reign!”
Jeff Hardy added before the match that returning to WWE on the biggest stage felt like “coming back home” .
📊 Critical Reception
| Source | Rating | Key Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy.com | ★★★½ | “A stupendous Ladder Match… one of the best parts of ‘Mania 33” |
| Liverpool Echo | N/A | “One of the most memorable WrestleMania moments” |
| The SportsRush | N/A | “One of the loudest crowd pops in the history of WWE” |
✅ Legacy of the Return
The Hardy Boyz’s surprise return at WrestleMania 33 stands as one of the most memorable moments in modern WWE history. It represented:
- The culmination of months of speculation and fan anticipation
- A genuine surprise executed with perfect secrecy
- A feel-good moment that satisfied a live crowd of over 75,000 and millions watching worldwide
- The beginning of a final run for the legendary tag team that would include additional title reigns, a WrestleMania 35 match, and memorable feuds with teams like The Bar and The Revival
For one night in Orlando, “DELETE!” chants echoed through the stadium, and for fans who had followed the Hardys’ journey through TNA, ROH, and the independent circuit, their return to WWE on the grandest stage of them all was nothing short of wonderful .