Matt Hardy believes Pat McAfee may have taken a subtle jab at All Elite Wrestling during his promo on WWE SmackDown.

Speaking on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy alongside Jon Alba, Hardy reacted to McAfee’s return segment, where he aligned with Randy Orton and criticized the current wrestling landscape. One line in particular referenced smaller wrestlers competing in lengthy Iron Man-style matches, which sparked debate about its intended target.

While Alba suggested the comments were directed at WWE’s own product, Hardy strongly disagreed and pointed toward AEW as the real focus.

“I 100% (think) it was a shot at AEW. He put the veil over it and just said, ‘Oh, blah, blah, blah. I turned this on, and this is what I see. Pro wrestling is going to shit now. It’s not Attitude Era. No, I know I did (say WWE), but I think it was a valid shot in AEW….I think a lot of that was like, they’re saying wrestling is different now and not what it’s supposed to be, Attitude Era-esque. And I think a lot of that was related to AEW. I think that was kind of the underlying narrative.”

Hardy also addressed comparisons between McAfee’s involvement and Travis Scott’s role in a previous WrestleMania main event, arguing the situations are not comparable due to McAfee’s long-standing connection to WWE.

“I feel like with the way they kicked it off. If they do it right, it will not detract it will add to it. I feel like saying Travis Scott and Pat McAfee, they’re in two different hemispheres. Travis Scott doesn’t know wrestling. He’s never been in that role. McAfee does know wrestling, and he knows it really well, because he’s a longtime fan and he’s followed and supported it his whole life, and he’s worked at the company. He knows the inner workings. They are, to a degree, but I feel like, as opposed to just being a celebrity, he feels more like a WWE home.

WWE is his home more than anything else. It doesn’t feel like he’s an outside celebrity coming in. He’s featured on commentary for how long? How long do you do commentary for? He’s a very established and known WWE character, you know. So, yeah, they didn’t just, like, you know, put the hook around the stack and pull them in off the streets. I mean, he’s a very established WWE character and personality, and they gave him just something very interesting. He was just saying, like, you know, all these other little guys who out there flipping around whatever styles change, 5’5, having these 10 matches, Ironman matches, and you have 6’5 Randy Orton, you know, the legend killer, the real deal. This is what wrestling is like. We’re missing out from the Attitude Era and how things used to be. I mean, there were a lot of things in there that were pretty compelling. You know that, especially, I think, I think this was dictated to the smarter audience. Is because they, I mean, they’re always going to continue to grow and get bigger and bigger and bigger, but they’re also going to be the most vocal.”

The discussion comes as McAfee continues to be involved in a major storyline heading into WrestleMania 42. On night one, Orton is set to challenge Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship on April 18. Meanwhile, CM Punk is scheduled to defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Roman Reigns on night two, April 19.

Hardy’s comments add another layer of interpretation to McAfee’s promo, which has already generated strong reactions from fans and industry figures.

Matt Hardy Says Pat McAfee’s SmackDown Promo Took Subtle Shot at AEW

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