Reacting to the news of Stephanie McMahon’s upcoming induction into the WWE Hall of Fame, Matt Hardy called the decision a “good call” on his Extreme Life podcast. He praised McMahon’s contributions and recalled a time early in his singles career when she personally helped him develop his character.
“It’s a good call. She’s obviously contributed so, so much to the WWE and she has been a huge contributing factor,” Hardy said. “People always talked about who would be the next to succeed Vince McMahon… Stephanie was definitely the one who everyone saw as the next power to be because Stephanie was just, she was more wired like Vince, I think, than Shane was in many, many ways.”
Hardy also shared a personal story about working with McMahon during a pivotal time in his career. “I’ve always gotten along good with Stephanie,” he recalled. “When I first turned heel and I had really embraced being Matt Hardy Version 1, the sensei of Mattitude with the vignettes, there was a lot of stuff that she kind of worked with me with and she gave me advice and tips and ideas, suggestions. And I worked with her pretty closely that whole while, her and Paul Heyman. So it was a lot of fun and very enjoyable.”
Stephanie McMahon was announced as the first member of the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2026 during the Wrestlepalooza premium live event. After more than two decades serving in various executive roles within the company, McMahon resigned in early 2023. She has recently returned to the WWE fold as the host of a new podcast, What’s Your Story?, on the WWE Podcast Network.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Extreme Life of Matt Hardy with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
