OTD: Jeff Hardy's intoxication led to his TNA match against Sting finish in 88 seconds in 2011

On this day in 2011, TNA's most infamous match took place between Sting and Jeff Hardy. At Victory Road, Sting was set to defend his TNA World Championship against Hardy, which turned out to be a nightmare. Jeff was on drugs, and his high intoxication meant a long match wasn't possible. Sting pinned Jeff in just 88 seconds and defended his title.

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The Main Event of the night grabbed attention, which featured Sting and Jeff in a match for the TNA World title. In 2011, Hardy was into drugs and was highly immature. As the big match was announced, Jeff was highly intoxicated and was in no shape to compete in a long match.

The match was expected to be a banger, given the caliber of the wrestlers and the story in the leadup to the match. Fans had huge expectations from the match and wished to see a long banger. However, Hardy's negligence meant Sting had to finish the match the earliest.

TNA offered free tickets to fans for 6 months

The Icon looked for ways to give the fans what they wanted. Unfortunately, the legendary wrestler had no option but to end the match hurriedly in 88 seconds via pinfall. The entire arena booed and expressed their disapproval of the match. There were chants of "Bullsh*t," and Sting replied with, "I agree".

It turned out to be the most infamous match in the history of TNA. The future of the company was at stake as the fans showed no interest in watching anything related to the promotion. Jeff had to undergo rehab for 120 days to get relieved from his addiction to drugs and alcohol. TNA had to take a massive step to convince the fans.

Hence, the promotion took the initiative of offering a service of 6 months of free viewership for the fans who bought the tickets for TNA Victory Road in 2011. In the years following the incident, Jeff apologized for his act and claimed it was necessary for the end of his addiction.