WWE aired what might be its weirdest match of all time on Monday Night Raw, and for whatever reason, cord cutters found themselves cut out of the fun and excitement. Wrestling fans who use Hulu were distraught when they learned the service's version of Raw excluded "The Ultimate Deletion," the much buzzed-about backyard brawl between Broken Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt. So why wasn't the wrestling match a part of the condensed cut of the show? Hulu shed some light on the issue via social media:
Hulu's version of Monday Night Raw is only 90 minutes long and must showcase the major moments of the televised broadcast, which is around 3 hours long. Given that, cord cutters who tune into the condensed version of the program often miss a bunch of smaller matches and storylines that air during the full program and instead just see the major matches and twists that will be relevant heading up to the next PPV. Apparently, the WWE seemed to think Bray Wyatt and Broken Matt Hardy's match, which was a pre-recorded brawl, was less important than other things shown during the broadcast.
Unfortunately, The WWE's "deletion" of the match on Hulu did not go unnoticed by fans as the showdown between the two wrestlers ended up being one of the most talked-about moments of Monday Night Raw. In a night that featured Ronda Rousey, and plenty of story laying the groundwork for Wrestlemania, Bray Wyatt and Broken Matt Hardy's off-site slugfest had fans captivated with just how bizarre the whole thing was. The segment drew acclaim from tons of wrestling fans on social media and even some former wrestling legends:
With even ousted WWE superstar Hulk Hogan recognizing the nationally trending match on Twitter, it's all the more baffling that the WWE opted to cut the segment from its 90-minute broadcast on Hulu. Monday Night Raw is a live show, which means the organization had seen the match's viral impact prior to making its Hulu package, so why drop it from the condensed version? Wrestlemania is just under a month away, so its possible the company nixed the storyline to make room for other things that will be relevant with other wrestlers leading up to the big event. It's also possible the WWE wanted to drive cord cutters to its YouTube channel, which has the match broken up into several shorter videos.
Monday Night Raw airs on USA Mondays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Those who watch on Hulu who may have missed why "The Ultimate Deletion" was such a big deal can see for themselves by hopping over and watching the most WTF portion of the match on the next page. For a look at upcoming television programming that's worth a watch in 2018, head on over to our midseason premiere guide. For a look at some other things controversial things that have happened in the WWE recently, check out our story on the one wrestler who changed his name following the events of the Florida school shooting.
