Featured Article: Jeff Hardy

High-risk style 'OK for RVD'
by Phil Speer from WWF.com

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- How far is too far? That was once again the topic of much debate one day after the Jeff Hardy vs. Rob Van Dam Hardcore Ladder Match at SummerSlam.

If "too far" is serious injury, then the two superstars didn't cross the line. Both escaped with mere bumps and bruises. Hardy told WWF.com that his most severe injury was a sore lower back. Van Dam said he was feeling fine. For his part, he said that the risk factor wasn't nearly as high as he can take it.

"Myself and some others can still crank it up another notch," Van Dam said. "I've always been accused of raising the bar. When it comes to the comfort zone, mine is a lot wider ranged.

"Obviously, I don't want to get injured, but I don't feel like I'm putting myself in any danger."

Perhaps not coincidentally, the debate over "high-spots" has heated up since Van Dam arrived in the Federation. Although he wasn't talking directly about the Van Dam-Hardy SummerSlam match, Jim Ross once again alluded to the "raising of the bar" in the Ross Report that he updated Monday.

"We've got too many exciting young guys for their careers to burn out when they're 33 or 34 years old," Ross said. "They should have 10 more years left quite frankly. But they don't because of their backs, hips, necks, joints, just say, 'That's it.'"

Regarding the actual match, Ross said he was happy the risk factor wasn't any higher than in was.

"They took enough chances," Ross said. "I'm glad they didn't take any more chances than they did."

Hardy says they certainly didn't pull out all the stops at SummerSlam.

"It was unique in the sense that, for a Hardcore Title Match, we used nothing but a ladder," he said. "There were no RVD chair spots."

Van Dam says that there would be chair spots in the future, and much more than that if he has his way.

"The only way I can prove anything to everybody else is to continue to bust out these matches every night and come back uninjured," Van Dam said. "Eventually, somebody's going to say, 'You know what? This is OK for RVD.'

"I hope I can continue to raise the bar, and I'll raise the bar myself if no one will raise it with me."

Van Dam added that he'd love to see his feud with Jeff Hardy continue. So, undoubtedly, will the debate about "raising the bar."

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