How Jeff Hardy Created His Iconic Swanton Bomb Finisher

TNA star and wrestling icon Jeff Hardy has elaborated on how he came up with his legendary finisher, the Swanton Bomb.

One of the most influential wrestlers of the late 90s and early 2000s, Hardy’s impact on the business is frequently seen today with many of the top stars in the current era naming The Hardys as a significant influence on their own high-flying style. From WWE to the independents to even friends playing backyard wrestling, there is a strong chance that a Swanton will feature somewhere on the show as a reference to The Charismatic Enigma.

While Hardy has performed the move off the top rope countless times, the former World Champion has also executed the dive off ladders, staging and all manner of elevated platforms over the course of his lengthy career.

Jeff Hardy Credits Japanese Icon With Helping To Create Swanton Bomb

While speaking with Rewind, Recap, Relive, Hardy stated that The Great Sasuke, who found success in New Japan Pro Wrestling and was the founder of Michinoku Pro Wrestling, played a large part in making the move his own:

“It was another one of my favorite wrestlers from Japan, The Great Sasuke, I believe. He would do this dive to the floor, but he had that grace about his front flip, and I just started doing that on the trampoline and said, wow, this might be a cool move to do in the ring on somebody. Instead of a senton, because it is so graceful, I put the swan in there, and I’ll never forget telling ‘Jim Ross, hey, I would like to call this the Swanton Bomb’, if that’s cool, man, and sure enough, that night he did it, and the rest is history.”