Life isn’t easy when you’re a WWE Superstar, especially if your name is Matt Hardy.

After Edge and Lita’s affair made headlines in 2005, Hardy, one of WWE’s brightest Superstars, found himself separated from the other love of his life when he was released from his WWE contract in April. Although fan support brought Hardy back to “RAW” later that summer, Hardy struggled to stay in the spotlight after losing a Loser Leaves “RAW” Ladder Match to Edge and being sent to “SmackDown.” While his one-time friend turned “mortal enemy” was winning title shot after title shot the following year on “RAW,” Hardy watched from the sidelines as Kurt Angle, Rey Mysterio, King Booker and Batista all took their turns as World Heavyweight Champion. Now, almost two years since his return to professional wrestling, Matt Hardy finally seems to be in the right place at the right time.

Currently one-half of the World Tag Team Champions with his brother Jeff, Hardy might just be one the busiest Superstars in the business today. Doing double duty as both a member of the “SmackDown” roster and a “RAW” title holder, Hardy has appeared on both shows regularly since winning the World Tag Team Championship from John Cena and Shawn Michaels the night after WrestleMania 23. However, it’s “SmackDown’s” newest roster addition, World Heavyweight Champion Edge, that makes Hardy’s current situation all the more interesting.

“My main goal is to become World Heavyweight Champion,” says Hardy, on route to that night’s “SmackDown” taping in Des Moines, Iowa. “That’s my absolute goal. Jeff and I started out in this business as low as you can get, and we’ve climbed our way up. It was hard in the beginning distinguishing ourselves, as people always thought of us as the 'Hardy Boyz’ and not as individual commodities, but we’re smarter and wiser now. I think with a few tweaks to my character and a little more mic time, so long as my fan base follows it can happen. And I’m going to bust my ass to achieve my ultimate goal.”

Of course, winning the title from Edge would make Hardy’s victory that much sweeter, but Hardy isn’t interested in using the World Heavyweight Championship as a means for revenge. Regardless of who is holding the title, Hardy says he would love to be in the ring competing for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 24, fighting for the ultimate prize on wrestling’s biggest night.

Having participated in one of WrestleMania 23’s most memorable matches, the Money in the Bank Ladder Match, stepping into the main event at WrestleMania 24 seems like the next logical step, so long as Hardy’s current hot streak continues through the “Royal Rumble.” No stranger to WrestleMania, Hardy says it wasn’t until recently he really realized the importance of the event.

“WrestleMania’s never just another day at work,” Hardy says. “I always have butterflies (at WrestleMania) before stepping into the ring. But besides having the biggest title matches and the best storylines, WrestleMania was the first pay-per-view WWE launched. If it failed in the beginning, WWE would have failed.”

Luckily for Vince McMahon, that wasn’t the case. In fact, according to WWE, WrestleMania 23 attracted 80,103 fans to Ford Field in Detroit, breaking the sports venue’s all-time attendance record and making WrestleMania 23 the highest grossing pay-per-view event in WWE history. Now available on DVD, fans can relive all the excitement of WrestleMania 23 with both a two-disc set (MSRP: $34.95) and a three-disc ultimate edition (MSRP: $44.95) that includes five hours of bonus content, including exclusive matches, interviews, a photo gallery and the entire 2007 Hall of Fame induction ceremony. While the ultimate edition will easily attract die-hard WWE fans with all its extra content, according to Hardy, both DVDs feature his favorite WrestleMania 23 moment--the Battle of the Billionaires: Hair vs. Hair Match.

“Watching Vince get his head shaved…We’ve had our ups and downs, and there’s just something about seeing a billionaire get his hair shaved off,” Hardy says with a laugh.

Naturally, Hardy’s other favorite WrestleMania 23 match is included on both DVDs as well--the Money in the Bank Ladder Match. And despite being an old pro at Ladder Matches, Hardy says the WrestleMania 23 Money in the Bank Ladder Match was one of his most difficult Ladder Matches to date.

“The Money in the Bank Ladder Match was such a star-studded match,” he explains. “Everyone involved--King Booker, CM Punk, Ken Kennedy, Edge--was top tier talent. And to be competing against eight different singles guys…you really had to keep your eyes open every step of the way.”

Proving the MITB Ladder Match really was every man for himself, fans witnessed a WWE first when Hardy and his brother Jeff climbed to the top of the ladder simultaneously--and began fighting each other for a chance to win the WWE title shot. Hardy admits he had to adjust to the idea of competing against his own flesh and blood moments before the match began.

“I really had to change my mindset,” he states. “My brother was in the match, as well as a couple of Superstars I get along with and a couple I don’t. I really had to unleash the warrior inside of me and hype myself up before getting into the ring to remind myself that when the match began, I wasn’t friends with anyone anymore. It was such a highly competitive environment.”

That being said, Hardy did team up with his brother Jeff for a brief moment during the match to take out--who else?--the original Mr. Money in the Bank himself, Edge. That moment, when Jeff leaped off the top of a ladder set up inside of the ring and crashed onto Edge, who was lying on top of a ladder outside of the ring--was easily one of the highlights of WrestleMania 23, not to mention one of Hardy’s favorite moments of the night.

“Watchin’ Jeff jump on Edge wasn’t that hard considering Edge is one of my mortal enemies,” Hardy replies when asked if he felt any concern for Edge having witnessed Jeff’s daredevil move just inches away from the Rated-R Superstar. “Seeing that (Edge’s) ladder break right in front of my eyes…that was amazing to watch.”

While the move left both Jeff and Edge unable to compete in the rest of match, Hardy says both he and his brother have toned down their daredevil moves “quite a bit” since their recent WWE returns. In fact, Hardy says he’s proud of how much his brother’s matured since returning to the WWE ring in August of 2006.

“He really is a different human being,” Hardy says. “When he was away from big brother (Jeff briefly competed in TNA from mid-2004 to early 2006) he found himself in some weird situations. But he grew up and came back to WWE as a man. Now, he’s finally in control of every aspect of his life.”

And while Hardy may have his heart set on the World Heavyweight Championship, right now he and his brother are focused on the same common goal--to bring some credibility back to the WWE tag team division.

“Right now, I just don’t see anyone who stands out,” Hardy says. “Lance (Cade) and Trevor (Murdoch) are hangin’ in there and doing well, but they really need an interesting storyline. There’s a lot missing between everyone’s work in the ring and their crowd connection.”

As for how the upcoming tri-branded WWE draft could change the tag team landscape (not to mention Hardy’s quest for World Championship gold), if there’s one thing the “SmackDown” Superstar says he has learned since his WWE debut in 1998 it’s to always expect the unexpected.

“This is WWE,” Hardy concludes with a laugh. “Anything can happen.”

WrestleMania 23 is now available on DVD.