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| BRET "HITMAN" HART |
On June 6th A&E aired a biography on the career of wrestling legend Bret Hart. The biography special drew over 600 thousand viewers with a 0.26 rating in the 18-49 demographic according to Fightful. When I became a wrestling fan in 1991, Bret Hart was one of the wrestlers that caught my attention. He seemed cool and confident. He looked like a rockstar and I loved the pink and black color scheme. Bret wasn't an overly muscular man like Hulk Hogan or the Ultimate Warrior so I could relate to him more. In this article, I'd like to look at some of my favorite feuds featuring the Hitman. Let's start with:
1. MR. PERFECT
In 1991, Mr. Perfect was the Intercontinental Champion and Bret Hart was chasing him for the title. Mr. Perfect was billed as the perfect wrestler. Bret was a great opponent for Mr. Perfect since he was a skilled technical wrestler as well and was billed as "The Excellence of Execution." Both men had fathers who were in the wrestling business a generation before so it was definitely a match made in heaven. Bret would defeat Mr. Perfect at Summerslam 1991 and win the Intercontinental title launching Bret to another level in his career.
2. YOKOZUNA
In 1993, Bret Hart was WWE Champion after defeating Ric Flair in September of 1992. At Wrestlemania 9 he faced Yokozuna, a 500-pound behemoth that had run over the WWE and its top heroes since his arrival in October of 1992. Yokozuna would win the 1993 Royal Rumble and face Bret Hart at that year's Wrestlemania. Bret would lose the title to Yokozuna after his manager, Mr. Fuji interfered. At Wrestlemania 10 in 1994, Bret would win the title from Yokozuna and Bret was marketed as a Rocky Balboa type underdog that overcame monsters with his technical skills. Soon Bret would face another monster that was making waves in WWE at the time.
3. DIESEL
In June 1993, Diesel (Kevin Nash) entered the WWE as the bodyguard for Shawn Michaels. Diesel was a mountain of a man that stood at seven feet tall and weighed over 300 pounds. At the 1994 Royal Rumble he eliminated seven men in under 18 minutes. By the Summer of 1994, Diesel defeated Razor Ramon (Scott Hall) for the Intercontinental title. Diesel would challenge Bret Hart for the World title at the 1994 King Of The Ring where Bret would have to use his technical skills to overcome a monster villain. Diesel and Bret had great chemistry and their matches had that "David vs. Goliath" psychology. In 1995 Bret and Diesel would face again at Survivor Series for the WWE Championship which Bret won from Diesel.
4.STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN
In 1996, Steve Austin was beginnig his rise in WWE as he challenged Bret Hart at Survivor Series. Austin was a hell-raising villain that didn't trust anybody. Bret was the people's champion that fought against all odds to win. Bret would win at Survivor Series but the feud would continue until Wrestlemainia 13 in 1997. At Wrestlemania 13, Bret Hart and Austin would engage in a classic which saw Hart win the match after Steve Austin passed out in the Sharpshooter. The audience loved Austin after Wrestlemania 13 because he was an anti-hero as Bret became a villain for being a crybaby. Bret and Austin helped launch the attitude era of the WWE after Survivor Series '97. After the Montreal Screwjob, Vince McMahon would become the biggest villain in the WWE and Austin was the defiant hero that wouldn't be tamed.
Bret Hart was one of the greatest wrestlers of the 80's and 90's. He is one of the greatest champions the WWE ever had. Bret's love and commitment to wrestling is what made him, The Excellence of Execution. Thank you Bret.
Class Dismissed,
THE PROFESSOR
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