- 5 hours ago
Episode 12: Bret “The Hitman” Hart
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00:04No superstar epitomizes excellence in sports entertainment quite like Bret Hart.
00:12The Hitman's illustrious career ranks among the most prolific and
00:16iconic in WWE history.
00:18I've dedicated my whole life to become the best.
00:23The technical mastery inside the squared circle combined with a rock solid
00:27connection with the WWE Universe.
00:29Bret Hart truly was the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be.
00:36Today we look back at the very best of Bret the Hitman Hart.
00:40Go get him, champ.
00:41This is WWE's Greatest Moments.
00:46He's just a man!
00:48Oh my god, what the hell are you doing?
00:52Absolutely unbelievable!
00:54Welcome, baby, I'm the best here.
01:02Welcome, everyone, to WWE's Greatest Moments.
01:05I'm Michael Cole.
01:06And on this edition, we're looking at the very best of Bret the Hitman Hart.
01:11Bret's career kickstarted up north in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, inside the famous Hart Dungeon,
01:16learning the ways of professional wrestling from his father, the legendary Stu Hart.
01:20Bret soon found fame in his father's promotion, Stampede Wrestling, alongside his brothers-in-law,
01:27Jim the Anvil Neidhart, and Davey Boy Smith, as well as Davey's cousin, the Dynamite Kid.
01:32In 1985, these four athletes made the jump to WWE.
01:36As Bret teamed with the Anvil to form the Hart Foundation, Davey Boy and Dynamite Kid became
01:42the team known as the British Bulldogs.
01:44The Bulldogs, you're in trouble.
01:46You're running against the Anvil and the Hitman.
01:48Finally poised for the spotlight, this was their chance to show off for the world.
01:56British Bulldogs, Dynamites, Kid and Davey Boy Smith, what a combo.
02:01This is a true test for them.
02:03I think it's fair to say that the Hart Foundation gave the Bulldogs their greatest matches.
02:06We're doing things that most tag teams could never do.
02:11They had different skill sets.
02:13They had different styles.
02:14There was always something about Bret in the way he moved.
02:17He had a very different type of charisma.
02:19Tag team specialist.
02:21What a good team by all the hats.
02:22Bret was the Porsche.
02:24My dad was the tank.
02:25They complemented each other so well.
02:26There goes the speedster.
02:27Look at him go.
02:28100 miles an hour.
02:29Look at this action.
02:31Oh, look out.
02:32Slingshot.
02:32Wow.
02:33And it was some sort of quiet, unspoken charisma that Bret just oozed.
02:38Suplex from the top turnbuckle.
02:41He dragged his own man over, put him on top.
02:45No, he got him.
02:46The Hart Foundation took off because they had such great chemistry.
02:54By 1987, the Hart Foundation had firmly established themselves as top stars in the WWE tag team division.
03:00Where the best there was, the best there is, the best there ever will be.
03:03But Bret also had his eye on chasing singles competition.
03:06The hitman would eventually get his big break against one of the biggest superstars in WWE.
03:12The macho man, Randy Savage.
03:14You're not nobody until you beat somebody.
03:18And in front of a nationally televised audience at Saturday night's main event,
03:22Bret Hart looked to secure the largest victory of his WWE career.
03:29This is going to be a sensational matchup.
03:31The hitman squaring off against the macho man.
03:34That Saturday night main event, we really got excited about it.
03:38Randy was really excited about working with me.
03:40Bret Hart.
03:40Oh, my.
03:42Macho was kind of a polar opposite.
03:44Bret was a fairly dry technical wrestler.
03:47Macho, on the other hand, brought a certain showbiz to the game.
03:51Macho man in the top right of the ladder there pointing down to Bret Hart.
03:54I just loved working with Randy.
03:56He was a high-octane spitfire out there.
03:59He was a guy who was going to really tear up the track.
04:02Macho man's got a tough opponent here because Bret Hart, I believe, can match him hold for hold.
04:07The guy's a mechanic in that ring.
04:09Bret was more of a technician.
04:10And I remember that being one of the best matches on the entire card,
04:13if not the match that stole the show.
04:15Randy Savage on the apron.
04:17Two clicks, no one slam coming up.
04:20One, two, three.
04:23I can't believe it.
04:23I can't believe it that Macho man Savage won the phone.
04:26That's unbelievable.
04:27I think that was the coming out party.
04:29You knew that he was going to be great.
04:30And you saw him take the next step and a huge step towards what would be a Hall of Fame
04:36caliber career.
04:37You knew that he was going to be great.
04:41Throughout the 1990s, Bret Hart had become a certified main event caliber superstar,
04:46winning multiple WWE championships and quickly assuming a position as one of sports entertainment's top talents.
04:53I earned being an Intercontinental Champion.
04:55I earned being a World Wrestling Federation Champion.
04:58But in 1996, a newcomer looked to take Hart's spot, the brash and brazen Stone Cold Steve Austin.
05:06If you put the letter S in front of Hitman, you've had my exact opinion of Bret Hart.
05:11Never one to back down from a challenge, the Hitman took on the Texas Rattlesnake at Survivor Series,
05:17and in what would become a clash for the ages.
05:24If you like Holyfield and Tyson, you're going to love this.
05:28My first high profile match was with Bret the Hitman Hart.
05:34I'd taken six months off.
05:36When I came back, I wanted to come back and wrestle the best wrestler in the company.
05:39That was a hard thing for me to pull off.
05:41How much ring rust does Bret Hart possess?
05:44How long will it take for a trip to get in that groove?
05:47I can't believe Bret Hart's on his seat.
05:50The two of them brought out the very best in each other.
05:56Bret Hart had to rise to that occasion.
05:58And for Steve Austin, nothing was going to stand in the way of that rocket ride he was on.
06:04Ends up with me going forward with my old finish, a million dollar dream.
06:08Wait a minute, there's a million dollar dream!
06:11He goes to the turnbuckle, kicks, over we go, roll up.
06:15Goal!
06:16Goal!
06:17Goal!
06:17Goal!
06:18Goal!
06:19Goal!
06:19Goal!
06:19Austin did lift on a million dollar dream and it cost him the victory!
06:23He didn't beat me by physicality, he beat me by outsmarting me.
06:28I always loved that match with Stone Cold.
06:30That was a real Barnburner.
06:41Bret Hart is widely recognized as one of the greatest WWE champions of all time, taking on
06:47challenges of all shapes and sizes.
06:49I'm going to take on all challenges, that means all of them.
06:54And on July 1st, 1994, Bret Hart would put his WWE title on the line against the underdog
07:01upstart, the 1-2-3 Kid.
07:05The 1-2-3 Kid is the biggest match of his life, ladies and gentlemen.
07:10The 1-2-3 Kid was really an up-and-comer at this point, whereas Bret the Hitman Hart was
07:15the top star in our game.
07:18He's going to want to keep the 1-2-3 Kid to the back, and the 1-2-3 Kid
07:22is going to try
07:23to keep it into a high play type action.
07:26It's one of the most beautiful matches I ever had.
07:28It's not one of those old school wrestling matches where I got a headlock on for the whole match.
07:33I was already a huge Bret Hart fan.
07:40Bret let me come up with everything.
07:41Like, he put everything into place.
07:43He wanted me to do all my stuff.
07:45Watch the stacks here.
07:47Watch the stacks here.
07:47Far side.
07:48Oh, Hart caught him!
07:49Bret, with his technical skills, he couldn't match the high-flying stuff, but he could
07:53certainly outsmall the kick.
08:03That was the greatest championship match I have ever seen in my career.
08:08I wasn't so much thinking about that I was having a WWE championship match, but that
08:13I was having a match with Bret Hart.
08:14It's the greatest match of my career.
08:18It's a beautiful story and a beautiful match, and I loved every bit of it.
08:22It was my way of giving back.
08:27In 1997, Bret formed a new incarnation of the Hart Foundation featuring his brother Owen,
08:33brothers-in-law Jim Neidhart and Davey Boy Smith, and family friend Brian Pillman.
08:37I've surrounded myself with the best that the World Wrestling Federation has to offer.
08:43The group was bonded together with patriotic pride for their home country of Canada.
08:48Canada is the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be.
08:55With Monday Night Raw emanating from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, the Hitman was out to prove
09:00just how superior his country is to their American neighbors to the south.
09:10Ladies and gentlemen, Bret, the Hitman!
09:16Summer of 97, you have Bret Hart and the Hart Foundation, who are beloved, of course,
09:21in Canada and hated south of the border.
09:25Americans think that they're always better than us.
09:30They think they're better than everyone.
09:33That whole time period was interesting because we were good guys in Canada,
09:38and we were bad guys in the States.
09:41Canada is a country where we still take care of the sick and the old,
09:44where we still have health care.
09:47Canada isn't riddled with racial prejudice and hatred.
09:51It felt very much like it was Canada versus the USA.
09:54There was this love-hate thing going on that was really special, and I remember thinking,
09:59this is really cool, like, this has never been done before.
10:02This is such a proud moment as a Canadian, and I'll tell you what, no lies detected.
10:08Nobody is more proud of being Canadian than I am.
10:15For decades, the King of the Ring tournament was used as a launching point for several WWE careers.
10:20From Stone Cold Steve Austin...
10:23Austin 316 says I just whipped your ass!
10:27...to Triple H...
10:29The 1997 King of the Ring...
10:31...to Brock Lesnar...
10:33Oh, the F5!
10:34And it's over!
10:36Boston, the King of the Ring!
10:37But perhaps no King of the Ring tournament held the anticipation like 1993's memorable contest.
10:43Bret Hart would have to win three consecutive matches against some of WWE's greatest superstars...
10:49...in search of becoming in-ring royalty.
10:52An incredible task was ahead of the Hitman.
10:57What a night is going to be, ladies and gentlemen!
11:00This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and boy, you better take advantage of it.
11:04He got hammered with a tremendous clothesline!
11:07Whoa!
11:07What a slam!
11:08You can tell with the King of the Ring, I have more confidence than I ever did.
11:13And if anything, I'm going to prove myself today with three different wrestlers.
11:16I'm going to beat all three of them.
11:18He counted it!
11:19He counted it!
11:20Suplex!
11:21Bret Hart's are really gifted.
11:23That was big for him.
11:25Hitman versus Mr. Perfect!
11:27The Perfect Plex versus the Sharpshooter from our Intercontinental Champions!
11:31And their bodies on the line!
11:33Bret and Mr. Perfect were going back and forth.
11:35It was very competitive.
11:37One, two, one, two!
11:38Let's get it!
11:39Let's get it!
11:40Let's get it!
11:41It will be Bret Hart beating Bam Bam Bigelow!
11:44He's got three wildly different opponents.
11:47It was almost just like the little Bret Hart showcase.
11:50Look at this move!
11:50Oh my!
11:51He's nuts!
11:52He's the Hitman up on Bigelow's shoulders!
11:56Where's he going?
11:57He got him in the victory roll!
11:58He's got the feet hooked!
11:59And he wins!
12:00And he wins!
12:01I'm not going to say it's Bret Hart's greatest moment, because God, how do you count them all?
12:05But it's definitely one of them.
12:07The King of the Ring!
12:13The Hitman was on a roll in the summer of 1997, back by the Hart Foundation, Bret emerged as the
12:19number one contender to the WWE Championship, which was dominantly held by the phenom, The Undertaker.
12:25I will be the World Wrestling Federation Champion!
12:29You will rest in peace!
12:35Hart and Undertaker were headed for a collision course at SummerSlam, but the heartbreak kid Shawn Michaels demanded inclusion in
12:42the match.
12:42I will be the special referee!
12:47And Bret immediately questioned Michael's ability to remain impartial.
12:51No way to be a referee!
12:53Would Hart overcome the odds and secure another championship?
13:06The SummerSlam match with Undertaker, it's really one of my greatest matches for sure.
13:14Bret was a no-nonsense kind of wrestler, so I ended up dropping the Undertaker guard a little bit and
13:23incorporate more athleticism into it.
13:25And what a seesaw matchup, Vince has been!
13:30It was art, it was such hard work, but it was such a beautiful match.
13:35You know, Bret's the hitman who wants to play a shot like this so bad.
13:39You guys, like Bret and I, we were competing with one another.
13:43The animosity builds until it gets to the point where Bret spits the golf ball-sized loogie right in Shawn's
13:50face, and then Shawn swung a chair, but Bret ducked.
13:55Undertaker was on the receiving end of it.
13:59Shawn ended up helping Bret win the title.
14:03He certainly didn't want to, but that's what worked out.
14:06Whenever I think back to great moments in my career, the ending at SummerSlam is always one that makes me
14:11really smile.
14:15At Survivor Series 1997, Bret Hart departed WWE in controversial fashion.
14:21Bret was told he was going to win that night, but was screwed out of his title by Vince McMahon
14:30and his nemesis Shawn Michaels.
14:33Nobody knows better than I do what it's like to get screwed over.
14:37But the WWE Universe never gave up hope that the hitman would one day come back home, and the two
14:43superstars could finally make peace.
14:48Making his first appearance on Raw in over 12 years, Bret the Hitman!
14:56Raw!
14:58Oh, my God! This is amazing!
15:01When I think back to that time period, I don't know where I found the courage to do that.
15:05I just was so nervous about how it would be perceived.
15:08It's been 12 long years!
15:10The time that he had away from WWE, I know it was really hard on him.
15:16I've got years of things that I've wanted to get off my chest.
15:19Shawn Michaels to come out here!
15:22Okay, there's Shawn Michaels!
15:24I didn't speak to Bret, nor see him, for easily more than a decade.
15:29Apparently, hell has frozen over.
15:32Carrying that burden for both of us in different ways was heavy.
15:36I would love to be able to put that behind us.
15:39You're not the only one that wants to bury the hatchet.
15:42It was like a big giant weight carrying around all that anger and grief.
15:47Both were tired of fighting each other and having this ill room.
15:51If you want to bury the hatchet, let's bury it right now.
16:01The best thing I ever did was make peace with it.
16:04I don't know about you, but I got some goosebumps going up my spine right now.
16:13Bret Hart is often recognized as one of the greatest in-ring performers in WWE history.
16:18With his incredible athletic ability backed by a genius wrestling mind,
16:23Bret could simply do it all.
16:24I'm ready to take on anybody, anytime, anywhere.
16:28But the Hitman's technical abilities may have been rivaled by one Mr. Perfect,
16:33a superstar who prides himself on being absolutely, well, perfect.
16:37You're close to perfect Bret Hart, but you're not Mr. Perfect.
16:42Naturally, these two wrestling greats would look to prove themselves as a superior competitor.
16:46And at SummerSlam 1991, the Hitman and the perfect one would clash for the prestigious
16:53Intercontinental Championship.
16:57All the marbles at stake here, jam-packed here in the garden.
17:01The match that Bret Hart had with Mr. Perfect in 1991 was incredible.
17:05It was a match that had everybody talking.
17:07Perfect's got not only his title on the line, but his reputation.
17:11You can only think about one thing, that's your opponent.
17:14Both of these guys in tip-top physical condition.
17:17He was one of those kind of guys that was a natural.
17:20He was as good a wrestler as there ever was.
17:23Perfect, in a whole lot of trouble, and the Hitman gave him confidence.
17:27I don't think there was a more perfect opponent for Bret that night than Kurt Henning.
17:31He looks like he's looking for a way out.
17:34Hart wants it bad, Hart wants to keep it.
17:36Oh, no!
17:38Has he got the fingers locked?
17:40No, he got it!
17:42Nice block there, that move.
17:44Oh, he's got that hold half a quad on the canvas.
17:57That match stands out because it really launches Bret into the singles stratosphere.
18:03The new Intercontinental Champion!
18:05I thought it stole the show that day.
18:07We had the best matches.
18:08This place is going bananas!
18:12We've now reached our number one moment.
18:15Five-time WWE Champion Bret Hart may be considered one of the greatest technicians inside the squared
18:20circle, but becoming a champion doesn't happen overnight.
18:23I fought and crawled my way to the top.
18:25By 1992, the Hitman had slowly been climbing the ranks of the WWE ladder for years.
18:30We're all gonna find out that I'm going straight to the top.
18:34Hart was certain that his time as champion was on the horizon.
18:37Yet standing in his way of achieving his goal was perhaps the greatest champion of all time.
18:43Ric Flair rules the World Wrestling Federation!
18:49Bret, the Hitman Hart will not hold that title.
18:52The two would battle it out with the title on the line in front of a wild Canadian crowd.
19:02If anybody has a chance, the Hitman does.
19:06I had a great time working with Bret.
19:08That was a great match, I thought.
19:10Every time Flair steps into the ring, he is in 100% physical condition.
19:15I found when I wrestled Ric Flair that I really had to find a different gear to stay up with
19:20him and keep up with him.
19:21It's been a blistering pace set by both men challenger and champion.
19:26Bret, in the eyes of the fans, he was the best there is, the best there was, and the best
19:32there ever will be.
19:34He's got it turned over!
19:45Now he just hit that gift.
19:46You can make people feel it.
19:49A man who has devoted his entire life to this moment.
19:54I never expected any of this to happen.
19:57As a kid, when I was probably about 12, I dreamed about being champion.
20:03This is the greatest moment of my whole life.
20:06The biggest dreams can still come true.
20:12Bret Hart's excellence simply cannot be disputed.
20:16With a career as story as any in WWE history, Bret Hart will forever remain a legend of the squared
20:22circle.
20:22There's no denying that he truly is the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever
20:29will be.
20:30That'll do it for this edition of WWE's Greatest Moments.
20:34I hope you've enjoyed this look back.
20:36Best of the legendary Hitman, Bret Hart.