Bret Hart‘s lack of trust in Vince McMahon took place long before the 1997 Survivor Series pay-per-view event.
Two-time WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart was a recent guest on The Ringer Wrestling Show. While discussing his first WWE Championship title reign, Hart details the promises Vince McMahon gave him and how they turned out to be lies.
“My memory of it is that things were like an elevator falling,” Bret Hart said. “Business was plummeting every week, down, down. Vince was being investigated. A lot of dark, gloomy things… It was almost like, ‘Who can we put the belt on that’s not going to screw everything up’, and it’s like, ‘Oh, let’s put it on Bret Hart.’
“I remember when I won the title. Vince told me that I would be champion for — they were looking long term, kind of like Bruno [Sammartino]. He brought up Bruno and [Bob] Backlund, and he said, ‘You’re going to be champion for six years. You’re going to be champion for a long time, so don’t worry about your position.’
“When Hogan came in, he goes, ‘Don’t worry about Hogan. He’s got nothing to do with you. He’s here to promote a movie; he’s short-term.’ It was always Vince telling me these things, so I was very confident. The reason I became the champion that I did was because I believed that I was going to be champion for a long time, and I’m going to be like Bruno, I think I’m the best guy to carry it going forward.
“I could tell when Hogan came back, he wouldn’t even shake my hand in the dressing room. I always thought, if Hulk Hogan saw me, he would come up and shake my hand and be like, really proud of me, I always thought he would be an advocate for me. When he came back, I saw right away that I had what he wanted. He had no respect for me. He couldn’t believe that I was the champion. I remember going in my heart, ‘He doesn’t matter because Vince already told me I’m not gonna even worry about him.'”
Finding out about Hulk Hogan and WrestleMania IX
Things came to a head at WrestleMania IX when Hart’s pitch on how to beat Yokozuna was turned down, and he was told of the plans involving Hulk Hogan following the match.
“When that night happened, I didn’t find out until the night before I lost the belt. I couldn’t believe it. I was stunned,” Bret Hart said. “He goes, ‘Well, that’s not what we’re doing.’ He was almost shocked that I thought I was going to beat Yoko.
“I’m like, ‘Well, you’re the one that told me I’d be champion for six years, so I just assumed.’ He laid out that whole thing with Hogan, and I felt so betrayed. I think that’s when I went, this guy’s a total liar. Vince is a liar. Hogan’s a liar. I was really mad.”
Despite working together for years following this event, Hart admits that he never could take McMahon at his word after that.
“I’ll be honest. My whole relationship with Vince was never the same,” Bret Hart admitted. “I could never really take him at his word anymore. As far as integrity and honesty, I never felt that Vince was honest with me after that. It’s all about trust and respect, and Vince broke that trust.” [H/T: WrestlingNews.co]
READ MORE: Bret Hart Reveals The Most Truthful Thing Hulk Hogan Ever Said
What do you make of Bret Hart’s comments? Do you think a six-year title reign for Hart was viable at that point and time? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
