Bret Hart speaks about Raw segment

[Guest FeArHaVoC]

Oh no, not that again.

That was my reaction when I heard they were playing clips of the Montreal screw job on Raw last Monday.

I couldn't help but think: Why dredge the whole stinkin' mess up again?

It was 5 1/2 years ago, why can't they get over it?

So I turned on Raw to see Shawn Michaels tell the world he has apologized to

me and we should all just get over it and get on with our lives.

Hey, we were doing that ... until Vince decided to bring the whole thing up

again.

Vince is more at fault here than Shawn because he's the one who scripted it.

But Shawn isn't in the clear, either, because the fact is, I have never

received an apology from him -- public or private -- for his role in the Survivor

Series '97 screw job. In fact, in at least one TV interview, Shawn actually

said he would do it again.

Shawn claiming he apologized is just another step by Vince to rewrite

history.

Yes, Shawn has said in various interviews he's sorry the whole thing

happened. So am I. But at no time has Shawn ever acknowledged what he did was wrong. He rationalizes his actions by saying he just did what his boss -- the

promoter -- told him to do. He seems to be missing the point - so did I!

When I saw Shawn on Off The Record I felt sorry for him when he said God

tells you to respect authority so he had to do what Vince told him. For someone to

talk about an apology that never happened is disappointing.

So I had to ask myself why Vince would script such a segment. The obvious

answer is ratings -- but at what cost?

In the past year, Vince and I have been on speaking terms. It was my

impression we'd come to an understanding not to take pokes at each other anymore.

We've even spoken about the possibility of doing some future business together.

How could Vince think I'd interpret a stunt like this as anything but

(another) slap in the face? So, why pull a stunt like this? Maybe because it's the one stench Vince hasn't been able to wipe off his hands and he can't stand it because he can't control it. Even now, whenever the WWE goes to Montreal, the fans chant: 'You screwed Bret.' In a business where fans often have a short memory, many still feel passionately about what happened

at Survivor Series '97 because it crossed the line into reality, wasn't a work and people were genuinely offended. Twisting and minimizing what happened is disrespectful because many people, besides myself, were affected.

If Montreal hadn't happened, I would have been more than happy to finish out

my career in the then-WWF. If I hadn't been in the WCW, I'd have been at Over The Edge and, I guarantee you, Owen would never have been up in the rafters in the first place -- so my brother wouldn't have died that day.

The Hart family wouldn't have been ripped apart during a lawsuit that never

would have ever happened.

I wouldn't have been in the WCW and sustained a career-ending concussion from

Bill Goldberg. Doctors tell me they can't rule out the possibility the severity and location of that concussion made me prone to the major stroke I suffered last year.

As I lay in the hospital with the entire left side of my body paralysed,

Vince called me. Even with the major heat between us, he still called.

. Shawn could have done the same. He didn't.

Now I feel betrayed by Vince -- again.

I feel as if he's trying to entice me into some sort of a response, maybe

because the WWE is coming to Calgary soon.

This column is my response and, no, I won't be at the show.

My father told me, just after Montreal happened, that if they take your

integrity you have nothing. I won't let him, myself, my family, friends and fans

down.

Be Good, Be kind, be truthful and be free. (Hothouse Flowers)

[Guest Brian]

In the Observer, Dave said Bret was planning on heading up to the Calgary house show and meeting the wrestlers, but decided against it because of this. He especially wanted to talk to Lesnar, because they've only met at the Hennig funeral.

[Guest JMA]

Damnit, we could have seen Bret in WWE again if this hadn't happened. I think the Michaels/Jericho debate has become my most hated segment ever (knocking the Nowinski/Steiner debate down).

[Guest Shanghai Kid]

Brets singing the same song. I can understand everything he said, but Shawn has said they should both go on OTR and have a sit down thing. If I was in Shawns posistion, I wouldn't call Bret either. It would be too akward. Bret and Vince respected each other before the screw job, but Shawn and Bret already hated each other before that.

 

I don't think Vince's intentions were to throw a slap in the face to Bret. I figure he just wanted to kill two stones with one, set up a match with Jericho/HBK and try to get the Canadain fans off his back. The latter will never work, but i'm sure he didn't want to piss on the relationship that him and Bret were starting to get back.

[Guest Brian]

And in doing so he attempted to kill Jericho in Canada. The one place where the guy is still really strong, and the blow it.

[Guest JMA]

I don't really think anyone can defend Vince for bringing this up. There should be a poll asking if Vince should move on or not.

[Guest The Mighty Damaramu]

Hell Vince is more stuck on it than Bret. Shawn telling the fans to get over it was ludicrous b/c the WWE itself can't get over it.

[Guest HartFan86]

Not just this...but I find it really funny that the WWE is telling everyone to "Get over it, it's been 5-6 years."

 

Look at the main event segment on Raw from this past Monday, and look at a main event segment from Raw 5 years ago.

 

Tell me, who needs to get over the past?

 

Thank you.

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

Oh please, McMahon did the montreal finish in Calgary w/ Austin and Benoit INFRONT OF Stu and Helen Hart. Vince will take any opportunity to piss on Bret Hart.

[chaosrage 0]

I say we start another 8 page thread on it. What do you guys think?

 

Shawn claiming he apologized is just another step by Vince to rewrite

history.

Yes, Shawn has said in various interviews he's sorry the whole thing

happened.

 

That's obviously the apology he was talking about. He even said as much. It was supposed to swerve the crowd.

 

So, why pull a stunt like this?

Even now, whenever the WWE goes to Montreal, the fans chant: 'You screwed Bret.' In a business where fans often have a short memory, many still feel passionately about what happened.

 

Wow, he answered his own damn question. If it was meant to be a slap in the face to him, they would've tried to justify it one more time. They would've said Bret was supposed to do this, but because he didn't, they had to do what they did. That didn't happen. All Shawn did was tell the crowd to get over it.

 

If Montreal hadn't happened, I would have been more than happy to finish out

my career in the then-WWF. If I hadn't been in the WCW, I'd have been at Over The Edge and, I guarantee you, Owen would never have been up in the rafters in the first place -- so my brother wouldn't have died that day.

The Hart family wouldn't have been ripped apart during a lawsuit that never

would have ever happened.

 

Okay, WTF? Wasn't the whole point to Montreal that he was leaving? He made the choice to go to WCW. Now he's the one trying to rewrite history.

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

_Vince_ was the one who broke the contract, Bret didn't. Bret _wanted_ to stay.

[Guest PowerPB13]

At one time, I had hoped that Bret could appear in WWE one more time, just to say goodbye.

 

But nowadays, I realize that this goddamn company doesn't deserve to have him back, even for one night.

 

I speak as a Bret Hart fan when I say, good for you Bret. Just because Foley was willing to whore himself out to WWE again doesn't mean that you have to do the same thing.

 

 

 

-Patrick

[Guest Coffey]

My God. Bret Hart is basically blaming the 1997 Survivor Series screwjob for messing up his entire life. If the screwjob didn't happen

• Owen would be alive
• Hart family lawsuit wouldn't have happened
• Bret wouldn't have had a concussion
• Bret wouldn't have had a stroke

My goodness...

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

Is he wrong?

[Guest Coffey]

Hindsight is 20/20 and I believe in fate. So, yes I think he is wrong.

 

If Owen Hart was meant to die, he's going to die regardless of whether his family is around or not.

[chaosrage 0]

According to Meltzer, Vince told Bret something had changed and he actually could afford to pay him his whole contract. But, before he agreed to stay, Bischoff had offered him something that in his own words "would have been insane not to be taken". Bret, not being insane, went.

[Lil' Bitch 0]

^ He's right though. If Vince didn't fuck Bret over (which happened more than once), Bret would have stayed. Sadly, WCW didn't know what the fuck to do with Bret which basically ruined what was left of his character / career.

[Guest Coffey]

WCW had too many people that needed to be pushed all at the same time. They didn't have enought PPV time & TV time to push everyone into the main event title scene.

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

Ah, so Owen would have died from a needless accident had Bret been there anyways??

[Guest Coffey]

Are you questioning my beliefs?

[Guest godthedog]

Hindsight is 20/20 and I believe in fate. So, yes I think he is wrong.

 

If Owen Hart was meant to die, he's going to die regardless of whether his family is around or not.

if you believe in fate, what's the point in even saying "even if X hadn't happened, Y would've happened"? if you believe in fate, wasn't bret meant to get screwed over, just as much as owen was meant to die? wasn't owent meant to die just as much as i was meant to write this response? it's not like fate is selective in what it predetermines, if you believe in fate then you believe that EVERYTHING is predetermined. what sense does it make to say "owen was meant to die, but bret wasn't necessarily meant to leave the wwf"?

[Guest Coffey]

Hindsight is 20/20 and I believe in fate. So, yes I think he is wrong.

 

If Owen Hart was meant to die, he's going to die regardless of whether his family is around or not.

if you believe in fate, what's the point in even saying "even if X hadn't happened, Y would've happened"? if you believe in fate, wasn't bret meant to get screwed over, just as much as owen was meant to die? wasn't owent meant to die just as much as i was meant to write this response? it's not like fate is selective in what it predetermines, if you believe in fate then you believe that EVERYTHING is predetermined. what sense does it make to say "owen was meant to die, but bret wasn't necessarily meant to leave the wwf"?

That was pretty much my point...

[Guest godthedog]

If Owen Hart was meant to die, he's going to die regardless of whether his family is around or not.

this directly implies that some things are *meant* to happen (like owen dying), and some things are just arbitrary and happen by chance (like bret being there). you're saying "even if bret was there, he would've died," but it makes no sense for you to say that, because "if" implies possibility, and by fate it was impossible for bret to be there.

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

*If* the montreal screw-job wouldn't have happened then EVERYTHING would change.

 

When he was talking to McMahon, McMahon told him he could extend the deadline for giving notice., Hart asked for the permission in writing but McMahon told him that he was going out to a movie that night wit his wife and said he was verbally giving permission to extend it and get written permission from the chief financial officer of the company. When Hart called to get the written notice he wasn't given it because he was told he couldn't get it in writing in such short notice. AT 7pm Bischoff called again and presented a deal that, according to Hart, " would have been insane not to be taken". at that point Hart was really having mixed emotions. He somehow felt bad about leaving the WCW and was hoping McMahon would lay out a good set of sceneries for him and convince him to stay, At 9pm, McMahon called and, reversing fields once again, urged him to take the WCW offer. Hart told him that his heart was with the company ad it would break his heart to leave, and that he appreciated everything McMahon and the company had done for him. McMahon told Hart that he wanted him back as a babyface, and had been wanting him to turn babyface for two or three months but just hadn't brought it up until this point. he then presented a scenario to Hart, presenting it as a way to get Hart to stay, but obviously designed to get Hart to take the WCW offer. He wanted Michaels to win the title in Montreal. For Springfield, they would do a final four match with he, Michaels, Undertaker, and Ken Shamrock, that Michaels would again win. At the Royal Rumble, the two would have a ladder match, which Michaels would win. On Raw, on 1/19 in Fresno, Ca., Hart would open the show and say that if he couldn't beat Michaels and win the title that night. that he would retire from wrestling, and in that match he would regain the title. And then in Boston at Wrestlemania he'd drop the strap to Austin. Hart looked at the scenario of four major losses with only one win and before his midnight deadline, gave official notice to the WWF and signed the contract WCW had sent over, with the agreement from all parties that the word wouldn't leak out until 11/10 to protect the Survivor Series PPV.

[chaosrage 0]

How did he fuck Bret over besides Montreal? He gave him two world title runs his last year and had him involved in all of the biggest angles. With him usually coming out the winner.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

Vince is more at fault here than Shawn because he's the one who scripted it.

Absolutely Right.

 

I've been saying this from the beginning since the segment aired, in all the threads between bickering Shawn-Bret fans.

 

Fuck Vince. Get over it, you big fuckin whiny baby, you and your damn temper tantrums. Hey Vince, you are like FIFTY years old, not TEN.

[Guest Coffey]

If Owen Hart was meant to die, he's going to die regardless of whether his family is around or not.

this directly implies that some things are *meant* to happen (like owen dying), and some things are just arbitrary and happen by chance (like bret being there). you're saying "even if bret was there, he would've died," but it makes no sense for you to say that, because "if" implies possibility, and by fate it was impossible for bret to be there.

No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying Bret thinking him being there would've mattered is wrong.

[chaosrage 0]

If it wasn't for Montreal, he might've been around until WM. But that's still long before Owen died.

[Guest RavishingRickRudo]

How would it be wrong. Bret wouldn't have allowed Owen to do the stunt in the first place. Add that to the fact that the events leading up to OTE wouldn't have happened the way they happened, and we wouldn't have had Owen doing that stunt.

[Guest Coffey]

How would it be wrong. Bret wouldn't have allowed Owen to do the stunt in the first place. Add that to the fact that the events leading up to OTE wouldn't have happened the way they happened, and we wouldn't have had Owen doing that stunt.

It's wrong because it didn't happen. You can sit and "think" about shit all day, but that's not how the world works. You could sit and *think* what if Hitler was assassinated? You could sit and *think* what if JFK didn't want to leave his house the day of the assassination?

 

You can *think* about shit all day. Like I said, hindsight is 20/20.

 

There aren't time machines. This isn't the movies. Things happen for a reason.