He should have been a focal point to transition the company into a new era, like he was for WWE and the attitude era. The company was down and out and he was one of the key elements of the revival. He could have transitioned WCW away from its’ nWo dependency. In hindsight, Bret should have left WWF and remained a free agent. When he signed with WCW, the company was at its very peak (Starcade Hogan vs Sting) and they didn’t realise how much they needed a Bret Hart down the line.
bret needed his own faction. a hart foundation style thing centered around Dungeon graduates. he could've been a leader of guys like benoit, jericho, Lance storm, jushion thunder liger, bulldog and Jim. something to take on the nwo. they were too big and needed a legit rival
If Eric could have signed, Owen Hart granted a quick release from his contract to jump to WCW. As the Black Hart appeared in the crowd, reunited with Bret, Bulldog, and Neidhart as Foundation. Anticipating angle the NWO VS. Hart Foundation storyline 🔥 🔥
This wouldn't happen because of Hulk but this is the correct answer. Hogan loses to Sting at Starcade as he should have. Over the next month WCW starts winning the war. The NWO starts pointing fingers ar each other leading to a PPV Nash vs. Hogan for the leadership of the NWO. Masked man helps Nash win and Nash introduces the new leader of the NWO, Bret Hart. Hogan sees he's been deceived by the black and white and returns in the Red and Yellow. It's not rocket science.
Came to say that exactly. I’m American and can tell you that. I had legit concerns as a child that WWF was going to start a war between US and Canada. Those crowds were insane.
@iconic_dubois wrestling is most definitely like acting are you f*cking kidding me?! Yeah I get that Bret Hart was the hometown hero in Canada. Bret Hart was the hero in Canada. Not "The Hitman" character. All wrestlers say that you have to separate yourself from your persona when you exit the arena. That's just common sense. Bret did not do this. He didn't want to lose to Shawn Michaels in Montreal because he didn't want to do that to the Hitman character. That is f*cking PATHETIC in so many ways. And if you or any other Bret Hart fans disagree then y'all are even more pathetic than Bret. I say this because even Bret realized how pathetic he was being. Because years late, he tried using a different excuse about Montreal. Now he claims he was happy to put Shawn over. He said he was so excited that he went to go talk to Shawn about it but Shawn was bitter , disrespectful , and even threatening. It was all complete pathetic bullshit. And his documentary Wrestling with Shadows easily shows how it's all bullshit.
It had NOTHING to do with Canada. It all came down to what Shawn Michaels said in the locker room: “..I appreciate that Bret, but I’m not willing to do the same for you.” Bret has said that a million times! He made it really clear on their rivalries DVD.
He was 40 years old. That is the kind of argument a high school 16-year-old makes. Not a 40-year-old supposed professional wrestler. Drop the fucking belt on the way out the door. That’s how it’s done. He knew this.
@@dbreiden83080 He wasn't going out the door before dropping the belt. He said he'd drop it to anyone else or he'd do the job for Shawn after Shawn did it for him. Remember Shawn went over at Mania 12, it's not like Bret didn't do it before.
“I (Vince McMahon) was concerned they (WCW) didn’t know what to do with him (Bret Hart). Fortunately, those concerns were well founded because if I were they, they could’ve built the entire franchise around Bret.” Vince McMahon back in 2006.
Because he is a Canadian hero, was and forever will be a Canadian hero. The reason WCW failed is because too many people had a say, Hulk stalled so many careers and killed WCW. The hero doesn't die in the movies, the hero wins
@@namikstudios Pretty sure Bret coming in as a ref and being part of a botched 3 count is what made his momentum so bad - plus him being part of the nWo, and getting a concussion by Goldberg is what made his run in wcw less than exciting.
Right at the 9:39 to 11:55 mark, listen to what Bischoff says and compare that to what he says here about making Bret an offer in 1996. - ua-cam.com/video/nebwEZWZSoc/v-deo.html
This sounds about the most honest take on the transition I've ever heard about Bret going from WWF to WCW and how it went. I love Bret, but this perspective seems legit. And, that said, it really explains Bret's performance in WCW in a way that tracks. Bret, to me, always seemed like his heart just wasn't in it anymore when he was in WCW. He was still Bret, but there was definitely something missing. Hearing there was a lack of a plan due to Bret's timing, Bret still having some emotional stunting from the screw job, Owen dying ... this all just makes sense.
Interestingly both Prichard and Bischoff sat down on one of their respective podcasts and brokedown how the events ultimately unfolded and they came to an interesting conclusion which was Bret didn't want to leave at a certain point. Because Bret's departure more than anything was he wanted to be paid a higher salary then McMahon could ultimately afford and that led to the WCW talks reopening. As rime neared the end Bret realized he's comfortable in WWE and didn't want to leave, but McMahon was already looking to Mania and didn't have plans for Bret anymore. So it wasn't just the losing to Shawn but leaving a place you'd worked for 10 plus years by that point. And after the events unfolded the way they did it's easy to see why Bret was as twisted as he was, even before Owen's passing later on.
He’s such an egomaniac he can’t lose in his own country. Now that’s an adult baby. It’s a scripted storyline. You’re not competing to see who is the greatest. It’s predetermined drama and a script
@@PeeBurps-gk7cu Bret is there greatest. He’s not like Shawn or hogan true whiny babies that never put people over. Or like hhh and Shawn who bullied rookies in the back. Fuck off
The fact that Air Canada crew told him that Owen died, it means he was a Canadian Hero. He meant something to us. The Montréal screwjob hurt us all because he was our hero as a Canadian. Dropping the belt to an American on Canadian was disrespectful. Look at the match in the Uk with British Bulldog and Bret Hart. Bret Hart lost the Intercontinental belt to British Bulldog because that was his home soil. Bret is always be the best there was, the best there is and the best that will ever be. He carried WWF when Hogan left.
"we had plans for Bret Hart in WCW" "what were the plans?" "put him in nWo" They've talked about replacing WCW with nWo a good deal in the past but I never understood how that would work.
I've always thought that once Owen died, Bret's passion for the business was almost completely sucked out of him and the bad booking he was experiencing in WCW piled onto that, so I think even if the Goldberg match hadn't happened, he probably would've only wrestled for maybe another year or two before retiring on his own accord because I don't think the drive was there anymore after he lost his brother so suddenly.
Also same reason wcw wasted alot of great talents. The likes of jericho, benoit, eddie guerrero, paul wight, etcetera all got wasted and wasn't really going anywhere in wcw. These stars found new and better life in wwe and actually made it big time while in wwe... Wcw had the crappiest big popular guy, hulk hogan who constantly putting down young talents and using his backstage politics to destroy anyone that doesn't want to be his dog or follower. Hogan and his dogs was the biggest reason wcw "almost" put wwe out of business, but when the tenacity of wwe proved to be better and was able to push and create better new talents, Hogan's and his dog's ego brought wcw down and without any real young talent to match the young talents that wwe had, wcw went out of business...
Glad i stumbled on this. This gives me a little more respect for Eric. He owned his responsibility in the Hart mess, but everything he said alot Hart made sense also.
The problem with Brett's ❤ situation is that since Vince was the 1 that wanted to break the contract 📝 he had Creative Control for the last month he worked in WWE. So he didn't want to drop the belt because it was in his Legal right 👮. Eric its the same deal 🤝 you did with Hulk 😎. Hulk didn't want to drop the belt exercising his creative control or turned heel 👠 in YOUR... Movie 🎥 when you pitched him the idea as his Boss...😎??? But when Brett does it...😒???
I lover Bret Hart but when I think of him I think of a man surrounded by tragedy. I really believe Bret an Sting are two of the greatest wrestlers that their true potential was never realized
I believe movie stars these days do have some say over how tough they are portrayed on screen because it affects the sort of roles they are offered. Also, in 1997 (as bizarre as it sounds now) wins and losses in wrestling did matter. Belts meant something. Davey Boy Smith was never the same after the One Night Only ppv and Bret was absolutely right to stand up for himself with Vince, especially as he had reasonable creative control.
Bret gave his heart and soul to Vince McMahon. It was so much more than just losing in Canada. Shawna proved to be such a heartless tool that he openly told Bret he wouldn’t drop a match to Bret. Vince has Triple K and Shawna so far up his a$$ that he was no longer calling the shots. Bret was no longer against WWE. It was about him vs Vince, Shawna, Triple K and whomever else was involved in the screw job. To give so much to a company and just have the “pshaw” to you probably cut his soul in half.
Now your really telling some B.S.! He was top five at that time most famous. If you did what the people wanted.-- STING, BRETT, and PIPER he would have killed in the ratings. But you did what we all saw.
If it was the other way around & Brett would have gone from WCW 🏆 to WWF 🤼 with the same exit? Vince would have capitalize on it & Succeed in it by using that angle on the Monday night Wars to Win 🏆🌍
Bischoff criticizes Hart for believing he's a Canadian hero but then tells the story of how Air Canada went through getting a message to him mid flight that his brother passed away. Try to square that circle...
Hogan's massive ego and 100% creative control had buried Bret when he arrived. Bret was a nWo b&w lackey. Give Risso credit, when he was in charge, Hogan was on the back burner and Bret was in the main event as a champion.
Bischoff gets a lot of 💩 and don’t get me wrong I’m sure there’s a bit of revisionism in there, but he is very good at getting his point across as he says he saw things.
Bret's cat..Eric Biscoff: "I love it"😂 . One good thing I can say about Eric is that he treated Bret very well when it came to Owen's Death and as far as paying Bret very well. It does perplex me on why Eric didn't use Bret more.
How do you say you didn't need Bret Hart? He was the WWF champion at the time and when he came over, was fresh off the hottest storyline in the Attitude Era. Not to mention he's one of the best in ring wrestlers of all time. Which is something WCW main events were missing in '97/98 when he came to WCW. If WCW had used him as the biggest babyface he would have been the perfect opponent for Hogan and would have been for the first time matchup. Sadly WCW had zero plans for Bret and didn't see him as a star.
The obvious initial feud shout have been between Bret and Scott Hall an Nash. They were known to be buds with Shawn, and both guys had feuds with Bret and were held back during Bret's run in WWF. The story line was pretty much already there, its either Bischoff is that blind, or there was politics going on to teach Bret a lesson now that he wasn't the top guy with a close relationship with the owner. Bischoff's genius idea, lets put Bret on Thunder and put him in a bunch of one-off matches against our B roster guys, with no story line.
I forgot how insecure Eric is, and out of touch with the reality that Brett was a MASSIVE star in Canada. Disappointing, but yet revealing to how someone like Eric can tickle ears, spew excuses and reveal that he was given a position in WCW that was undeserved, and a MASSIVE mistake by ownership.
Bischoff says frequently in many interviews that Bret Hart was flat (true, not the best natural promo or character), not that great, didn't need him, didn't want him, etc., but yet, still gave him a record money deal. Okay, why did you do that? He got this big WWF name and completely mishandled it... they had him wandering around aimlessly every week in storyline to storyline. You would think that with that kind of investment, you would have a plan in place to get maximum bang for your buck. Another example of Eric passing off his mismanagement of WCW on others.
Eric Bischoff is the only human being on the planet who was ever able to compete and put Vince McMahon on the ropes for almost two years. Eric Bischoff is one of the biggest reasons why the industry has changed and became so hot in late 90s and nobody will ever bring that back. Only ignorant people can say that he had no clue. I am calling you people ignorant because I don't want to call you stupid...
Best thing that ever happened to WCW.? Hulk Hogan. Worst thing that ever happened to WCW? Also, Hulk Hogan. The very FIRST thing EB did with Brett was make him a REFEREE. EB is full of crap. He was shelved the first day he showed up. Has Hogan's prints all over it.
He’s a baby. He can’t lose a match in his country? Imagine if everyone acted this way. He was. Tag team guy as his character was ridiculous. Had no charisma. And was a terrible champ that’s why they did this charade which actually gave him a huge boost. Just like Owen nobody gave a shit about him. He died playing that lame ass blue blazer gimmick.
Yikes @PeeBurps-gk7cu tell us what you really think. Bret remains the best there was the best there ever will be. Not sure where that Owen comment came from, but that was brutal.
@@PeeBurps-gk7cuBret lost many matches in Canada and it was never an issue. Hell, he's lost in MONTREAL before as a member of the WWF. Any person with any real brains knows that this has nothing to do with losing in Canada,this has to do with a personal issue with Shawn and Vince, that's it. Bret has admitted he would've lost the title that night to ANYONE else. He's not the first champ who pulled that on their way out, Hogan did it to Bret in 93. The worst part? HBK wasn't their guy either, that was Austin. The fact is, it's bizarre that Vince was SO adamant it had to be Shawn that beat Bret, there was obviously something else going on there.
@@Nothereman9999 You can’t compare hogan to Bret hart. This isn’t an athletic competition. It’s entertainment and you follow the script. And hogan love him or hate him he was and is a massive star. It’s like comparing Robert deneiro to Rick Moranis. Bret got his time. And now he loses in the movie. Then goes onto the next movie. Bret is weird man. He views it like he’s winning the matches as he’s technically better and gutted it out. Bret was a great wrestler. So was dean malenko. But they massively lack in certain areas to carry multiple “ movies. “
who cares? the population of canada is not even 40 mil. The population of the US - which is where 99% of weekly TV tapings are - is 330 mil. Just drink your Tim Hortons and enjoy freezing your nuts off
It's funny cause he mentions (and falls flat in the punchline) that Bret "thought he was a hero in Canada", but when Owen died, AIR CANADA contacts the PILOT to tell them about Owen cause they know Bret is on that flight. So yea, Bret didn't think that he was hero in Canada, he KNEW he was a hero in Canada.
Bret was absolutely a hero in Canada. I don't know why Bischoff even thinks otherwise. The Hart family alone is literal royalty in Canada as it is, but Bret was like a walking talking hero for the country.
I think what Eric is trying to say is Bret thought he was a hero, yes he KNEW he was a hero rather, but main point is not dropping the belt especially in Canada, like a hero should never die in a movie. While I loved Bret for technical skills, I loved his mic skills too, charisma, defending titles every week even against not so prominent opponents, and what he has given to WWE along with 2 other WWE loyals Undertaker & Shawn, best 3 all time for me, Bret had an ego of not dropping the belt to Shawn. Now ! some may argue he did in Survivor Series Iron Man Match, before Montreal Screwjob, but he's been vocal about its unwillingness in many interviews. That's the nerve Eric didn't touch.
Despite his rise and fall in WWF and trials and tribulations of WCW. Bret Hart, without a doubt, is one of the most important, inspiring, and gifted technical wrestlers of all time . Forever in the Best there is, Best there was, Best there ever will be 👏 🙌 🙌
@arrisbaldwin6498 Please there are so many others WAY BETTER!! And they don't whine like him. Way overrated. Dynamite Kid , Chris Benoit , Owen , and even Davey Boy were way better than Brett and no way to argue that. They are all by far better in the ring and better at promos. At least Davey and Dynamite have that English accent that was funny as hell during promos
@@ppiorkowski1502 Davey Boy Smith was better in the ring than Bret? What the hell have you been smoking? 😂 And I say that as a British Bulldog fan. Are you forgetting Summerslam 92 where Bulldog went out to the match high as a kite,and couldn't remember a single spot in the match. Bret carried him through the entire thing. Dynamite Kid was an innovator,but outside the ring was an asshole and a bully,and ended up a bitter old man with health issues that were caused to some extent by his in ring style. Benoit was technically on a par with Bret,but that's irrelevant now because he was a murdering shit bag. Owen was as good in the ring,but probably a better talker.
Bret Hart blames everyone. All started when he gave himself a concussion in his match against Goldberg by smashing his head into concrete was groggy after it, but blames Goldberg's kick. Never listen to a word Bret Hart says.
@@jason41144 exactly my thought. If Vince thought Bret was such a credible draw/threat, no way would he have freed him up to go to WCW. Bret likely would have stayed even in a somewhat reduced role, so long as Vince honored the original contract.
Are you canadian? Because i know they didn’t show wcw here on tsn until around the time that bret went over. They started showing monday nitro on wednesday night.
Me too. I was a lapsed Crockett fan and the week after Montreal my childhood wrestling buddy calls and tells me what happened and I started watching WCW again, all the way till Bret got injured.
I also wasn't a big WCW fan during that period. Their matches in the upper-card were absolute shit compared to WWF. They had the same story and same outcomes and same moves and same guys every week and it was boring and never evolved. Hart was at least creative and funny on the mic when he was in WCW. Listening to the same promo from Nash and Hogan and Bichoff every week was pointless. And when the Radicals came over and Jericho, WCW was dead
No it was a big deal cause of the screw job anybody could have lost a belt in there home town and it wouldn’t be talked about it was just the screw job
Because of how big a deal it was. It also spurned on the wwe attitude era a little bit more. The era had already started with dx but when vince switched the title to shawn over bret, it went into overdrive because 2 months later shawn gets hurt by a casket and austin wins the rumble. Wrestlemania that year started the austin era in the wwe
The only thing wrong with what Eric said was that Brett thought he was a Canadian Hero. The guy was. He was up there with Wayne Gretzky. Also, Brett just didn't want to lose to Michaels specifically. He would have lost it to anyone else but him. They had so much hate and animosity that there was no Changing Bret's mind. He has been very clear on this
You are naming real actual professional athletes compared to a professional wrestler. Don’t get me wrong. I am a huge fan of professional wrestling but obviously it’s sports entertainment. Somebody decided that he was getting that championship belt, and that same somebody has every right to take it away. Bret was being a fucking baby about the whole thing. Your hatred of Michael’s means nothing in regards to dropping a championship belt. Drop the belt.
The problem is, Bret was a grown adult and ultimately an employee of the company that gave him a platform to be famous, so if your boss tells you to basically work with your colleague, you damn well do it. Your own childish animosities are not relevant, especially when you're getting paid a large sum of money. Your job is to do what the business tells you. If Vince told him to wear a dress and bend over to Shawn on live TV, then yeah maaaaaybe he had a legitimate grievance, but simply drop your belt to a colleague? No, he had to suck it up. The main issue from what I saw was that Vince reneged on the contract, not who he was asking Bret to drop the belt to.
The thing is, you can denigrate Bret's reasons for not wanting drop the belt all you want, but at the end of the day, he had contractual creative control over his character for the last 30 days of his deal.
The reason why WCW is no longer around is because the heroes, like Bret Hart, didn't win. Then the bad guys who got creative control, thanks to Eric Bischoff, didn't realize they were actors (like Eric Bischoff said himself) and didn't want to lose. Eric is the pot calling the kettle black.
@@Jahn_Pah_Jonz WCW went downhill because there were running out of ideas,imo. If they've used Bret more, or had him battle more bad guys instead of becoming one, then the tides would've turned. But that's a debate for another time, sir. What I meant in my previous statement is that many fans look up to Bret as a hero, kayfaybe or not. He was just a guy that really believed in his work, and had fight still left in him. Eric doesn't know, or probably doesn't care.
Bischoff said he brought Bret in to headline Thunder as an “anchor”…..you know how many times Bret was on Thunder? 6 times. Bret spent the majority of time on Nitro. Then Bischoff says Bret didnt want to lose the belt in Canada because he (Bret) thought he was a national hero,. Wrong. Bischoff conveniently leaves out that Bret said to Michaels himself that he had no problems putting him over at SS '97 and it wasnt until Michaels said I just want you to know that I would not be willing to do the same and THAT (along with his creative clause) is why Bret decided he would not put Michaels over; in addition, Bret went to Vince and said he woul put over Austin, Shamrock or Taker instead. Mcmahon obviously did not agree to any of that, so we got the screwjob instead. So this was never about Bret not wanting to lose in Canada.
I also think Bret was one of those guys that had a creative say or had the ability to say no and not get fired over it. But it's rare thst you have individuals that will look at a show ike Thunder and not call it the B show and be cool with sticking on there. Bret on top of everything else he had going on I do think felt that way hence why he didn't show up a lot on Thunder.
Eric completely missed the reason why Bret wasn’t going to drop the belt in Canada, it was because he was dropping the belt to Shawn Michaels, his real life rival. Shawn refused to put over Bret, so Bret didn’t want to put him over either. Had nothing to do with thinking he was a Canadian hero. Also, there have been plenty of instances of a film/tv actor refusing to do something in the script. Terrible analogy
Lets be as accurate as possible bret promised to put over shawn, shawn refused to promise the same, so bret broke his own word …. We will never know if Shawn would or would not have put bret over, but we DO KNOW that bret broke his own promise
@@MrSheckstr right. My point is that Eric failed to mention Shawn as a factor at all when Shawn is a key reason why Bret didn’t drop the belt in Canada. If it was anyone else, he would’ve done so.
Bret wasn't a tv actor. He was in the wrestling business. He refused to drop the promoters belt. Nobody in the locker room would ever say that was okay but Bret didn't care. Totally unprofessional.
@@3Overhaus such a silly take & there’s a few on here firstly Shawn lost his smile when meant to the honors with Bret, secondly Bret said he was happy to put him over n Shawn was a complete unprofessional asshole like always at the time & said he’d never do the same. Thirdly Bret had creative control in last sixty days of his contract so gets what he wants, he wanted to drop it to Austin, shamrock, foley all were refused for some reason which is weird cause champ was just a place holder to give it to Austin because he was hot. Last thing is you want to talk unprofessional? All the belts hbk held in the 90’s like 10 times 7 of those times hbk relinquished the belt rather then dropping it. Even with Austin at wm14 he kept threatening not to turn up because he didn’t want to drop it, so. Score you say unprofessional again learn the facts please
@@Tek1951.Bret had "reasonable " creative control. He was told he was being unreasonable by refusing to drop the belt to Shawn. 2. Shawn being unprofessional doesn't change the fact Bret was totally unprofessional. That's just lazy what aboutism. 3. Bret didn't answer to Shawn. He answered to Vince. You're quick to shit on Shawn for not doing what he was told. How was Bret any different?
Bret took himself way too seriously. Bottom line, you leave a company, you put the new number 1 guy over or whatever the hell management wants you to do
Yep. Cornette put it best. "'OH no. Bret Hart got screwed out of his fake championship belt and left on bad terms from his job where he made 1.5 million a year so he could go to thr competition and make 2.5 million dollars a year. My asshole is just bleeding for you"
That would of been great! Many different story lines could of been devoloped, NWO would have a dance parter so to say to go back an forth with. Keeping them from making the wolf pack story line. Which ruined nwo@@fluworldorder426
They should have at that time made bret the number one guy. Despite what the hulkster thought at that point in time bret was a way bigger star than hulk especially in europe and canada. They totally messed it up simply because of eric and hulkster's egos. That is the facts jack.
Bret Hart should have been the culprit for nWo Nitro vs WCW Thunder. Bret confronts Hogan on Nitro; Bret confronts Sting on Thunder. Hitman is a force beyond both brands. On no side. Eventually Bret mocks nWo; nWo Hart Attack (pink & black) Eric Bischoff didnt have the perspective to fully plot and detail nWo Monday Nitro vs WCW Thunder. Could have been one hell of a story FINALLY ending with Jeff Jarrett "screwing" Bret Hart on the final nWo Souled Out. The final nWo Monday Nitro; Jeff Jarrett trashes the nWorld Heavyweight Championship only to praise and poise WCW as the brand of sports entertainment ("THE BRAND" Jeff Jarrett) and further glorify the World Heavyweight Championship. nWo 4 Life pay per view; Bret Hart and Eric Bischoff appear on ppv. nWo debatablely ends but Hogan and Bischoff continue on and Outsiders continue their vibe
Glad I listened to this video. I was in the audience for the Jay Leno show that Bret was supposed to compete in that day. He was scheduled to wrestle Kevin Nash on that show. I found out that they were not going to be on the show while in line to get into the studio. The show also featured Hugh Grant. Vladi Divac was the replacement for Bret and Nash.
I'm canadian and bret is a Canadian hero. wrestling is about more than acting. it's an art form. he's the goat and the innovator of technical chain wrestling that brought the wwe out of the stone age. he's a pioneer. and it wasn't about dropping it in canada or dropping it period. it was about dropping it to shawn after he tried to ruin his marriage with the sunny days comment. he said he wanted to drop it to Austin instead. vince said no but he did have creative control on his way out so he agreed to let bret drop the title instead after a no contest interference ending in Montreal. shawn dropped the wwe title a year prior because he refused to job to bret. Vince allowed it. bret just wanted to do to shawn what he did to him. PERIOD. learn your history eric
Sure. But it’s scripted acting with a storyline. Not an athletic competition to see who is best. For him to not being able to lose in his home country is fucking ridiculous
@@PeeBurps-gk7cu you guys are taking the scripted part and using that as an excuse for everything. What if i told you pro sports was scripted/predeterminded? Do you think pro leagues are leaving there billions up to random basketball games without any say in the outcomes? The outcomes affect the bottom line and you think the owners are going to just sit there and let do whatever it does based on the games outcomes? lol thats laughable if you think business works this way.
Respect Eric for admitting he was wrong in completely fumbling Bret's WCW stint. But where he is also wrong is Bret's "funk" came after they time and time again fumbled his career there. THAT is was to this day pisses Bret off. He did want to kick Vince's ass and bring his A game to WCW. But they squashed his momentum with NO plan. Eric tries to blame Bret's lack of fire. Go.back and watch his first few weeks/months. He was trying SO hard. They killed his spirit.
Bret Hart was a great athlete and a wrestling legend without a doubt. Bischoff certainly didn't use him as he should have, but throwing shit at Eric like Bret does just doesn't sit well with me. Bret came to WCW unwillingly and it showed on the show, he never tried to help improve the quality of the product and after so many years he still complains about Goldberg's kick when he was already at a dead end in his career. Ah, not to mention the fact that his brother Owen had purposely compromised Stone Cold's career and Austin, unlike him, never complained! for goodness sake in Canada he may have been a hero but at that time in Italy we were already crazy about Goldberg, Sting, Steve Austin, undertaker etc. and for us someone who showed up in a pink and black costume in the late 90s in the ring was already outdated! Bret never accepted that and we know that.
Bret got a horrible storyline in WCW that not even his best performance could compensate. And how exactly was his responsibility to improve the quality when he wasn’t a booker? The only legitimate argument that Eric makes is of Bret’s mental health, his pride and feeling of worth on the floor due to the screwjob and the death of his brother, but with a properly well written story, he would have flourished regardless. And Bret has absolutely all the bragging rights on talking about Golberg, the guy was stiff from begging to end and was infamous for hurting his fellow workers, plus he was boring to watch. Bret was still relevant and we all know that. He was used poorly and got permanently injured.
WCW definitely mishandled Bret's talent. However, Bret is no angel in all of this. He had a giant ego in the 90s. Besides Austin, he wouldn't put anyone over. Had he stayed in the WWF and had Vince honoured his 20-year contract deal, Bret would have clashed with so many guys anyhow. This should be an example for the youth to have your ego in check and not let it ruin you!
Owen Hart would have been; neWo. Its controversy when Owen beats Hogan for World Heavyweight Championship eventually facing Bret (whom is United States champion) Hogan purposely lost to neWo just to smite Bret. The BETTER There Is The BETTER There Was The BETTER There Ever Will Be neWo
I’m 37 yo from Thailand. In the 90’s there were two things I knew about Canada. 1. It’s next to USA 2. Bret Hart And Eric thought he’s not a Canadian Hero?
Bret was never accepted in WCW. He was a WWF guy. They buried him early then Bret got hurt. Finally Bret wins the WCW title then Goldberg ends his career. Just bad luck.
Eric Bischoff is only telling half the truth because Bret tells it differently and I believe Bret Hart In my opinion WCW never had a plan for Bret Hart, Eric had a blank Ted Turner cheque book and signed Bret because it would hurt the WWE and it was a big deal. Eric Bischoff was beating the WWE so bad in the ratings didn’t need new ideas because the nWo storyline was the main draw. Bret Hart wanted to work with Hulk Hogan but Hulk considered Bret a mid card talent and didn’t want to wrestle him or do a storyline, theirs no money to be made wrestling Bret Hart. So instead of using Bret correctly he was used sporadically as a referee, new member of the nWo, wrestling Ric Flair and then Goldberg. Bret was paid millions to stay at home but he did get big pushes but they usually ended quickly without any pay off. Ric Flair angle went no where, wrestling Booker T, Chris Benoit, Goldberg, and even his nWo stuff sucked. If Eric Bischoff was smart he should’ve used Bret correctly to build new storylines to get wrestlers over or to see a great match like a submission match vs Sting who had the better sharpshooter. Eric had no creativity in the wrestling business except copy ideas from other companies. He could never be called a genius like Vince McMahon because if Eric Bischoff had the same roster Vince had in 95-96 Eric would’ve bankrupted WWE. He couldn’t create new stars or develop talent like Vince could. Eric just got lucky because Ted Turner gave him total control. In Canada Bret Hart is considered a sports hero and one of the greatest Canadians. I don’t think Eric Bischoff knows how big Bret Hart is in Canada almost every Canadian wrestler brings up Bret as a reason they wanted to become a pro wrestler.
I may be in the minority here, but I wholeheartedly agree with what Eric says here in this interview. He makes a lot of sense. I especially enjoyed his soliloquy about Bret thinking he was a Canadian hero. That made, and continues to make, Bret look like a complete tool to this day. He thought he could do whatever he wanted just because he was Bret Hart. Yes, he was a great wrestler, but let's face it, he wasn't megastar, someone who you'd drop anything you're doing to go watch him.
That's like saying Hogan can't lose to Ultimate Warrior at Wrestlemania because he's an 'American hero'....even Hogan, who was notoriously political, was willing to drop the belt when asked. Bret sounds like his ego was inflated.
How did Bischoff blow that one? I mean he brings Brett in and has him go into the nWo right away. That was stupid! Brett should have been with Sting fighting back against the invasion. Brett was brought in to help clean house, sort of angle. He hated Hogan. It should have been so simple.
Mocks Bret for calling himself a Canadian hero... Then says how the pilots on a Canadian flight got a personal call to tell them Brets brother had died and someone needs to let him know asap...sounds like hero treatment to me 😂
6:25 The whole idea about wrestling is that many (especially younger) people and do NOT know "it's a movie", it's supposed to be as real as possible - especially back in that time. So yes, Bret WAS/is a Canadian hero and Bishop is talking out of his butt here.
WCW simply had no creative structure for Bret something which Vince gave Bret in WWF. WCW was a mess there was no clear plan for any top talent except Hogan. Bret had join WCW to make the money probably would have been better off wrestling in Japan.
Bret just didn’t want to drop the belt to Shawn because he felt disrespected by Shawn!! It became personal between the two he would have dropped the belt to anyone else but Shawn even in Canada!
The fact that he has to repeat the line twice "Bret thought he was a canadian hero" to get his point across tells even everyone in the audience thinks that Bret is a canadian hero and there is no doubt in their minds.
We all knew what the score was. He wanted to stay with WWF because WCW was on the slide and couldn't develop stories/talent and that ticked Bichoff off. Initial intentions might have been good but Hogan was the creative. And it was never going to happen for WCW and that's what killed it. He even admits that he had no focus or scope on the screwjob or Bret's momentum. That's the problem. They destroyed his momentum the moment Hart got to WCW. Their creative dropped the ball for legacy characters which was status quo for WCW
Bret didnt fit in with the attitude era, he didnt wanna act outside the ring and wasnt very good on the mic and those things were becoming more and more important. All Bret wanted to do was be the champ and do 20 minute matches with 15 different arm bars and the fans just didnt want that. His only gimmick was being Canadian and liking Canada and saying Canada is better than the USA and hes from Canada and he never became the star he thinks he should be.
He also wanted to be the hero for kids to look up to. And with how Austin got over after their submission match at Mania 13, it was clear he wasn’t gonna fit the mold going into 98.
" I didnt care abt Bret's title" Like seriouslly?? you allowed WWF women championship to be thrown in the wastebin on Live TV and you would not want the Main WWF heavy weight title on your TV. A move which could have been a possible killing blow to the WWF and the completion of your biggest desire to put VInce out of business.
@@MrPerfect2000Z Why not ? look at the money that the outsiders brought them, Eric and WCW is still remembered only for that. That is the only time in their entire history that they only made profit. So if the money was worth it, and that such a move would have cost WWF so much money. Why not make a risk a third time. I mean they announced WWF match results on WCW TV. They were that much obsessed with ratings.
I firmly believe had it been against anyone else than Shawn or Hunter, he would’ve dropped the belt. I mean his ego about being a Canadian hero definitely played a part…but it was mainly about being disrespected by Shawn straight to his face n Bret not wanting to drop the belt to someone that wasn’t gonna show not only respect to him for dropping the title but also breaking “backstage tradition” of thanking your opponent for the match and and doing the job. His ego and frustration got so bad dealing with the kliq he didn’t want to lose at all n drop the title the next night…again that’s only cuz he knew they were gonna put the belt in Shawn regardless…had it been taker, stone cold, Kane or anyone else I don’t think he would’ve had a problem with dropping the belt that night. If u watch the Bret hart documentary that follows the screwjob it’s shows a group of wrestlers having his back after the incident took place…most of the boys in the back in fact, so he definitely liked by the majority of his coworkers
Why they didn't hold Bret's debut off until Starrcade, I'll never know. Hype it as him deciding whether he'll sign with WCW or nWo, have him walk off in frustration as Bischoff and Dillon argue eith each other, then confirm his allegiance in the main event by fighting off Hogan's underlings to help Sting win the title. Makes total sense, Bret is a traditionalist plus he has problems with Hogan and HBK's Kliq chums.
Instead of chilling under palm trees with some ganja, you got to freeze your nuts off in subzero temperatures with some silly Tim Hortons coffee and donuts. Good deal!
Eric Bishop literally faked someone to meet up with him to offer a contract he turned down and told Vince about, this is hilarious that he’s saying Bret contacted him. It’s hilariously awful
In his final WWF year Bret was anti-American, but also kind of "anti-Attitude" like he was holding back the WWF's transition to having guys like Austin, Degeneration-X and the Rock as the heroes. In WCW the NWO were the main attitude guys, on the side of WCW you had Sting(crow Sting) and DDP who you could say had attitude for not being the more traditional hero like Luger. Of course it made sense for Bret to side with WCW when he arrived, reasoning that American WCW fans still supported wrestlers, not trash-talkers and thugs, so he could like do a promo about how U.S. WCW fans are better than U.S. WWF fans and he can still respect that portion of American fans. You'd also expect him to be a lot more cynical after the screwjob and sometimes do not typically heroic things in the ring i.e. have a bit more attitude that before. It made sense for the NWO to try and recruit him at the start as they were his old WWF "buddies", also maybe they'd figure after the screw job Bret had become too cynical about the path he'd been on, thirteen years working for WWF clawing his way up the ladder, carrying the company during the hard times, only for Vince to reward him the way he did. Ultimately I think Bret siding with WCW was the best move, Luger was his friend from the old days, he and Sting would be an interesting combination, both using the "sasori" as their finisher. I also had the idea of Bret getting Curt Hennig to rejoin WCW as they were good friends, they of course did have a match at Uncensored '98 with Bret winning, but Rick Rude and Curt beating him down after the match. Maybe a feud could have led to Curt re-joining WCW. It was kinda stupid that Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhardt had next to no involvement with Bret in WCW they ought to have stuck together just as in WWF.
Couldn’t agree more, the WCW fans were a lot different with different sensibilities. I was fired up for Bret to be in WCW, the thing that killed it for me was then switching him from good to bad so many times with no reason. WCW got really bad for that at the end.
But Eric didnt make the best of the oppertunity with Bret.. I mean he says oh well it came at all to fast. So why did you sign him in the first place.? I mean he said he didnt need him in the first place.. But said he saw an oppertunity.. Which is it.? Come beer boy stop getting half lit and contradicting yourself Bischoff..
The only reason I gave a like is because the first time I heard Bischoff say it was his fault....for once. Marketing Europe?? So you can have the worlds biggest PPV in North Korea but couldn't do a live wcw world tour in any part of Europe?
How should Bret have been used in WCW? Let us know in the comments below!
He should have been a focal point to transition the company into a new era, like he was for WWE and the attitude era. The company was down and out and he was one of the key elements of the revival. He could have transitioned WCW away from its’ nWo dependency. In hindsight, Bret should have left WWF and remained a free agent. When he signed with WCW, the company was at its very peak (Starcade Hogan vs Sting) and they didn’t realise how much they needed a Bret Hart down the line.
bret needed his own faction. a hart foundation style thing centered around Dungeon graduates. he could've been a leader of guys like benoit, jericho, Lance storm, jushion thunder liger, bulldog and Jim. something to take on the nwo. they were too big and needed a legit rival
If Eric could have signed, Owen Hart granted a quick release from his contract to jump to WCW. As the Black Hart appeared in the crowd, reunited with Bret, Bulldog, and Neidhart as Foundation. Anticipating angle the NWO VS. Hart Foundation storyline 🔥 🔥
Bret losing in Canada is like ending Underaker’s streak, will never be beneficial in the long run.
This wouldn't happen because of Hulk but this is the correct answer. Hogan loses to Sting at Starcade as he should have. Over the next month WCW starts winning the war. The NWO starts pointing fingers ar each other leading to a PPV Nash vs. Hogan for the leadership of the NWO. Masked man helps Nash win and Nash introduces the new leader of the NWO, Bret Hart. Hogan sees he's been deceived by the black and white and returns in the Red and Yellow. It's not rocket science.
The fact that they called a pilot of air Canada to let Bret know his brother passed lets you know that he in fact was a Canadian hero 😆 😊
Exactly!
💯 🇨🇦 🍁
Came to say that exactly. I’m American and can tell you that. I had legit concerns as a child that WWF was going to start a war between US and Canada. Those crowds were insane.
Nah,its cuz they had money..
Americans don't know what it's like to be Canuck
he is a Canadian hero, Eric... wrestling isn't like acting, you are that character all the time to fans.
@iconic_dubois wrestling is most definitely like acting are you f*cking kidding me?! Yeah I get that Bret Hart was the hometown hero in Canada. Bret Hart was the hero in Canada. Not "The Hitman" character. All wrestlers say that you have to separate yourself from your persona when you exit the arena. That's just common sense. Bret did not do this. He didn't want to lose to Shawn Michaels in Montreal because he didn't want to do that to the Hitman character. That is f*cking PATHETIC in so many ways. And if you or any other Bret Hart fans disagree then y'all are even more pathetic than Bret. I say this because even Bret realized how pathetic he was being. Because years late, he tried using a different excuse about Montreal. Now he claims he was happy to put Shawn over. He said he was so excited that he went to go talk to Shawn about it but Shawn was bitter , disrespectful , and even threatening. It was all complete pathetic bullshit. And his documentary Wrestling with Shadows easily shows how it's all bullshit.
It had NOTHING to do with Canada. It all came down to what Shawn Michaels said in the locker room: “..I appreciate that Bret, but I’m not willing to do the same for you.”
Bret has said that a million times! He made it really clear on their rivalries DVD.
He was 40 years old. That is the kind of argument a high school 16-year-old makes. Not a 40-year-old supposed professional wrestler. Drop the fucking belt on the way out the door. That’s how it’s done. He knew this.
I gave you both a thumbs up because you're both correct.
Yeah but the screwjob was an absolute masterpiece work.
@@dbreiden83080I agree. And they’re both employees, they should do what they’re told.
@@dbreiden83080 He wasn't going out the door before dropping the belt. He said he'd drop it to anyone else or he'd do the job for Shawn after Shawn did it for him. Remember Shawn went over at Mania 12, it's not like Bret didn't do it before.
5:28 bret was and is a canadian hero especially during that time and no wonder why wcw is out of business
😂 he’s a wrestler that was paid HANDSOMELY
should have shut his mouth and done his job.
Bret screwed Bret.
“I (Vince McMahon) was concerned they (WCW) didn’t know what to do with him (Bret Hart).
Fortunately, those concerns were well founded because if I were they, they could’ve built the entire franchise around Bret.”
Vince McMahon back in 2006.
Shart was a draw in Canada. Nowhere else in the world and was a tag team guy with no personality.
@@PeeBurps-gk7cuYou’re a clod. He was major over everywhere in the world. I’m not even Canadian and I recognized how massive he was.
Lol he would never talk about hogan like that
Facts, brother
That’s not gonna work for me brother
Cause Hogan would actually work on his creative unlike Bret Hart who expected everyone to do all that for him.
@@Zebojr2kool right he would work on his no sells
Eric was Hogans butt plug
Because he is a Canadian hero, was and forever will be a Canadian hero. The reason WCW failed is because too many people had a say, Hulk stalled so many careers and killed WCW. The hero doesn't die in the movies, the hero wins
He was on the Simpsons. He was pretty much that country’s hulk hogan. He was pretty much a Canadian hero 💁🏻♂️
Finally Eric admits he fumbled.
He’s admitted it many times
He shouldn't because he didn't. Bret had a great run in WCW, it's only the WWE narrative that says he didn't in an attempt to downplay Montreal.
@@namikstudios😂😂😂
Then he proceeded to lie again
@@namikstudios Pretty sure Bret coming in as a ref and being part of a botched 3 count is what made his momentum so bad - plus him being part of the nWo, and getting a concussion by Goldberg is what made his run in wcw less than exciting.
At 1:10, Bischoff is contradicting something he was adamant about in his 83 weeks podcast, when he said he never made an offer to Bret in 1996.
Right at the 9:39 to 11:55 mark, listen to what Bischoff says and compare that to what he says here about making Bret an offer in 1996. - ua-cam.com/video/nebwEZWZSoc/v-deo.html
This sounds about the most honest take on the transition I've ever heard about Bret going from WWF to WCW and how it went. I love Bret, but this perspective seems legit. And, that said, it really explains Bret's performance in WCW in a way that tracks. Bret, to me, always seemed like his heart just wasn't in it anymore when he was in WCW. He was still Bret, but there was definitely something missing.
Hearing there was a lack of a plan due to Bret's timing, Bret still having some emotional stunting from the screw job, Owen dying ... this all just makes sense.
Interestingly both Prichard and Bischoff sat down on one of their respective podcasts and brokedown how the events ultimately unfolded and they came to an interesting conclusion which was Bret didn't want to leave at a certain point. Because Bret's departure more than anything was he wanted to be paid a higher salary then McMahon could ultimately afford and that led to the WCW talks reopening. As rime neared the end Bret realized he's comfortable in WWE and didn't want to leave, but McMahon was already looking to Mania and didn't have plans for Bret anymore. So it wasn't just the losing to Shawn but leaving a place you'd worked for 10 plus years by that point. And after the events unfolded the way they did it's easy to see why Bret was as twisted as he was, even before Owen's passing later on.
They give Bret shit for not wanting to drop the belt but respect Austin for walking out, cmon now pick a side 😒
He’s such an egomaniac he can’t lose in his own country.
Now that’s an adult baby. It’s a scripted storyline. You’re not competing to see who is the greatest.
It’s predetermined drama and a script
Austin was fired
Austin lost to rock at wrestlemainia before he retired in his home country
@@PeeBurps-gk7cu Bret is there greatest. He’s not like Shawn or hogan true whiny babies that never put people over. Or like hhh and Shawn who bullied rookies in the back. Fuck off
The fact that Air Canada crew told him that Owen died, it means he was a Canadian Hero. He meant something to us. The Montréal screwjob hurt us all because he was our hero as a Canadian. Dropping the belt to an American on Canadian was disrespectful. Look at the match in the Uk with British Bulldog and Bret Hart. Bret Hart lost the Intercontinental belt to British Bulldog because that was his home soil. Bret is always be the best there was, the best there is and the best that will ever be. He carried WWF when Hogan left.
The Americans don't get it.
He is a Canadian hero 🤷♂️
"we had plans for Bret Hart in WCW"
"what were the plans?"
"put him in nWo"
They've talked about replacing WCW with nWo a good deal in the past but I never understood how that would work.
I've always thought that once Owen died, Bret's passion for the business was almost completely sucked out of him and the bad booking he was experiencing in WCW piled onto that, so I think even if the Goldberg match hadn't happened, he probably would've only wrestled for maybe another year or two before retiring on his own accord because I don't think the drive was there anymore after he lost his brother so suddenly.
Bret was never a good fit in WCW, Vince knew he wouldn't be used right there
Also same reason wcw wasted alot of great talents. The likes of jericho, benoit, eddie guerrero, paul wight, etcetera all got wasted and wasn't really going anywhere in wcw. These stars found new and better life in wwe and actually made it big time while in wwe...
Wcw had the crappiest big popular guy, hulk hogan who constantly putting down young talents and using his backstage politics to destroy anyone that doesn't want to be his dog or follower. Hogan and his dogs was the biggest reason wcw "almost" put wwe out of business, but when the tenacity of wwe proved to be better and was able to push and create better new talents, Hogan's and his dog's ego brought wcw down and without any real young talent to match the young talents that wwe had, wcw went out of business...
Well...I guess Bret was right when he said that Bischoff has no clue of wrestling...
I don't think Bischoff was saying that Bret wasn't a canadian hero, moreso that losing wasn't a big deal because the fans knew that it wasn't real
Glad i stumbled on this. This gives me a little more respect for Eric. He owned his responsibility in the Hart mess, but everything he said alot Hart made sense also.
The problem with Brett's ❤ situation is that since Vince was the 1 that wanted to break the contract 📝 he had Creative Control for the last month he worked in WWE. So he didn't want to drop the belt because it was in his Legal right 👮. Eric its the same deal 🤝 you did with Hulk 😎. Hulk didn't want to drop the belt exercising his creative control or turned heel 👠 in YOUR... Movie 🎥 when you pitched him the idea as his Boss...😎??? But when Brett does it...😒???
I lover Bret Hart but when I think of him I think of a man surrounded by tragedy. I really believe Bret an Sting are two of the greatest wrestlers that their true potential was never realized
I believe movie stars these days do have some say over how tough they are portrayed on screen because it affects the sort of roles they are offered. Also, in 1997 (as bizarre as it sounds now) wins and losses in wrestling did matter. Belts meant something. Davey Boy Smith was never the same after the One Night Only ppv and Bret was absolutely right to stand up for himself with Vince, especially as he had reasonable creative control.
Bret gave his heart and soul to Vince McMahon. It was so much more than just losing in Canada. Shawna proved to be such a heartless tool that he openly told Bret he wouldn’t drop a match to Bret. Vince has Triple K and Shawna so far up his a$$ that he was no longer calling the shots. Bret was no longer against WWE. It was about him vs Vince, Shawna, Triple K and whomever else was involved in the screw job. To give so much to a company and just have the “pshaw” to you probably cut his soul in half.
Boo hoo. If Bret was a quarter of the valuable star he thought he was, Vince never would have let him go
Now your really telling some B.S.!
He was top five at that time most famous.
If you did what the people wanted.--
STING, BRETT, and PIPER he would have killed in the ratings. But you did what we all saw.
Agreed
If it was the other way around & Brett would have gone from WCW 🏆 to WWF 🤼 with the same exit? Vince would have capitalize on it & Succeed in it by using that angle on the Monday night Wars to Win 🏆🌍
Bret is one of my favorite wrestlers. I watch any interview he does.
Bischoff criticizes Hart for believing he's a Canadian hero but then tells the story of how Air Canada went through getting a message to him mid flight that his brother passed away. Try to square that circle...
Hogan's massive ego and 100% creative control had buried Bret when he arrived. Bret was a nWo b&w lackey. Give Risso credit, when he was in charge, Hogan was on the back burner and Bret was in the main event as a champion.
Bischoff gets a lot of 💩 and don’t get me wrong I’m sure there’s a bit of revisionism in there, but he is very good at getting his point across as he says he saw things.
Fair play to bischoff for taking some responsibility for why they didn’t capitalise on the European market
He admits he fumbled the ball in 5 seconds and then proceeds to trash Bret the rest of the time.
Bret's cat..Eric Biscoff: "I love it"😂 . One good thing I can say about Eric is that he treated Bret very well when it came to Owen's Death and as far as paying Bret very well. It does perplex me on why Eric didn't use Bret more.
How do you say you didn't need Bret Hart? He was the WWF champion at the time and when he came over, was fresh off the hottest storyline in the Attitude Era. Not to mention he's one of the best in ring wrestlers of all time. Which is something WCW main events were missing in '97/98 when he came to WCW. If WCW had used him as the biggest babyface he would have been the perfect opponent for Hogan and would have been for the first time matchup. Sadly WCW had zero plans for Bret and didn't see him as a star.
The obvious initial feud shout have been between Bret and Scott Hall an Nash. They were known to be buds with Shawn, and both guys had feuds with Bret and were held back during Bret's run in WWF. The story line was pretty much already there, its either Bischoff is that blind, or there was politics going on to teach Bret a lesson now that he wasn't the top guy with a close relationship with the owner.
Bischoff's genius idea, lets put Bret on Thunder and put him in a bunch of one-off matches against our B roster guys, with no story line.
I forgot how insecure Eric is, and out of touch with the reality that Brett was a MASSIVE star in Canada. Disappointing, but yet revealing to how someone like Eric can tickle ears, spew excuses and reveal that he was given a position in WCW that was undeserved, and a MASSIVE mistake by ownership.
Bret would have done the job but HBgay was so fucking disrespectful saying he'd never do a job for Bret that he couldnt tolerate it any longer.
Bischoff says frequently in many interviews that Bret Hart was flat (true, not the best natural promo or character), not that great, didn't need him, didn't want him, etc., but yet, still gave him a record money deal. Okay, why did you do that? He got this big WWF name and completely mishandled it... they had him wandering around aimlessly every week in storyline to storyline. You would think that with that kind of investment, you would have a plan in place to get maximum bang for your buck. Another example of Eric passing off his mismanagement of WCW on others.
Eric Bischoff is the only human being on the planet who was ever able to compete and put Vince McMahon on the ropes for almost two years. Eric Bischoff is one of the biggest reasons why the industry has changed and became so hot in late 90s and nobody will ever bring that back. Only ignorant people can say that he had no clue. I am calling you people ignorant because I don't want to call you stupid...
Best thing that ever happened to WCW.? Hulk Hogan. Worst thing that ever happened to WCW? Also, Hulk Hogan.
The very FIRST thing EB did with Brett was make him a REFEREE. EB is full of crap. He was shelved the first day he showed up. Has Hogan's prints all over it.
Hi, a Canadian here. Bret is very much a Canadian hero.
He’s a baby. He can’t lose a match in his country? Imagine if everyone acted this way.
He was. Tag team guy as his character was ridiculous. Had no charisma. And was a terrible champ that’s why they did this charade which actually gave him a huge boost.
Just like Owen nobody gave a shit about him. He died playing that lame ass blue blazer gimmick.
Yikes @PeeBurps-gk7cu tell us what you really think. Bret remains the best there was the best there ever will be. Not sure where that Owen comment came from, but that was brutal.
@@PeeBurps-gk7cuBret lost many matches in Canada and it was never an issue. Hell, he's lost in MONTREAL before as a member of the WWF.
Any person with any real brains knows that this has nothing to do with losing in Canada,this has to do with a personal issue with Shawn and Vince, that's it. Bret has admitted he would've lost the title that night to ANYONE else. He's not the first champ who pulled that on their way out, Hogan did it to Bret in 93. The worst part? HBK wasn't their guy either, that was Austin. The fact is, it's bizarre that Vince was SO adamant it had to be Shawn that beat Bret, there was obviously something else going on there.
@@Nothereman9999
You can’t compare hogan to Bret hart. This isn’t an athletic competition. It’s entertainment and you follow the script.
And hogan love him or hate him he was and is a massive star.
It’s like comparing Robert deneiro to Rick Moranis.
Bret got his time. And now he loses in the movie. Then goes onto the next movie.
Bret is weird man. He views it like he’s winning the matches as he’s technically better and gutted it out.
Bret was a great wrestler. So was dean malenko. But they massively lack in certain areas to carry multiple “ movies. “
@@PeeBurps-gk7cuthe whole not wanting to lose in Canada only came about after Shawn acted the knob to him. So he acted like one right back. Cope.
Bret wasn't a hero in Canada? My friends and I literally only watched WCW after Bret signed.
who cares? the population of canada is not even 40 mil. The population of the US - which is where 99% of weekly TV tapings are - is 330 mil. Just drink your Tim Hortons and enjoy freezing your nuts off
It's funny cause he mentions (and falls flat in the punchline) that Bret "thought he was a hero in Canada", but when Owen died, AIR CANADA contacts the PILOT to tell them about Owen cause they know Bret is on that flight. So yea, Bret didn't think that he was hero in Canada, he KNEW he was a hero in Canada.
@chuckaveli87 get the fuck outta here dude!! Bret is a fucking narcissist. To believe he was really his character is FUCKING PATHETIC!!!
Never thought of it that way but damn you’re right
Bret was absolutely a hero in Canada. I don't know why Bischoff even thinks otherwise. The Hart family alone is literal royalty in Canada as it is, but Bret was like a walking talking hero for the country.
I thought the same thing.
I think what Eric is trying to say is Bret thought he was a hero, yes he KNEW he was a hero rather, but main point is not dropping the belt especially in Canada, like a hero should never die in a movie. While I loved Bret for technical skills, I loved his mic skills too, charisma, defending titles every week even against not so prominent opponents, and what he has given to WWE along with 2 other WWE loyals Undertaker & Shawn, best 3 all time for me, Bret had an ego of not dropping the belt to Shawn. Now ! some may argue he did in Survivor Series Iron Man Match, before Montreal Screwjob, but he's been vocal about its unwillingness in many interviews. That's the nerve Eric didn't touch.
i don't ever hear bischoff mock hulk hogan for thinking he was a hero and not wanting to lose
He would if Hogan said he wouldn't do jobs in the US
@@JoshLavian no he wouldn’t
@@JoshLavian Hogan didn’t do jobs in the US from ‘85-‘98 so about a decade and a half wtf are you talking about.
Hulk hogan was a much bigger draw regardless of how you feel
@@jinglebells223exactly!!! Brett even at his height didn’t bank as much as Hogan did
Despite his rise and fall in WWF and trials and tribulations of WCW. Bret Hart, without a doubt, is one of the most important, inspiring, and gifted technical wrestlers of all time . Forever in the Best there is, Best there was, Best there ever will be 👏 🙌 🙌
@arrisbaldwin6498 Please there are so many others WAY BETTER!! And they don't whine like him. Way overrated. Dynamite Kid , Chris Benoit , Owen , and even Davey Boy were way better than Brett and no way to argue that. They are all by far better in the ring and better at promos. At least Davey and Dynamite have that English accent that was funny as hell during promos
If you don't like it, then tough $hit
_Bret Hart [1997]
@@ppiorkowski1502 Davey Boy Smith was better in the ring than Bret? What the hell have you been smoking? 😂 And I say that as a British Bulldog fan. Are you forgetting Summerslam 92 where Bulldog went out to the match high as a kite,and couldn't remember a single spot in the match. Bret carried him through the entire thing. Dynamite Kid was an innovator,but outside the ring was an asshole and a bully,and ended up a bitter old man with health issues that were caused to some extent by his in ring style. Benoit was technically on a par with Bret,but that's irrelevant now because he was a murdering shit bag. Owen was as good in the ring,but probably a better talker.
@manumental86 who's whining now Bret is a Hall of Famer and still acknowledged by wrestling colleagues .
@@ppiorkowski1502 Benoit could not cut a promo, at all.
"Eric Bischoff was Iike the guy in the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain doing all the noise, but didn't know anything" - Bret Hart
"Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!!!"
Completely correct
Bret Hart blamed everyone but himself, his opinion isn't really that important
Bret Hart blames everyone. All started when he gave himself a concussion in his match against Goldberg by smashing his head into concrete was groggy after it, but blames Goldberg's kick. Never listen to a word Bret Hart says.
Perfect description.
‘If WCW knew how you use Bret Hart properly we would of been in big trouble’
-Vince McMahon
He probably said would have.
Almost
OK? Too bad Vince didn't know how to use Bret either. Vince was obsessed with Shawn Michaels.
@@jason41144 exactly my thought. If Vince thought Bret was such a credible draw/threat, no way would he have freed him up to go to WCW. Bret likely would have stayed even in a somewhat reduced role, so long as Vince honored the original contract.
@@robertkelly8559😂 Thanks for the laugh.
I will say the only reason I ever started to watch WCW was because of Bret Hart. If he would have never went I would have never watched.
By the numbers They weren't missing your viewership before bret came.
By the numbers they were sure missing him after he was gone @@lexluger2jonnyblaze
Are you canadian? Because i know they didn’t show wcw here on tsn until around the time that bret went over. They started showing monday nitro on wednesday night.
Me too. I was a lapsed Crockett fan and the week after Montreal my childhood wrestling buddy calls and tells me what happened and I started watching WCW again, all the way till Bret got injured.
I also wasn't a big WCW fan during that period. Their matches in the upper-card were absolute shit compared to WWF. They had the same story and same outcomes and same moves and same guys every week and it was boring and never evolved. Hart was at least creative and funny on the mic when he was in WCW. Listening to the same promo from Nash and Hogan and Bichoff every week was pointless. And when the Radicals came over and Jericho, WCW was dead
The fact that Brett dropping the Belt in Montreal is still talked about till this day proves that it was a indeed big deal.
His name is spelled "Brettt"
No it was a big deal cause of the screw job anybody could have lost a belt in there home town and it wouldn’t be talked about it was just the screw job
Because of how big a deal it was. It also spurned on the wwe attitude era a little bit more. The era had already started with dx but when vince switched the title to shawn over bret, it went into overdrive because 2 months later shawn gets hurt by a casket and austin wins the rumble. Wrestlemania that year started the austin era in the wwe
It was a big deal for Brett but to everyone else they don’t gaf lol move on
The guys acting like it’s real. He can’t lose in his home country. That’s fucking ridiculous. Imagine if everyone else thought like Shitman Shart.
The only thing wrong with what Eric said was that Brett thought he was a Canadian Hero. The guy was. He was up there with Wayne Gretzky. Also, Brett just didn't want to lose to Michaels specifically. He would have lost it to anyone else but him. They had so much hate and animosity that there was no Changing Bret's mind. He has been very clear on this
You are naming real actual professional athletes compared to a professional wrestler. Don’t get me wrong. I am a huge fan of professional wrestling but obviously it’s sports entertainment. Somebody decided that he was getting that championship belt, and that same somebody has every right to take it away. Bret was being a fucking baby about the whole thing. Your hatred of Michael’s means nothing in regards to dropping a championship belt. Drop the belt.
The problem is, Bret was a grown adult and ultimately an employee of the company that gave him a platform to be famous, so if your boss tells you to basically work with your colleague, you damn well do it.
Your own childish animosities are not relevant, especially when you're getting paid a large sum of money.
Your job is to do what the business tells you.
If Vince told him to wear a dress and bend over to Shawn on live TV, then yeah maaaaaybe he had a legitimate grievance, but simply drop your belt to a colleague? No, he had to suck it up.
The main issue from what I saw was that Vince reneged on the contract, not who he was asking Bret to drop the belt to.
Canadian heroes draw though. Bret didn't
@@bigolebothe did in canada ffs
@@MrDeceptacon88 no he didn't
The thing is, you can denigrate Bret's reasons for not wanting drop the belt all you want, but at the end of the day, he had contractual creative control over his character for the last 30 days of his deal.
I love Bret! I think he's an amazing performer. Not all heroes wear capes. Remember that, Eric!
The reason why WCW is no longer around is because the heroes, like Bret Hart, didn't win. Then the bad guys who got creative control, thanks to Eric Bischoff, didn't realize they were actors (like Eric Bischoff said himself) and didn't want to lose. Eric is the pot calling the kettle black.
@@Jahn_Pah_Jonz WCW went downhill because there were running out of ideas,imo. If they've used Bret more, or had him battle more bad guys instead of becoming one, then the tides would've turned. But that's a debate for another time, sir. What I meant in my previous statement is that many fans look up to Bret as a hero, kayfaybe or not. He was just a guy that really believed in his work, and had fight still left in him. Eric doesn't know, or probably doesn't care.
True. Some heroes whine for 30 years and cheat on their wives with ring rats constantly
Bret collected on that big Loyds of London Insurance Policy after making a lot in WCW than went back to make a fortune in WWE
He didn't want to drop the belt because he was a Canadian hero he didn't want to drop it to Shawn Michaels who is a piece of crap
Bischoff said he brought Bret in to headline Thunder as an “anchor”…..you know how many times Bret was on Thunder? 6 times. Bret spent the majority of time on Nitro. Then Bischoff says Bret didnt want to lose the belt in Canada because he (Bret) thought he was a national hero,. Wrong. Bischoff conveniently leaves out that Bret said to Michaels himself that he had no problems putting him over at SS '97 and it wasnt until Michaels said I just want you to know that I would not be willing to do the same and THAT (along with his creative clause) is why Bret decided he would not put Michaels over; in addition, Bret went to Vince and said he woul put over Austin, Shamrock or Taker instead. Mcmahon obviously did not agree to any of that, so we got the screwjob instead. So this was never about Bret not wanting to lose in Canada.
I also think Bret was one of those guys that had a creative say or had the ability to say no and not get fired over it. But it's rare thst you have individuals that will look at a show ike Thunder and not call it the B show and be cool with sticking on there. Bret on top of everything else he had going on I do think felt that way hence why he didn't show up a lot on Thunder.
Eric completely missed the reason why Bret wasn’t going to drop the belt in Canada, it was because he was dropping the belt to Shawn Michaels, his real life rival. Shawn refused to put over Bret, so Bret didn’t want to put him over either. Had nothing to do with thinking he was a Canadian hero.
Also, there have been plenty of instances of a film/tv actor refusing to do something in the script. Terrible analogy
Lets be as accurate as possible bret promised to put over shawn, shawn refused to promise the same, so bret broke his own word ….
We will never know if Shawn would or would not have put bret over, but we DO KNOW that bret broke his own promise
@@MrSheckstr right. My point is that Eric failed to mention Shawn as a factor at all when Shawn is a key reason why Bret didn’t drop the belt in Canada. If it was anyone else, he would’ve done so.
Bret wasn't a tv actor. He was in the wrestling business. He refused to drop the promoters belt. Nobody in the locker room would ever say that was okay but Bret didn't care. Totally unprofessional.
@@3Overhaus such a silly take & there’s a few on here firstly Shawn lost his smile when meant to the honors with Bret, secondly Bret said he was happy to put him over n Shawn was a complete unprofessional asshole like always at the time & said he’d never do the same. Thirdly Bret had creative control in last sixty days of his contract so gets what he wants, he wanted to drop it to Austin, shamrock, foley all were refused for some reason which is weird cause champ was just a place holder to give it to Austin because he was hot. Last thing is you want to talk unprofessional? All the belts hbk held in the 90’s like 10 times 7 of those times hbk relinquished the belt rather then dropping it. Even with Austin at wm14 he kept threatening not to turn up because he didn’t want to drop it, so. Score you say unprofessional again learn the facts please
@@Tek1951.Bret had "reasonable " creative control. He was told he was being unreasonable by refusing to drop the belt to Shawn. 2. Shawn being unprofessional doesn't change the fact Bret was totally unprofessional. That's just lazy what aboutism. 3. Bret didn't answer to Shawn. He answered to Vince. You're quick to shit on Shawn for not doing what he was told. How was Bret any different?
Bret took himself way too seriously. Bottom line, you leave a company, you put the new number 1 guy over or whatever the hell management wants you to do
Yep. Cornette put it best. "'OH no. Bret Hart got screwed out of his fake championship belt and left on bad terms from his job where he made 1.5 million a year so he could go to thr competition and make 2.5 million dollars a year. My asshole is just bleeding for you"
Should of brought back heart foundation to combat nwo, could of added new members aswell.
Benoit jericho bbd and anvil
that would have been cool... Bulldog, anvil, brett and maybe Benoit or Jericho
That would of been great! Many different story lines could of been devoloped, NWO would have a dance parter so to say to go back an forth with. Keeping them from making the wolf pack story line. Which ruined nwo@@fluworldorder426
Bret would of been redeemed, heck maybe even Owen would be still alive. He might of left wwf/wwe sooner.
WCW blew it big time! They made Bulldog and Anvil jobbers. They had a Canadian Stable with Hacksaw Jim Duggan in 2000 that failed miserably as well.
They should have at that time made bret the number one guy. Despite what the hulkster thought at that point in time bret was a way bigger star than hulk especially in europe and canada. They totally messed it up simply because of eric and hulkster's egos. That is the facts jack.
Bret was huge in Asia too.
Bret was definitely not a bigger than Hogan stop lying mark
Bret Hart should have been the culprit for nWo Nitro vs WCW Thunder. Bret confronts Hogan on Nitro; Bret confronts Sting on Thunder.
Hitman is a force beyond both brands. On no side. Eventually Bret mocks nWo; nWo Hart Attack (pink & black)
Eric Bischoff didnt have the perspective to fully plot and detail nWo Monday Nitro vs WCW Thunder. Could have been one hell of a story
FINALLY ending with Jeff Jarrett "screwing" Bret Hart on the final nWo Souled Out. The final nWo Monday Nitro; Jeff Jarrett trashes the nWorld Heavyweight Championship only to praise and poise WCW as the brand of sports entertainment ("THE BRAND" Jeff Jarrett) and further glorify the World Heavyweight Championship.
nWo 4 Life pay per view; Bret Hart and Eric Bischoff appear on ppv. nWo debatablely ends but Hogan and Bischoff continue on and Outsiders continue their vibe
Glad I listened to this video. I was in the audience for the Jay Leno show that Bret was supposed to compete in that day. He was scheduled to wrestle Kevin Nash on that show. I found out that they were not going to be on the show while in line to get into the studio. The show also featured Hugh Grant. Vladi Divac was the replacement for Bret and Nash.
I am not even a Canadian, and Bret Hart was always my hero💥
I'm canadian and bret is a Canadian hero. wrestling is about more than acting. it's an art form. he's the goat and the innovator of technical chain wrestling that brought the wwe out of the stone age. he's a pioneer. and it wasn't about dropping it in canada or dropping it period. it was about dropping it to shawn after he tried to ruin his marriage with the sunny days comment. he said he wanted to drop it to Austin instead. vince said no but he did have creative control on his way out so he agreed to let bret drop the title instead after a no contest interference ending in Montreal. shawn dropped the wwe title a year prior because he refused to job to bret. Vince allowed it. bret just wanted to do to shawn what he did to him. PERIOD. learn your history eric
Damn right
Sure. But it’s scripted acting with a storyline.
Not an athletic competition to see who is best.
For him to not being able to lose in his home country is fucking ridiculous
Bret didn't do shit, the man didn't draw and is one of the worst drawing champs ever... Get over it 😊
@@PeeBurps-gk7cu you guys are taking the scripted part and using that as an excuse for everything. What if i told you pro sports was scripted/predeterminded? Do you think pro leagues are leaving there billions up to random basketball games without any say in the outcomes? The outcomes affect the bottom line and you think the owners are going to just sit there and let do whatever it does based on the games outcomes? lol thats laughable if you think business works this way.
Respect Eric for admitting he was wrong in completely fumbling Bret's WCW stint. But where he is also wrong is Bret's "funk" came after they time and time again fumbled his career there. THAT is was to this day pisses Bret off. He did want to kick Vince's ass and bring his A game to WCW. But they squashed his momentum with NO plan. Eric tries to blame Bret's lack of fire. Go.back and watch his first few weeks/months. He was trying SO hard. They killed his spirit.
Bret Hart was a great athlete and a wrestling legend without a doubt. Bischoff certainly didn't use him as he should have, but throwing shit at Eric like Bret does just doesn't sit well with me. Bret came to WCW unwillingly and it showed on the show, he never tried to help improve the quality of the product and after so many years he still complains about Goldberg's kick when he was already at a dead end in his career. Ah, not to mention the fact that his brother Owen had purposely compromised Stone Cold's career and Austin, unlike him, never complained! for goodness sake in Canada he may have been a hero but at that time in Italy we were already crazy about Goldberg, Sting, Steve Austin, undertaker etc. and for us someone who showed up in a pink and black costume in the late 90s in the ring was already outdated! Bret never accepted that and we know that.
Bret got a horrible storyline in WCW that not even his best performance could compensate. And how exactly was his responsibility to improve the quality when he wasn’t a booker? The only legitimate argument that Eric makes is of Bret’s mental health, his pride and feeling of worth on the floor due to the screwjob and the death of his brother, but with a properly well written story, he would have flourished regardless. And Bret has absolutely all the bragging rights on talking about Golberg, the guy was stiff from begging to end and was infamous for hurting his fellow workers, plus he was boring to watch. Bret was still relevant and we all know that. He was used poorly and got permanently injured.
Essentially he was a Canadian hero.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan the Canadian Hero in 2000 lmao.
WCW definitely mishandled Bret's talent. However, Bret is no angel in all of this. He had a giant ego in the 90s. Besides Austin, he wouldn't put anyone over. Had he stayed in the WWF and had Vince honoured his 20-year contract deal, Bret would have clashed with so many guys anyhow. This should be an example for the youth to have your ego in check and not let it ruin you!
Owen Hart would have been; neWo.
Its controversy when Owen beats Hogan for World Heavyweight Championship eventually facing Bret (whom is United States champion)
Hogan purposely lost to neWo just to smite Bret.
The BETTER There Is
The BETTER There Was
The BETTER There Ever Will Be
neWo
I’m 37 yo from Thailand. In the 90’s there were two things I knew about Canada. 1. It’s next to USA
2. Bret Hart
And Eric thought he’s not a Canadian Hero?
It doesn’t matter. He’s such a baby he can’t lose a scripted storyline match in his home country.
So?
All that goes to show you is that Canada has so little to show for itself
Bret was never accepted in WCW. He was a WWF guy. They buried him early then Bret got hurt. Finally Bret wins the WCW title then Goldberg ends his career. Just bad luck.
Eric Bischoff is only telling half the truth because Bret tells it differently and I believe Bret Hart
In my opinion WCW never had a plan for Bret Hart, Eric had a blank Ted Turner cheque book and signed Bret because it would hurt the WWE and it was a big deal. Eric Bischoff was beating the WWE so bad in the ratings didn’t need new ideas because the nWo storyline was the main draw. Bret Hart wanted to work with Hulk Hogan but Hulk considered Bret a mid card talent and didn’t want to wrestle him or do a storyline, theirs no money to be made wrestling Bret Hart. So instead of using Bret correctly he was used sporadically as a referee, new member of the nWo, wrestling Ric Flair and then Goldberg. Bret was paid millions to stay at home but he did get big pushes but they usually ended quickly without any pay off. Ric Flair angle went no where, wrestling Booker T, Chris Benoit, Goldberg, and even his nWo stuff sucked. If Eric Bischoff was smart he should’ve used Bret correctly to build new storylines to get wrestlers over or to see a great match like a submission match vs Sting who had the better sharpshooter. Eric had no creativity in the wrestling business except copy ideas from other companies. He could never be called a genius like Vince McMahon because if Eric Bischoff had the same roster Vince had in 95-96 Eric would’ve bankrupted WWE. He couldn’t create new stars or develop talent like Vince could. Eric just got lucky because Ted Turner gave him total control.
In Canada Bret Hart is considered a sports hero and one of the greatest Canadians. I don’t think Eric Bischoff knows how big Bret Hart is in Canada almost every Canadian wrestler brings up Bret as a reason they wanted to become a pro wrestler.
I may be in the minority here, but I wholeheartedly agree with what Eric says here in this interview. He makes a lot of sense. I especially enjoyed his soliloquy about Bret thinking he was a Canadian hero. That made, and continues to make, Bret look like a complete tool to this day. He thought he could do whatever he wanted just because he was Bret Hart. Yes, he was a great wrestler, but let's face it, he wasn't megastar, someone who you'd drop anything you're doing to go watch him.
That's like saying Hogan can't lose to Ultimate Warrior at Wrestlemania because he's an 'American hero'....even Hogan, who was notoriously political, was willing to drop the belt when asked. Bret sounds like his ego was inflated.
How did Bischoff blow that one? I mean he brings Brett in and has him go into the nWo right away. That was stupid! Brett should have been with Sting fighting back against the invasion. Brett was brought in to help clean house, sort of angle. He hated Hogan. It should have been so simple.
Mocks Bret for calling himself a Canadian hero...
Then says how the pilots on a Canadian flight got a personal call to tell them Brets brother had died and someone needs to let him know asap...sounds like hero treatment to me 😂
As a Canadian kid, Bret was my Hero at that time.
Bret Hart, the biggest crybaby in the history of wrestling, other than CM Punk of course.
6:25 The whole idea about wrestling is that many (especially younger) people and do NOT know "it's a movie", it's supposed to be as real as possible - especially back in that time. So yes, Bret WAS/is a Canadian hero and Bishop is talking out of his butt here.
What a stupid movie analogy
WCW simply had no creative structure for Bret something which Vince gave Bret in WWF. WCW was a mess there was no clear plan for any top talent except Hogan. Bret had join WCW to make the money probably would have been better off wrestling in Japan.
Bret just didn’t want to drop the belt to Shawn because he felt disrespected by Shawn!! It became personal between the two he would have dropped the belt to anyone else but Shawn even in Canada!
Bret sounds like such an arrogant person to work with. He literally thought he was bigger than Hogan.
Bret had no charisma or promo skills he was just an in ring general and that will only work pre attitude era
The fact that he has to repeat the line twice "Bret thought he was a canadian hero" to get his point across tells even everyone in the audience thinks that Bret is a canadian hero and there is no doubt in their minds.
We all knew what the score was. He wanted to stay with WWF because WCW was on the slide and couldn't develop stories/talent and that ticked Bichoff off. Initial intentions might have been good but Hogan was the creative. And it was never going to happen for WCW and that's what killed it. He even admits that he had no focus or scope on the screwjob or Bret's momentum. That's the problem. They destroyed his momentum the moment Hart got to WCW. Their creative dropped the ball for legacy characters which was status quo for WCW
Ummmm, Bret is a Canadian Hero, Bubba!!!
Bringing the entire Hart Foundation group in to battle the nWo would have been awesome, for me.
Eric Bishoff was brilliant how he helped WCW blow up. If only he wouldn’t have put all his attention to Hulk Hogan
Bret didnt fit in with the attitude era, he didnt wanna act outside the ring and wasnt very good on the mic and those things were becoming more and more important. All Bret wanted to do was be the champ and do 20 minute matches with 15 different arm bars and the fans just didnt want that. His only gimmick was being Canadian and liking Canada and saying Canada is better than the USA and hes from Canada and he never became the star he thinks he should be.
He also wanted to be the hero for kids to look up to. And with how Austin got over after their submission match at Mania 13, it was clear he wasn’t gonna fit the mold going into 98.
Moral of the story BRET SCREWED BRET
" I didnt care abt Bret's title" Like seriouslly?? you allowed WWF women championship to be thrown in the wastebin on Live TV and you would not want the Main WWF heavy weight title on your TV. A move which could have been a possible killing blow to the WWF and the completion of your biggest desire to put VInce out of business.
Because they legally got in trouble for both that and the Outsiders and they didn’t want to get in trouble again?
@@MrPerfect2000Z Why not ? look at the money that the outsiders brought them, Eric and WCW is still remembered only for that. That is the only time in their entire history that they only made profit. So if the money was worth it, and that such a move would have cost WWF so much money. Why not make a risk a third time. I mean they announced WWF match results on WCW TV. They were that much obsessed with ratings.
I firmly believe had it been against anyone else than Shawn or Hunter, he would’ve dropped the belt. I mean his ego about being a Canadian hero definitely played a part…but it was mainly about being disrespected by Shawn straight to his face n Bret not wanting to drop the belt to someone that wasn’t gonna show not only respect to him for dropping the title but also breaking “backstage tradition” of thanking your opponent for the match and and doing the job. His ego and frustration got so bad dealing with the kliq he didn’t want to lose at all n drop the title the next night…again that’s only cuz he knew they were gonna put the belt in Shawn regardless…had it been taker, stone cold, Kane or anyone else I don’t think he would’ve had a problem with dropping the belt that night. If u watch the Bret hart documentary that follows the screwjob it’s shows a group of wrestlers having his back after the incident took place…most of the boys in the back in fact, so he definitely liked by the majority of his coworkers
Slapping wwf . Yeah sure kid 😂😂😂
Why they didn't hold Bret's debut off until Starrcade, I'll never know. Hype it as him deciding whether he'll sign with WCW or nWo, have him walk off in frustration as Bischoff and Dillon argue eith each other, then confirm his allegiance in the main event by fighting off Hogan's underlings to help Sting win the title. Makes total sense, Bret is a traditionalist plus he has problems with Hogan and HBK's Kliq chums.
I moved from Jamaica to Toronto in 1993. I was 5. Brett Hart became my hero almost immediately.
Instead of chilling under palm trees with some ganja, you got to freeze your nuts off in subzero temperatures with some silly Tim Hortons coffee and donuts. Good deal!
Eric Bishop literally faked someone to meet up with him to offer a contract he turned down and told Vince about, this is hilarious that he’s saying Bret contacted him. It’s hilariously awful
In his final WWF year Bret was anti-American, but also kind of "anti-Attitude" like he was holding back the WWF's transition to having guys like Austin, Degeneration-X and the Rock as the heroes. In WCW the NWO were the main attitude guys, on the side of WCW you had Sting(crow Sting) and DDP who you could say had attitude for not being the more traditional hero like Luger. Of course it made sense for Bret to side with WCW when he arrived, reasoning that American WCW fans still supported wrestlers, not trash-talkers and thugs, so he could like do a promo about how U.S. WCW fans are better than U.S. WWF fans and he can still respect that portion of American fans. You'd also expect him to be a lot more cynical after the screwjob and sometimes do not typically heroic things in the ring i.e. have a bit more attitude that before. It made sense for the NWO to try and recruit him at the start as they were his old WWF "buddies", also maybe they'd figure after the screw job Bret had become too cynical about the path he'd been on, thirteen years working for WWF clawing his way up the ladder, carrying the company during the hard times, only for Vince to reward him the way he did.
Ultimately I think Bret siding with WCW was the best move, Luger was his friend from the old days, he and Sting would be an interesting combination, both using the "sasori" as their finisher. I also had the idea of Bret getting Curt Hennig to rejoin WCW as they were good friends, they of course did have a match at Uncensored '98 with Bret winning, but Rick Rude and Curt beating him down after the match. Maybe a feud could have led to Curt re-joining WCW. It was kinda stupid that Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhardt had next to no involvement with Bret in WCW they ought to have stuck together just as in WWF.
Couldn’t agree more, the WCW fans were a lot different with different sensibilities. I was fired up for Bret to be in WCW, the thing that killed it for me was then switching him from good to bad so many times with no reason. WCW got really bad for that at the end.
But Eric didnt make the best of the oppertunity with Bret.. I mean he says oh well it came at all to fast. So why did you sign him in the first place.? I mean he said he didnt need him in the first place.. But said he saw an oppertunity.. Which is it.? Come beer boy stop getting half lit and contradicting yourself Bischoff..
It wasn’t about losing in Canada it was about respect and losing to a guy that didn’t have any for him
The only reason I gave a like is because the first time I heard Bischoff say it was his fault....for once.
Marketing Europe?? So you can have the worlds biggest PPV in North Korea but couldn't do a live wcw world tour in any part of Europe?