Bret Hart Fires Back At Criticism Of Famous Match

Bret Hart wasn’t amused by one fan’s thoughts on a famous WrestleMania match.

1995 was a rough year for the WWF, and Bret Hart found himself relatively low down on the company’s list of priorities. This run saw Hart wrestling the likes of Bob Backlund, Jerry “The King” Lawler, and Isaac Yankem.

However, with Kevin Nash’s run as World Champion falling flat, Vince McMahon turned to Hart at Survivor Series who won the gold for the third time.

At the start of 1996, Shawn Michaels won the Royal Rumble, booking himself a match against Hart at WrestleMania. Not that the bout would be just another match.

Ahead of the show it was announced that the pair would meet in a 60-minute Ironman Match.

Bret Hart Defends WrestleMania Match

With the action set to last for over an hour, much of the bout was wrestled at a slow pace, with neither man scoring a pinfall or submission during the time limit. As a result, the match was re-started, and Michaels eventually grabbed the win to claim the World Title for the first time.

Over the years, the match has been criticised for a lack of action, but Hart continues to disagree.

During an event hosted by Johnny I Pro Show featuring Hart, an audience member shouted out that the match wasn’t that great, causing The Hitman to come to its defence.

Well actually, it was that great (Hart said about the WrestleMania XII match against Shawn Michaels). That was a great match. Shawn’s had his issues later on but when he wrestled me in the Iron Man match, he was in the best shape of his life.

Following the match with Michaels, Hart went on hiatus and even held talks with WCW boss Eric Bischoff before eventually returning to action at Survivor Series.

At the event, Bret Hart beat Stone Cold Steve Austin in a match fondly remembered as one of the greatest in the event’s long history. Although no one was aware of it at the time, Hart would be gone from the company just a year later after his professional and personal relationships with Michaels and Vince McMahon exploded.

H/t to POST Wrestling