Bret Hart Thinks This One WWE Star Puts Realism Back Into Wrestling

Bret Hart has praised a popular WWE star for bringing realism back into wrestling.

For decades Bret Hart has been widely regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers in history. This reputation was in large part built on his ability to make the action in the ring look incredibly realistic while looking after himself and his opponent.

The Hitman was regularly praised for his commitment to his character and his determination to make anything he was involved with as authentic as possible. It’s a skill he now sees in Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley.

With WWE heading to Australia for Elimination Chamber on February 24th, Hart sat down with FOX Sports Australia to discuss his views on modern wrestling and Australia’s favourite wrestling daughter.

With regard to Ripley, Hart said he was a big fan of the star, and praised her for putting realism back into wrestling — something he feels that’s often lacking.

“I really like her a lot. I really like her poise, her staying in character and sort of living her – she seems like she’s adapted a character that’s fun to play, and she’s playing into that, full tilt.

She’s putting that realism into it; that’s what I miss in a lot of wrestling today, just making it feel more real, and she makes it feel pretty real all the time.”

Bret Hart Takes Fresh Jab At Goldberg

While the WWE Hall of Famer is a huge fan of Rhea Ripley, he made sure to take another jab at one of his favourite targets. Bret Hart blasted what he described as “Bill Goldberg wrestling” — wrestlers legitimately hurting each other in the ring.

“In my understanding of pro wrestling, anytime anyone does anything to you that hurts, for real – chopping, putting blisters on your chest when you go to your room or bed, anytime anyone does things to you for real, they’re in the wrong business. They’re doing it wrong. Because you’re not supposed to get hurt. You’re not supposed to come back to your dressing room that night, or to your hotel room and have a big lump on your head and a black eye and your teeth are knocked out. That’s Bill Goldberg wrestling. That’s not how it’s done.”

The feud between Hart and Goldberg stretches all the way back to late 1999 when Goldberg hit Hart with an incredibly stiff kick during a match at Starrcade. As a result of the kick, Hart suffered a serious concussion which effectively ended his in-ring career.