wrestling / Columns
Right Move/Wrong Move 05.14.2010: Bret Hart defeats The Undertaker for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam ’97
RIGHT MOVE/WRONG MOVE
Looking back at the history of Vince McMahon’s decisions and the fallout – both good and bad!
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Regarding Yokozuna/Luger:
As usual for a column like this, some of the readers disagreed with me on last week’s decision, but I did have a good amount of supporters. Many of the commenters that disagreed with me argued a point which I had already addressed in the article, but I’ll reiterate. Yokozuna was the #1 heel at the time of WrestleMania X, and some felt that it was fitting that Bret defeat the monstrous villain to win the title. As I stated in last week’s article, that would have been OK for a normal PPV, but not for this event, at this time period, on this stage. It is completely understandable that some people think this was the way to go because this is the way most angles were concluded, especially at WrestleMania. But that is exactly my point; it had been done a million times before and along with being completely predictable, it was tired. There had been nine WrestleManias and every one of them saw the babyface leave as Champion; and eight of them saw the babyface overcome the odds and beat the super villain to do it. The only time that this didn’t happen saw an unbelievable WrestleMania Moment created and it was supposed to be the launching pad for a new era in the WWF. Now, I’m not saying that Bret vs. Lex would have created the same moment that Warrior vs. Hogan would have, but it sure stood a better chance then another good guy vs. unbeatable bad guy, Bret vs.Yoko. We had seen this story before and we knew how it ended. And it would have been the REAL kickoff to the new WWF-Generation that Vince had wanted Warrior/Hogan to be. But most importantly, Bret vs. Lex should have happened because it wasn’t the norm, the outcome wasn’t obvious and because it was different. This whole event and time period in the WWF was different from anything they’ve ever done before. It was the first WrestleMania without Hogan, the first time they had two scheduled WWF Championship matches, the first time a ladder match would be seen on live WWF programming, the first time three men were advertised for the main event match, and wrestling skill was given precedence over appearance. A face vs. face Mania main event had only been done once before, and if this one was even half as special as the first one, then the conclusion of WrestleMania X would have been ten times more memorable than David slaying Goliath for the umpteenth time. Bret Hart leaving MSG as Champion was always the plan and the correct one in my view. As far as Luger/Bret being “hotshotted”? There was nothing about Luger vs. Hart that would have been “hotshotted”. I take it that those that think this didn’t follow the WWF during 1994. Since those of us that lived through this time period know that a match between these two had been teased and built up for months. Many people that attended this event or ordered it on PPV did so thinking they would see Luger vs. Bret. Could they have done a better job in advertising it by actually announcing that as the main event? Sure, but that’s not the way Vince decided to go. Plus, it allowed him the ability to change plans last minute, if that is in fact what he did as it is rumored. But don’t kid yourself into thinking that this potential match would have been “hotshotted” like a previous WrestleMania “main event”. ::cough, Hogan/Yoko, cough::
Everybody assumed that Yokozuna wasn’t coming out of the event as Champion, and once Lex lost, the outcome was a forgone conclusion. If this was an earlier WrestleMania, then it could have been the RIGHT MOVE since there wasn’t such a rich history of the good guy always triumphing at WrestleMania. It also could have been the RIGHT MOVE if this match was held at a King of the Ring or SummerSlam, but not at WrestleMania X!
Now onto this week…
Bret Hart defeats The Undertaker for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam ‘97.
The year was 1997, the place was East Rutherford, NJ at the Continental Airlines Arena, the event was SummerSlam and it was the beginning of one of the hottest eras in pro wrestling history. The Undertaker had spent the majority of the year as World Wrestling Federation Champion and had successfully defended his title against the likes of Mankind, Steve Austin, Farooq and others. He would have his toughest title defense to date at SummerSlam ’97 against the former, four-time WWF Champion Bret “Hitman” Hart. The Challenger had the most tumultuous year of his entire career in 1997 up to that point and had finally been granted a shot at the Championship belt he coveted so much. With two of the biggest names in the WWF colliding for the title, anticipation was at a fever pitch.
The Undertaker and Bret Hart had met several times in the past, with neither man gaining a true advantage. A regular match between the two would already have been a true main event, but that didn’t stop Vince McMahon from pulling out all the stops. To ensure that this match was the most hyped match of the year, several stipulations were added to the bout. Shortly after the main event had been announced, it was also revealed Shawn Michaels would be the special guest referee. As usual, I will discuss, in detail, the build up for this match as well as the fallout as we analyze each competitor. The end result saw Bret Hart defeat the Undertaker for the WWF Championship for a record-tying fifth time, but in extremely controversial fashion. Shortly after this event, Bret Hart would leave the WWF in the most notorious moment in the history of the business at the 1997 Survivor Series. Much of that controversy surrounding the Survivor Series was created by the Championship belt that was around the waist of the Hitman. Had he not been World Wrestling Federation Champion, the double-cross finish between Shawn Michaels, Vince McMahon and Bret Hart in November of ‘97 might not have happened. We will look to answer the question, “Was Bret Hart defeating the Undertaker for the WWF Championship at SummerSlam ’97 the RIGHT MOVE or WRONG MOVE”?
PARTICIPANT #1
Let’s first look at the legendary Challenger…
Bret Hart’s career spanned the better part of 15 years, so to cover it all would take months worth of columns. For the purposes of this RM/WM segment, we will focus on his WWF career since his return nearly a year prior to his SummerSlam match with The Undertaker.
…the Hitman had just lost his WWF title in a 60 minute iron man match that went the distance and ended in sudden-death overtime. Bret had taken some time to reassess where he was at, both in the storyline and in reality, and he did not compete in the WWF for over 6 months. During this time, Bret Hart’s contract was up for renewal and he had legitimately received offers from Eric Bischoff and the rival WCW. Although he had been offered more money to jump ship to the Turner owned organization, Bret announced on a live edition of Monday Night Raw that he would indeed return and wrestle for the WWF and do so at the 1996 Survivor Series in Madison Square Garden against Stone Cold Steve Austin.
The crowd in New York City the night of Survivor Series was not a normal crowd for 1996, and foreshadowed the turn of the WWF audience. Many fans actually point to this night as the unofficial starting point for the Attitude era, while others believe it started on several other nights that we’ll cover in this article. In most arenas across the US, the majority of the fans cheered the “good guys” and booed the “bad guys”, but on this night in New York City, many of the reactions were reversed. Instead of cheering the popular babyface and WWF Champion, Shawn Michaels, the crowd rooted for Sid and shouted their approval when he crushed Jose Lothario’s chest with a television camera. Possibly the biggest pop of the night came when Sid powerbombed Michaels to the mat and scored the 1-2-3, instantly becoming the new WWF Champion. In the Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin match, the crowd seemed split; many welcoming the return of the Hitman, while others had begun embracing the new anti-hero. Fans were getting tired of the white-meat babyface routine and yearned for something different, something tougher, something with more attitude.
In almost identical fashion to the way he defeated Roddy Piper at WrestleMania VIII, Bret Hart scored a pinfall victory over Steve Austin at the Survivor Series and with it, secured a title opportunity at the next month’s In Your House. The next few months were extremely frustrating for the Hitman, both personally and professionally. Since he defeated Austin at Survivor Series, Bret received a title shot at In Your House: It’s Time, but failed to capture the gold thanks to interference from Shawn Michaels. The following month, the Hitman would enter the Royal Rumble and although he was the last legal man in the ring, he was not declared the winner thanks to Steve Austin’s sly cheating. The rumored main event rematch of Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 did not take place due to a knee injury and personal problems affecting Shawn Michaels, or at least that was the reason given for his surrendering the WWF Championship on Thursday Raw, Thursday Live. Since the title was now vacant, a four man elimination match was held at February’s In Your House: Final Four that included Austin, Bret, Vader and The Undertaker. Bret Hart won the elimination match along with the WWF Championship for a fourth time, but his celebration would be short lived. It was the very next night on a live Monday Night Raw that Bret lost the belt to Sid due to multiple run-ins from Stone Cold Steve Austin. The WrestleMania main event matches were announced within the next two weeks: Bret Hart would battle Steve Austin in a Submission Match and Sid would defend his title against The Undertaker.
WrestleMania 13 was where everything changed for Bret “Hitman” Hart. By many standards, WrestleMania 13 was a one-match show, but that one match was arguably the greatest match in WrestleMania history. The matches that filled the card included the Legion of Doom and Ahmed Johnson defeating the Nation of Domination in a Chicago Street Fight, Rocky Maivia defending his Intercontinental Championship against The Sultan and The Undertaker defeating Sycho Sid for the WWF Championship. But the match that everyone came to see was Austin vs. Bret in a Submission Match, with Ken Shamrock as special guest referee. I have to imagine everyone reading this article has seen the famed Austin/Hart match, but for those that haven’t, or for those that just want to view this classic again, here it is:
In one of the greatest WrestleMania moments of all time, Steve Austin was locked in the Sharpshooter in agonizing pain, with tons of blood pouring down his face, yet he refused to give up. This would be the defining image of the Attitude era. In addition to providing the WWF with a scene equivalent to Hogan slamming Andre, the ending of this match saw a double-turn the likes of which will probably never be seen again. The company’s top babyface and the company’s top heel switched places at the conclusion of this match and, in doing so, setup the future of the WWF for years to come. Even after being declared the winner, Bret, in true heel fashion, continued to assault the leg of Steve Austin after the bell. It took the physical involvement of special guest referee Ken Shamrock before the Hitman would stop the punishment.
In a scene almost identical to the prior year’s WrestleMania, Bret Hart angrily walked the aisle to the dressing room, once again disappointed with the ultimate outcome of his WrestleMania match. Although this year he was able to leave the ring victorious, as he walked to the back – and I’ll quote Bret Hart directly – “I feel like I lost.” The times had officially changed. Just one year prior, he was heralded as WWF Champion and the true “white knight” of the WWF. Now he was being spit at and cursed as he walked to the back. As much as things had changed over the past 12 months in the World Wrestling Federation, that one image of Bret’s WrestleMania frustration remained exactly the same. Little did Bret know, this would be the last time we would see Bret Hart compete at a WrestleMania for 13 years.
The next night on Raw, Bret came out to explain his actions. To this day, this is one of my favorite promos ever given in the history of the WWF/WWE and certainly the best of Bret Hart’s career. Unlike prior “explanations” given to the fans by newly-turned heels, the Hitman’s reasons were very logical and he had facts to support his turn that were very true. While in years past, Bret would have been cheered for his “perseverance” during times of injustice that he experienced over the past few months, in 1997, he was now considered a crybaby and booed across the United States.
Creating a dynamic not seen before in the WWF, Bret Hart would be a heel in the US, but in other countries, specifically Canada, Germany, and England, he continued to be a babyface. Conversely, Steve Austin (and anyone opposing Bret Hart) would be lauded stateside, yet jeered across the border.
After WrestleMania 13, Bret would reunite with his brother Owen, brother-in-law Davey Boy and reintroduce the WWF fans to his former tag team partner, Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart. Eventually Brian Pillman would be added to the mix and together the group became known as the Hart Foundation. Throughout the spring and summer months, the new faction battled the likes of Sycho Sid, Ken Shamrock, the Legion of Doom, Steve Austin and of course, Shawn Michaels. All the while, the Undertaker was defending his WWF Championship all across the world. It was only a matter of time before the two men crossed paths: the leader of the Hart Foundation and the World Wrestling Federation Champion.
And so the match was announced just shortly after the July In Your House: Canadian Stampede PPV. Riding a wave of emotion, Bret Hart started a string of one-upsmanships that would surround the entire SummerSlam card. In his home country surrounded by thousands of screaming Canadians, the Hitman had declared that if he didn’t leave SummerSlam with the WWF title that he would never again wrestle in the United States. A week later, Shawn Michaels had come to Raw to make a special announcement:
Due to the obvious bias that could be shown by Shawn Michaels, another stipulation was added to the match regarding the officiating. If the special referee did not call it down the middle, without showing favoritism towards The Undertaker, then he, too, would not be able to wrestle anymore in the United States. All three men involved in this match now had something to lose. Bret had his US career on the line; Shawn, also, had his US career on the line and The Undertaker had his WWF Championship at stake.
During the match, Shawn called it right down the middle, getting in both men’s faces at times, but nothing to make you question his motives. He displayed complete professionalism until the end. Bret had collided with Michaels outside the ring after Undertaker powered out of the Hitman’s figure-four-’round-the-post. This caused Shawn to be temporarily floored and it took a few minutes for him to recover. With Shawn Michael distracted, Bret took the opportunity to waffle the Undertaker with a steel chair. Michaels returned to the ring to see a lifeless Undertaker down on the mat and a blue chair setting in the ring. Bret continued to work over the Champion, when Michaels noticed the chair, picked it up, and questioned Bret about it. Ignoring the referee, Bret turned his attention back to punishing the Undertaker, who had reached his feet. Having reached their boiling point, Shawn spun Bret around one more time to ask about the chair and Bret spit in his face. Reacting without thinking, Shawn, chair in hand, swung it in Bret’s direction with the intention of leveling Bret. Instinctively, Bret ducked the chair shot and it caught the Undertaker square in the head, knocking him out cold. Ever the opportunist, Bret immediately covered the Undertaker and, with the stipulation hanging over him, Shawn Michaels was forced to count the 1-2-3.
In what I believe was one of the greatest finishes of the time, Bret Hard had defeated the Undertaker to become World Wrestling Federation Champion for a record-tying fifth time. Only Hulk Hogan had won the title as many times as Bret, and Bret had done it with his arch rival as referee. Immediately, Michaels dejectedly walked to the back, disappointed in himself that the Hitman had outsmarted him and was now the new WWF Champion. Meanwhile, the former Champion, Undertaker, wasn’t far behind Shawn and was angrily stalking the controversial referee. The fans in the Continental Airlines Arena were livid, littering the ring with garbage. As Bret paraded around the ring holding the belt in one hand and showing “5” in the other, SummerSlam went off the air.
While the Undertaker would begin his feud with Shawn Michaels, the new Champion would continue his feud against Americans, and was now working with Del Wilkes, The Patriot. By the end of the fall, Bret would come out on top of his feud with the Patriot and Shawn Michaels had given way to a new enemy of The Undertaker, his brother Kane. With a historic victory over The Undertaker in the first ever “Hell In A Cell” match at In Your House Badd Blodd in October, Shawn Michaels won the right to battle for the WWF Championship at the next month’s Survivor Series. And in a rematch that had been anticipated for over a year and a half, Bret Hart would finally get his rematch with Shawn Michaels.
Anyone reading this column knows what happened. It was and is the most controversial finish in the history of professional wrestling. Bret had refused to drop the title to Shawn Michaels on this
Bret’s career never was the same after Montreal. He went to WCW and eventually captured the WCW Championship, but felt that he was not utilized properly by the Atlanta organization. As we all know, Bret returned to the WWE this past winter and in a scene unimaginable just a few years ago, he defeated Vince McMahon in a No Holds Barred match at WrestleMania XXVI. It is rumored that this match marked the end of the Mr. McMahon character, and if that turns out to be true, it is only fitting. A character born out of the unfortunate events surrounding Bret Hart’s WWF departure would be destroyed by the very man who helped fuel its creation.
Bret Hart’s legacy was cemented long before his fifth WWF Championship reign. The fact that he was able to win the title this many times, tying Hulk Hogan, only added to his career. It’s a shame that it all came crumbling down soon after this win. But for one last time, unbeknownst to Bret, he was on top of the WWF and the wrestling world. His chase for the belt had been culminated just as convincingly as any of his previous babyface runs. Bret was forced out of the WWF in 1997 due to the inability of Vince McMahon to honor the contract he had signed just one year prior. While this would have happened regardless of who went over the night of SummerSlam ’97, the victory for Bret Hart did give him the possession of the belt that lead to all the mayhem in Montreal.
PARTICIPANT #2
Now let’s take a look at the Phenom’s career surrounding 1997…
Since his arrival in 1990, the Undertaker had been a staple on the top of the WWF card. With the exception of a few matches, however, The Undertaker was very rarely in the hunt for the WWF title. At Survivor Series of ’91 he defeated Hulk Hogan for his first WWF Championship with help from Ric Flair, but dropped it back to Hogan six days later at the Tuesday In Texas PPV. Nearly two years later at the 1994 Royal Rumble, he had a Casket Match against Yokozuna for the title, but failed to capitalize. Two years after that at the 1996 Royal Rumble, he challenged Bret Hart for the gold in their first one-on-one encounter. Again the victim of circumstance, the Undertaker failed to win the title despite Tombstoning and covering Bret, thanks to Diesel. For a while it seemed The Undertaker was destined to take the route of Piper, Roberts or Andre – always competing in high profile matches, but rarely, if ever, winning the gold. That is, until March of ’97…
At WrestleMania 13, The Undertaker was once again on the right side of outside interference. With just enough distraction, ironically enough by Bret Hart, The Undertaker was able to Tombstone Sycho Sid en route to his second WWF Championship. The “Dark Days” of the WWF had arrived and 1997’s version of WrestleMania saw a different type of babyface emerge as Champion, the dark and mysterious Undertaker. Taker began his reign as Champion at WrestleMania 13, and his once-and-future opponent, Bret Hart, began his reign as “number 1 bad guy” at WrestleMania 13.
Although his run as Champion lasted almost half a year, The Undertaker’s title reign was a bit underwhelming. His run with the belt was well deserved and long overdue, but it also turned out to be quite disappointing, though not necessarily the fault of the Dead Man’s.
As a babyface in 1997, there weren’t very many ‘bad guys’ that the Champion could feud with and remain strong. Aside from Bret and his Hart Foundation which had just turned heel, the main villains during this time were Mankind, Vader, and Farooq; two of which the Undertaker had already feuded with within the past 6 months. The babyfaces, on the other hand, were much stronger and more plentiful: Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, Ken Shamrock, Sycho Sid, Ahmed Johnson, Goldust.
Another side note: in his book, Bret Hart discusses this as being the main reason he agreed to turn heel in 1997. He felt he would have more quality opponents that would lead to bigger draws as a heel than he would as a face. Vince presented him with two lists, one with the names of heels he could feud with as a face, and one with the names of faces he could feud with as a heel. As referenced above, the list of face names were much longer and much stronger. Such was the trouble with the WWF at the time, and is why soon after Bret had turned heel, Shawn turned heel. In fact, it isn’t a coincidence that more than half the guys on those lists switched roles before 1997 was over. Anyway, back to the Undertaker…
His opponents weren’t on the same level as some of the previous Champions. Sid got to work Shawn and Bret; Shawn got to work Diesel, Bulldog, Sid and a red-hot Vader; Bret worked Taker, Diesel, and Shawn. In 1997, The Undertaker had to work against Mankind, Austin, Farooq, and Vader before getting to Bret. Now in 2010, that looks like pretty solid opponents, but in 1997 it wasn’t as impressive a list. Mankind had not yet become the main-eventer that he would be in 1998 through 2000; for that matter, neither had Austin although he was damn close. In fact, let’s take a look at the heels individually:
Mankind – He and Taker had just concluded an 8 month long feud four months prior to their match at In Your House: Revenge of the Taker. The last thing fans needed was another Taker/Mankind match no matter how brilliant their feud was. As awesome as their battles in 1996 were, it was way too soon to start up again. Also, at this point in his WWF career, Mankind was not an established main eventer. He had a few good matches, but the Taker/Mankind feud had been done to death by then.
Austin – These two fought at May’s In Your House: Cold Day In Hell and was very interesting on paper. Austin had just turned face and was on his way up, but was in the middle of a war with the Hart Foundation. Any program with Taker, while it had potential to be new and interesting, never got off the ground since they were both faces and both involved in other angles. So while this would be one of the opponents the Undertaker could benefit from, it never was given a chance.
Farooq – Farooq had been featured pretty regularly on WWF television by June 1997, but the mini-feud with Undertaker played second fiddle (and rightfully so) to the in-ring return of Shawn Michaels, the Shawn/Bret, Shawn/Austin and Austin/Hart Foundation feuds and even the King of the Ring tournament. Plus, the WWF had started to tease a Nation Of Domination breakup which took away from Farooq’s’ threat to win the title.
Ahmed Johnson – This had potential to be a decent feud for the same reasons the feud with Austin had potential. Unlike other matches being put on at the time, it hadn’t been seen before. Ahmed had involved himself in the Undertaker/Farooq feud and eventually turned heel out of it, giving The Undertaker the Pearl River Plunge to close out the June 16 episode of Raw. Ahmed had been built up pretty strong by Vince ever since his arrival in late 95, playing a rugged babyface role. Since Taker had been a good guy for over 5 years, the two never crossed paths and so this was refreshingly different It was even announced that Johnson would face the Undertaker at In Your House: Canadian Stampede for the title, but due to another ill-timed injury suffered by Ahmed, the plans had to be scrapped. Instead of an Ahmed/Taker run, we got another retread of a feud that had already been seen.
Vader – A last minute replacement for Ahmed Johnson. Again, this feud had been done back in the earlier months of 1997, and actually saw Vader get a pinfall victory over the Undertaker at the Royal Rumble. Normally, this would have been reason enough to have a rematch and generate interest, but the problem here was that this wasn’t the original plan. Fans had been expecting an Ahmed/Undertaker match after several weeks and months build-up including Ahmed Johnson joining the Nation of Domination. To suddenly thrust Vader into the spot meant for Ahmed, came out of nowhere and left fans bewildered. Vader and Undertaker could have continued their feud from earlier in the year with more success at a different time, or even if it had been given the proper time to be built up. But due to Johnson’s injury, it was hotshotted to the top of the card with little to no build, and suffered because of it.
The Undertaker had been a credible Champion, he just didn’t have many interesting feuds with the strap. So after keeping the belt after matches with Mankind, Austin, Farooq and Vader, it was finally time for the Undertaker to meet the # 1 heel in the company. Where else could a contest like this be held at except SummerSlam, the second biggest show of the year. There aren’t too many times where SummerSlam is a better overall show than that year’s WrestleMania, but in 1997 you could make that argument. (**To read more about the SummerSlams that were better than WrestleMania keep an eye out for my next blog which should be up soon on my member page.**)
The WWF had started to turn their product in the right direction. Fans started buzzing, and more people started watching. The tide was turning in professional wrestling and the industry was about to embark on a journey that would take them to heights never before seen. The attitude era was just around the corner, if it hadn’t already begun, and many people point to this show as the one that set things in motion. This show saw Austin break his neck yet defeat Owen Hart for the Intercontinental Championship (an obvious scary point, but memorable nonetheless), it had Mankind channel his inner-Snuka and deliver a flying elbow off the top of the cage onto a young, but rising star in Hunter Hearst Helmsley. The show also took place in the height of gang-warfare, showcased one of the first Shamrock “snaps”, and gave the WWF fans a dose of Brian Pillman, but the best was saved for last. The match everyone came to see – Bret Hart vs. The
Undertaker with Shawn Michaels as guest referee.
During the match, Taker took control at various spots and even had the referee, Michaels, get in his face. Similar to their previous encounter from early ‘96, neither was able to sustain the advantage. The Undertaker did however accomplish a feat almost as impressive as a victory, and that being the ability to kick out of the Sharpshooter. Kayfabe, this had never been done before and was extremely impressive. In reality, this was a show of respect from Bret to Taker, as Bret admits to in his book. By kicking out of the Hitman’s Sharpshooter, a feat no man had ever done, The Undertaker had left Bret without much left to do to be able to win the match. It was Bret’s bread-and-butter and once this could not defeat the Dead Man, Bret had few options left – Until Bret used his brain and Michaels’ own hatred of Bret against him. After the accidental chair shot on Taker, Shawn counted the pinfall and the Undertaker was once again a former Champion. The ball was now off and rolling on a Michaels/Taker feud, which similar to Ahmed Johnson/Undertaker had not been seen before, but featured two legit main event stars. Shawn Michaels had taken his refereeing mistake and used it to initiate a heel turn of his own. He was now fully to blame for Bret’s resurgence as Champion and the focal point of the Undertaker’s wrath.
The finish of the SummerSlam ’97 main event lead to a legendary feud between Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker, that continued to reap the company benefits as recent as WrestleMania XXVI. It gave us Hell In A Cell, the debut of Kane, the classic Royal Rumble Casket Match of ‘98, and indirectly, the Montreal Screwjob. Depending on your viewpoint, that moment could be viewed as the highlight of modern era, or the lowlight. It can be seen as the saving grace of the WWF, or it’s biggest black eye. Regardless of your feeling about what went down the night of November 9, 1997, you cannot argue that its ramifications changed the industry forever. Had the Undertaker retained as Champion, do we get any of these things?
PARTICIPANT #2 WRAP-UP
Just like Bret, the Undertaker had a legendary career prior to this match. Unlike Bret, he also had many more years of highlights still to come. His loss to the Hitman started a chain of events with ramifications still felt to this day.
REVERSED DECISION
