Dan Wahlers talks Bret Hart and the Hall of Fame
Thoughts on Bret Hart and the WON Hall of Fame
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Some potentially major news was reported by our own Dave Meltzer in the new edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, which was posted on the site yesterday. Dave reported that Bret Hart and WWE have been in preliminary talks since around the time that Vickie Guerrero left the company in June, for a potential return of Hart to the company as a regular weekly television performer. Anyone that has been following the wrestling business for any length of time, specifically since around November 1997, knows that this is a potentially earth shattering story in the wrestling world.
You see, there was this minor story, that didn't really get a lot of coverage, called the Montreal Screwjob that happened at the 1997 Survivor Series. Something about a Sharpshooter, and “ring the fucking bell”, and Shawn Michaels and Earl Hebner running away like thieves in the night, and Bret Hart spitting in Vince McMahon's face on worldwide PPV, and then punching him in the face in the locker room after the show. Perhaps you've heard the story once or twice? And because of what happened that infamous night, the fact that Bret and WWE are even talking about him returning is a hell freezing over moment if there ever was one, after Bret has said publicly on numerous occasions that he never wanted to work for Vince McMahon again, to the point where he would be collecting a weekly paycheck from him. So this would certainly be a major reversal in mindset for Hart.
According to Meltzer, there is nothing concrete on the table right now, and no deals agreed to at this point. The talks have been characterized as being in the very early preliminary stages. So anything said as far as potential roles for Hart in the company would be merely speculation at this point. But it certainly is fun to speculate about a potential return that would shake the foundation, pardon the pun, of WWE and the entire wrestling business. It would be the return that no one thought they would ever see in a million years.
A lot of people have had major falling outs with Vince McMahon over the years. The list reads like a who's who of wrestling's past, present, and future. But the majority end up working for him again at some point, whether at his desire, or theirs. But Bret was one of the few guys that never did come back, as much as Vince tried to lure him back. And he certainly did try many times. Aside from coming back to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006, working with WWE on his very successful DVD compilation a couple of years ago, and doing a taped promo on “Vince McMahon Appreciation Night” on Raw in 2007, Bret has stayed away. He has said that he would like to maintain a cordial relationship with Vince and WWE, but that he would never want to return full-time in any capacity. It makes you wonder what prompted this change in directions, where he would even entertain the idea of returning as a regular weekly character.
I don't think it has anything to do with money, since Bret is known as a guy that has saved his money very well over the years. That has allowed him to pick and choose where and when he appears on wrestling shows, and appear on his own terms. He's made several appearances for Ring of Honor this year. He's not a guy that has to work at 60 years old like Ric Flair is currently doing, because he's broke on his ass. Maybe it has to do with him finally reconciling what happened in 1997, and deciding that he doesn't want that to be the last thing that wrestling fans remember him for. Maybe it has to do with him being at peace with his life, and wanting to make peace with the people that wronged him so many years ago.
I don't pretend to know what's going on in Bret Hart's mind. I have a hard enough time figuring out what's going on in my own mind, let alone trying to analyze somebody else. But purely from a wrestling fan's perspective, and someone that considers Bret Hart one of my favorite performers of all-time, I know that I would love to see him return to WWE in whatever capacity it might be in. After all these years it would be so great to see Bret back on television again, and it would be something new and exciting at a time when WWE is in dire need of anything new and exciting. After the stroke he suffered in 2002, getting in the ring again is out of the question. But there are a lot of intriguing possibilities of potential storylines and roles they could come up with for Bret should he eventually return. It's a fantasy booking dream to think about some of this stuff.
The obvious role for him would be as an on-air authority figure, such as becoming the GM of Raw or Smackdown. Raw has no regular GM right now, and they're running this guest GM gimmick into the ground. I mean, Shaq did an awesome job, Bob Barker was entertaining, Dusty Rhodes and Ted Dibiase Sr. were tremendous, as well as Trish Stratus, and some of the other ones haven't been awful. But Al Sharpton? Seriously? Was David Duke busy that night? Cedric The Entertainer is a hilarious stand up comedian, but in the sanitized, scripted, family friendly world of WWE, he was something less than entertaining this past Monday. So there's going to come a time when they hopefully scrap the concept, and hire a full-time GM again. Bret Hart could be perfect for the role.
The problem with that idea is there are two people on Raw that I don't think Bret would have any desire to work with, and that would be Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Although, obviously a Bret Hart/Shawn Michaels face to face encounter would be must see television. Bret has forgiven Vince McMahon in some way for what happened that night in Montreal, and the fact that he's even talking to Vince about a possible return is proof of that. But I don't think he's forgiven Shawn Michaels, and I base that on statements that he's made about Shawn as recently as earlier this year. I can't see him wanting to be in the same locker room with those two on a weekly basis for Raw, and have to work with them on camera, and off it for any extended period of time. It would be like oil and water, or cats and dogs, it just wouldn't mix together very well. It would make for some damn compelling television, however, that's for sure.
Smackdown would be the natural destination for Bret. With the current storyline on the show where Vince McMahon put Teddy Long on probation several months ago, and then Teddy screwing The Undertaker at Breaking Point in the latest redo of the Montreal Screwjob, you could see a scenario where Long will be written off the show at some point, which would leave the door wide open for Bret to walk right in as the new GM.
He would get a chance to work with and play off of two of the best heels in the business today in CM Punk and Chris Jericho, as well as potentially give the rub to some of the young, up and coming guys on the show like John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler, and of course The Hart Dynasty. Smackdown has become known as the wrestling show, and it would just seem appropriate that Bret would end up there if he were to come back. He wouldn't have to work with Michaels and HHH, and he would give Smackdown a much needed boost of credibility, and make it must see TV for a lot of people again.
I mentioned The Hart Dynasty, which is comprised of Bret's nephew David Hart Smith, his niece and the daughter of his former partner Jim Neidhart, Natalya, and Tyson Kidd, who was trained in the famed Hart Dungeon, and by Bret Hart himself. They're all very talented in their own ways, especially Kidd, who is the in-ring star of the group, but they're kind of floundering on Smackdown right now after a promising start on ECW. Perhaps the fact that there is one babyface tag team for them to work with on Smackdown has something to do with it. Imagine Bret coming in as their mentor or adviser. You couldn't get anymore of a natural fit than that. Bret could do the talking for them, an area that he excels in, which is a weakness for them. He would give the group an instant jolt of credibility and recognizability.
Perhaps with Bret back on the scene, they could even give another chance to Teddy Hart, who is also one of Bret's nephews. Teddy was originally supposed to be part of the reboot of The Hart Foundation when the idea was first conceived several years ago. But as his been his pattern pretty much everywhere he's been in his entire career, he wore out his welcome in WWE developmental, and hasn't really been heard from much since then. Teddy is a guy that has always had all the potential in the world, but he's never been able to realize that potential because he's been his own worst enemy. But he's 29 years old now, so he's not a kid anymore, and you would think by now he would realize that his door of opportunity is rapidly closing, and that maybe it's time to start acting like an adult. With his Uncle Bret around to hopefully show him the proper way that things are done in a company like WWE, and keep him under control, it would be the perfect
opportunity for Ted to get one last shot at making it on a national level.
As I said earlier, all of this is purely speculation on my part, and dreaming if you will. No one knows what's going to happen with Bret Hart, and if he will actually end up returning or not. Nothing may come of any of this. Bret was interviewed on a wrestling radio show yesterday, and he was very dodgy in his answers, neither confirming or denying that he was talking with WWE. The fact that he didn't issue a flat out denial like he has many times in the past was very telling, in my view.
One thing is for sure, this will be one of the more intriguing stories to watch in the coming months.
The 2009 Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame results were announced yesterday. The Midnight Express, Konnan, promoter Roy Shire, Japanese wrestler Masa Saito, and 25 year worldwide headliner Dr. Bill Miller were all inducted into the elite group by a panel of current and former wrestlers, industry leaders, reporters, and wrestling historians.
My thoughts on the results are that it's about time for The Midnight Express. To me, they've always been a slam dunk pick. They are considered by many to be one of, if not the top working tag team in the decade of the 80's. They have been long overdue this honor. Tag teams are woefully underrepresented in this HOF, and it was certainly a hard mountain for them to climb. Both versions of the tag team, Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton, and later Stan Lane and Bobby Eaton join their manager Jim Cornette, who is one of only three managers in the HOF. A well earned and well deserved accomplishment for the three men that made up The Midnight Express.
I was surprised both in a positive and negative way about some of the results of who didn't get in this year. I was glad to see Chris Jericho move up the ladder from the 12% he got got in the voting last year, to the 52% he got this year. A wrestler of the year award, and being the top performer in the wrestling business for the past year and a half really boosted his chances of getting elected in one of the coming years. For me, Jericho was a borderline Hall of Famer last year, but his awesome work week in and week out for the last year put him over the top. With the lack of new candidates next year, and in the years to come, it seems like only a matter of time for him.
The same goes for Rey Mysterio, who jumped from 42% last year to 56% this year, coming a mere eight votes short this year. Rey is an easy Hall of Fame pick in my opinion, because of how innovative and influential he was at getting wrestlers his size opportunities in the United States, and innovating the high flying luchadore style in the US. Not to mention the fact that he's been a top draw in WWE over a number of years, and his in-ring work speaks for itself. Unfortunately, he's going through the same thing that many guys have gone through. It's incredibly hard to get in on your first ballot in this Hall of Fame, and even harder if you're still an active wrestler. But as with Jericho, Mysterio is almost a sure bet to make it in one of the upcoming years. And it will be a well deserved, and overdue honor for him when it finally does happen.
I was disappointed that Edge only got 22 % in his first year on the ballot. A strong case can be made for him being a Hall of Famer right now. His in-ring work, and the fact that he's been a consistent main eventer in WWE for over four years now, and the fact that he pretty much carried Smackdown as its top star for a quite a while put his credentials at or very near HOF level, in my eyes. I think he's someone that will do a lot better in the coming years, provided that he returns from his latest injury, an achillies tendon rupture that is expected to keep him out of action well into 2010.
If he returns from that, and it's not a sure thing at all, and if he's able to return to the same level he was at previously, and if he puts together a few more years of the same type of work he's been doing, he will be a shoe-in in a couple years. But 22 % on the first ballot, that seems very low to me, for a guy that some could argue is at or very near the same level as Chris Jericho. The only difference is one has a Wrestler of the Year Award, and the other doesn't.
Fabulous Moolah dropping from 56 % last year to 44% this year was also very curious to me. To me, she's always been someone that should be in. I know there are a lot of negatives to her, as well, which is why she is always such a polarizing candidate. She was never really a top draw, or a great worker, but she was the top female name in the United States for 28 years, and regardless of how she kept herself in that position, which to me has always been overblown. Of course she protected her spot, every top wrestling star protects their spot. How does that make her any different from any other top wrestling star from the past 50 years? That shear length of time has to count for something, in my view. But I'm also at an age where I wasn't around when she was in her prime, and that seems to be where the divide comes in among voters. Her not being in the HOF is a pretty glaring omission to me.
That will wrap it up for me today. Thanks for taking the time to read. I'll be back next week with a preview on the Hell in a Cell PPV, which I will be attending live at the very first WWE show at the new Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. In the meantime, you can track me down on Facebook if you'd like, as many of you have already done, and of course e-mail messages are always welcomed. Until next time, take care and be well.
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