Bret Hart still has to stick it to Hulk Hogan for his wrestling ability or lack thereof.
Bret Hart was the polar opposite of Hulk Hogan in terms of wrestling ability. While "Hogan Must Pose" was the internal WWE slogan of the 80s, the 90s brought Superstars that could go in the ring like Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart.
Speaking with the Calgary Sun, Bret reflected on being "The Excellence of Execution," while knocking his WWE Champion predecessor as a subpar wrestler more concerned with posing.
“I was a guy who looked very human and normal. I was about wrestling and what stories I could tell. I think in my own way I told the greatest wrestling stories that have ever been done. I still stand by my body of work. Even the wrestlers today, as good as they are, I don’t think there are good as I was. The historical making matches I had with Steve Austin, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and my brother Owen. You can go through my career and just find some beautiful stories.
“There are people out there who have watched wrestling matches who don’t know who Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart is. They’ll say, ‘show me.’ Then you put on WrestleMania 13 with Steve Austin. It’s better than a UFC fight. It’s real, violent, and brutal as any kind of MMA match. There’s one thing you have to know is, nobody gets hurt in this match. They go back to the dressing room, hug each other, smile and shake hands and say ‘that was a great match.’ That’s what I did and I think I did it better than anyone better on the planet.”
Bret added, "I was really well taught the art of wrestling by two Japanese guys (Mr. Hito and Mr. Sakurada). I was taught how to protect myself and my opponent so he doesn’t get hurt. More important than that, it was all about what I represented. I have an incredible body of work with so many different wrestlers. I was so proud of those matches.
“All the Canadian wrestlers like Natalya or Edge were influenced by me. I think if you look back at wrestling when it was the Hulk Hogan show. He was six-foot-eight and a one-out-of-three wrestler. He didn’t know a headlock from a headlamp. He didn’t know very much. He knew how to do a clothesline and maybe a body slam. He was very limited. (WWE owner) Vince McMahon took a chance with me and made me that champion. It meant so much to me that I think I tried to live up to be that champion. It was about being the best wrestler. I gave so much as that wrestler. I was a good role model in the dressing room. All that means a lot.”
Bret Hart was also the second person to become a WWE Champion five times over, with the first being Hulk Hogan.
In the past, Bret Hart has spoken to Fightful about who his favorite opponents were and who he believes did the Sharpshooter the best besides himself. Check out the full interview here.
