This one has been going on for 17 years strong, and it probably won't be going away anytime soon. You all know what happened on that fateful night, but how much of it was real is still up for debate in the minds of many wrestling fans. At face value, Vince McMahon conspired to take the WWF Title off of Bret Hart, and referee Earl Hebner knew about it. Through the years, there have been different versions saying whether or not Shawn Michaels and Triple H knew about it, but now, it is known that they were, in fact, in on the whole thing. The conspiracy theory is that Bret also knew about the whole thing, and that it was all a storyline. Some of you are now asking what Bret had to gain from being involved. He was leaving, anyway, but being the sympathetic "screwjob" victim makes him an even hotter name as he heads to WCW and people wonder what kind of vitriol he would have for Vince McMahon and the WWF. Now, some of you are asking why Vince would allow for someone leaving his company to have his star brightened. One, he had a well-known father/son relationship with Bret through the years, and had always been a huge fan of his. Two, by participating in the angle, Vince knew he would become incredibly hated, and the "Mr. McMahon" gimmick would have legs, so to speak. Vince had to know the gimmick could become the top heel in wrestling. Bret "wins", Vince and the WWF "win"... it makes sense in that regard. Bret was, in fact, a huge free agent signing for WCW, but his time with the company was jumbled from the start and never came close to living up to the hype. The argument against this being a work is Bret's acting ability. He held such a grudge against Vince, Shawn and Trips for so long, and everyone believed he despised them with every fiber of his being. If you've ever seen Bret in Lonesome Dove, you'd know his acting skills aren't good enough to properly carry something like that on. Unfortunately, we'll probably never know this one for sure. If it is a work, these men will likely take that secret to the grave, as it benefits nobody to know that truth.
Columnist/Podcaster/Director at LordsOfPain.net for nearly seven years, with nearly 2000 total columns written. Interviewed and/or involved in interviewing the likes of Tyler Black/Seth Rollins (twice), Diamond Dallas Page, Jimmy Jacobs, Christopher Daniels, Uhaa Nation and more.
