10 Biggest Wrestling Belt Controversies

by Jamie Kennedy

1. Vince McMahon Screws Bret Hart

Bret Hart Montreal Screwjob
WWE.com

The controversy of all controversies.

When Bret Hart told Vince McMahon he was going to go through with his jump over to WCW, the WWF's entire world shook. Hart was part of the fabric in the federation, and he was still WWF Heavyweight Champion. What's more, he was absolutely dead set against dropping the belt to Shawn Michaels in Montreal at Survivor Series 1997.

You know what happens next. McMahon conspired with Michaels and others to screw Bret out of the title and sent him packing to Atlanta with his tail between his legs. The wounded Hart took this personally for over 12 years, but Vince defended his actions by saying he couldn't risk seeing Bret show up on Nitro with the WWF Title.

Realistically, that was never going to happen. Hart had no reason to pull a stunt like that - he just wasn't willing to lose to Shawn, someone he'd grown to detest, on his way out. McMahon made the call to pull a fast one on Bret, ironically paving the way for his own heel character and a money-spinning feud with Steve Austin.

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What other wrestling title controversies can you think of? For more like this, check out 10 WCW Moments That Weren’t Supposed To Happen and 10 Times Wrestling Video Games Broke The Fourth Wall!

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.