10 Greatest Canadian Wrestlers Of All Time

The best Canadian there is, the best Canadian there was and the best Canadian there ever will be. No surprises here as Bret "The Hitman" Hart takes the top spot amongst his countrymen as the best wrestler Canada has ever produced. As he was the son of legendary wrestling promoter Stu Hart, Bret was a member of the famed Hart Family. This heritage meant he was introduced to the business at a very young age and began his career in his family’s promotion Stampede Wrestling. The Hitman accumulated seventeen titles between WWF and WCW in an era of lengthy championship reigns; notably Hart is a former five-time WWF Champion and a two-time WCW champion. As well, Bret is the only two time King of the Ring winner in WWF/WWE history and has THREE five-star matches to his name. Hart was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006 and temporarily acquired an on-screen role as Raw General Manager in 2010.

Bret Hart had so many career highlights that they could compromise a full list of their very own. Bret is perhaps best known for his involvement in the infamous “Montreal Screwjob” in which the Vince McMahon manipulated the pre-determined finish to a main event of the 1997 Survivor Series so Hart would lose the WWF Title. This was done in the fear Bret, who was leaving the WWF, would take the championship to WCW. The incident remains one of the most controversial and important events in wrestling history.

Before the Montreal Screwjob took place, Hart had partaken in several highly entertaining feuds throughout his WWF tenure. His rivalries with the likes of Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The British Bulldog and Owen Hart are still remembered fondly to this day. Bret was likewise a successful tag-team competitor, forming on half of the Hart Foundation and winning the Tag-Titles on two occasions.

The Hitman possessed the unique ability to work proficiently as both a hero and a villain. Working as a face for most of his career, it was during the Wrestlemania 13 match against Steve Austin that the pair executed perhaps the best double-turn in wrestling history, making Bret a premier heel. As despised as he was in America, the Canadian audiences still treated Hart as a good guy; this created one of the most unique dynamics in wrestling history.

Currently in his late fifties, Bret Hart remains an active critic of the current wrestling landscape through social media. Hart was diagnosed with prostate cancer in early 2016, but has had successful surgery and is optimistic he is now cancer free. Even in retirement he remains an inspirational figure.