10 Monumental Decisions That Changed The Course Of Wrestling History

2. Vince McMahon Decides To Screw Bret Hart

Another man posed to join WCW was Bret Hart. In late-1997, Hart had decided to take Ted Turner's money, theorising that he could spend another 3 years as a full-time wrestler before heading home to spend more time with his family. Vince McMahon's WWF couldn't compete with the millions on offer, and thus the Hitman was on his merry way. Before he departed however, there was one piece of business to take care of. As the reigning WWF Heavyweight Champion, Hart was asked by McMahon to drop the belt to Shawn Michaels at the Survivor Series show in November, '97. Turning that idea down, mainly due to his personal animosity towards HBK, Hart reasoned that he didn't want to lose the title in Canada, but would do so the following night on Monday Night Raw. Somewhere along the line, McMahon and Michaels decided to stick it to Hart and take the title from his by any means necessary. Even referee Earl Hebner was in on the plot, in what must surely be one of the most controversial decisions ever taken in the history of wrestling. Known as the 'Montreal Screwjob', McMahon called for the bell when Hart was locked in his own Sharpshooter hold, signalling that he had lost the match, even though that wasn't the original planned finish.