10 Things You Learn Re-Watching The First Ever Episode Of Raw Is War

6. Turning Point

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Weeks away from his legendary match with Stone Cold Steve Austin, Bret Hart would sow more seeds of his industry-altering heel turn with another embittered promo ahead of one last WWE Title shot against Sycho Sid the following week.

Entering to a mixed response during a pedestrian interview with Ken Shamrock promoting the WrestleMania 13 clash, Bret Hart interrupted an Austin promo from the TitanTron on 'The World's Most Dangerous Man' to assert his own authority over the UFC legend and new WWE star.

Snapping just seven days later following defeat in the cage match, Bret was already at breaking point thanks to repeated injustices he'd suffered since his Survivor Series 1996 return.

Audibly called 'a crybaby' and told to 'shut up' by ringside fans, Bret's latest tirade on Stone Cold, Sid, Shawn Michaels and the company in general was serving it's purpose in causing a sizeable portion of the audience to lose faith in their former hero, but his commitment to his own cause even at this stage made the eventual turn so credible.

As was the case with most Hart/Austin segments at the time, the interview saw Bret lose his patience yet again, tacitly threatening Ken Shamrock before standing down a potential assault from 'The Rattlesnake'.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett