10 Wrestlers Who Spent The Most Time In The Ring At WWE WrestleMania

6. Bret Hart: 3 Hours, 26 Minutes, 27 Seconds

WrestleMania X Bret Hart Owen Hart
WWE.com

A more uneven run than his glittering legacy might otherwise suggest, Bret Hart was a genius storyteller who executed every beat to snug, safe perfection.

At WrestleMania X, before the nice-enough formality of his WWF Title win over Yokozuna, Bret told a story richer than virtually anything that has followed in 27 years. Escalating the frustration in parallel with excitement, this impeccable tale of an untenable exhibition gone awry was spellbinding. The Submissions match with Steve Austin at 'Mania 13 was somehow even better; one of the most intelligently crafted matches to have ever masqueraded as a white-hot brawl, Hart elegantly asked you - without ever telling - to receive Austin as the blood-soaked badass you could always depend on. In another, less celebrated storytelling masterclass, he told a witty (and bloody) tale of oneupmanship with Roddy Piper at 'Mania VIII.

The record is mixed elsewhere.

He bored everybody to years at WrestleMania XI and XII by spending about a combined hour on the canvas in some hold or other, but his first match with Yoko, at IX, was a cracking, abbreviated - and overshadowed - effort.

His early tag run meanwhile ranged from damn good and damn heated (Vs. the Nasty Boys at 'Mania VII) to only OK (Vs. Greg Valentine and the Honky Tonk Man at 'Mania V).

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick (Creative Writing BA Hons) is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over a decade of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential UK institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!