10 Wrestling Moments You Felt Totally Guilty For Laughing At
3. Vince Hounds The Hangdog
The years were not kind to Bret Hart, post-1997.
Horrific WCW booking ravaged what remained of his professional self-respect, which we know the man took very personally. Wave after wave of familial and genuine personal tragedy followed. Bret Hart's lowest point - the Montreal Screwjob that betrayed years of intense dedication - was excavated, sending the Hitman tumbling in an abyss, completely undeservedly.
The man, who did so much to convince fans to receive wrestling as an art more so than a fad, was verbally annihilated by Vince McMahon upon his return to WWE 13 years later. It was all part of the storyline, obviously, but you could sense McMahon's own catharsis as he questioned Hart's charisma, personality, and "command of the English language".
The turmoil of those years literally altered Bret's complexion. The rugged handsomeness of old devolved into a face made sullen through years of pain. McMahon, the chief surgeon, then took the p*ss out of that face, referring to it as that of a "hound dog", wearing the same brilliantly hammy facials with which he somehow became the bigger star in the aftermath of Montreal.
In a way, the moment crystallises that element behind McMahon we find so fascinating. It was detestable stuff, especially at the expense of such a tragic childhood hero figure - but Vince was too phenomenal at acting the pr*ck to truly loathe.