10 Wrestling Promos That Were Inadvertently Infamous

9. Everyone Screwed Bret

Bret Hart was a best of/worst of times performer on the microphone during his WWE career. At his babyface peak, he spoke with the same conviction displayed in his matches - 'The Hitman' was a man in a sporting contest that made you believe he was in one, but his stumbling post-match patter sometimes betrayed his incredible in-ring skill.

His excellent execution didn't truly extend to his elocution until he his 1997 heel turn. There - though still guilty of crimes against banter from time to time - he magnificently worked through his personal and professional gripes via the filter of his anti-American villain persona. Either side of his seminal WrestleMania 13 brawl with Stone Cold Steve Austin, Bret cut arguably the two finest promos of his career. One foreshadowed his heel turn whilst the other cemented it, but the initial rant carried remarkable gravitas six months later.

Hart raged on Shawn Michaels, raged on Vince McMahon and raged on the entire organisation for being "screwed" out of the WWE Title. It was important to cast him as an embittered star ahead of the Austin clash, but the iconic explosion didn't half feed into McMahon's post-Montreal narrative. Were the gears in his head turning even then that Bret wasn't there for the long haul?

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, 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