15 Stages Of Shawn Michaels & Bret Hart's Infamous Heat

8. Hitman's Hiatus

After outlining his plan to Vince, Bret decided to share it with Shawn which included his idea to criticize Shawn's character in the The Calgary Sun for which Bret wrote at the time, as well as other wrestling media outlets, and work the dirtsheets all in an effort to build their program. Soon after, rumors began circulating that Bret had received a substantial offer from WCW and that a potential return to the WWF was no longer imminent. Shawn was becoming legit peeved by some of the comments Bret had made about him. Bret was hitting close to home with some of the comments, involving Shawn's parents and questioning Shawn's manhood. Michaels began to think Bret had been less than forthright previously and that he was now legitimately trying to bury Shawn with his comments, especially if he was off to WCW. By October of '96, Bret turned down a lucrative three-year deal from WCW worth $2.8 million per year. Having been counselled to keep Bret at all costs, Vince feared that his company could not survive the loss of another top-tier talent in the Hitman. So he offered Bret the most lucrative contract ever before given to a WWF superstar, a long-term deal totalling $10.5 million but spread out over twenty years, including creative control as a talent and the promise of an office job once he retired from in-ring competition. The bulk of the money came in the first three years in which Bret would still be an active wrestler, making $1.5 million per year. Despite some last minute shenanigans and maneuvering by Vince, Bret received the contract he was promised but only minutes before walking out to the ring for an interview on the heavily promoted October 21st, 1996 episode of Monday Night RAW. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x24nyms_bret-hart-interview-raw-10-21-1996_sport