20 Years Later... 10 Reasons Vince McMahon Was STILL RIGHT To Screw Bret Hart

1. Rise Of A Rattlesnake

bret harrt
WWE Network

When Stone Cold Steve Austin handed over the Intercontinental Title to The Rock on a December edition of Monday Night Raw, he did so with the expressed intention of moving on to 'bigger and better things'. His eventual launching of the physical strap into New Hampshire's Piscataqua River had nothing to do with boss Vince McMahon's gentle pestering.

It was the first point Austin would defy the Chairman's authority enough to leave him more than a little hot under the collar. And though the tension between them wasn't revisited until Vince's grand unveiling of Mike Tyson the night after the 1998 Royal Rumble, the chemistry the pair had as rivals was instant.

Initially blind to the disdain he'd received for the Screwjob until Vince Russo highlighted how vocal fans were against him, McMahon followed the money the second he caught a scent. Inadvertently, he was the perfect candidate to oppose his incumbent world-beating new hero.

Contributor
Contributor

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