In this regular feature I intend to put my quarter-of-a-century of wrestling viewing to good use by helping to educate and inform the modern fan about the greats of a generation they missed out on. Bret Hart was one of the greatest in-ring performers of all time, possessing the ability to contest barn-burning matches with a variety of different opponents. He was a master technician. A creator of fine art between the ropes. He has not wrestled in a decade-and-a-half, so chances are many of the new generation of wrestling fans have never had the pleasure of watching him wrestle. It would be all too easy to randomly select seven great Bret Hart matches, and lists of that ilk are readily available for those who want them. Everybody knows about Harts classics with Davey Boy Smith (SummerSlam 92 and In Your House 5), Steve Austin (Survivor Series 96 and WrestleMania 13), Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII), Mr. Perfect (SummerSlam 91 and King of the Ring 93), Owen Hart (WrestleMania X and SummerSlam 94) and countless others. A list arbitrarily ranking those great outings would mean nothing. To make it more interesting, for both you the reader and me the writer, I am going to delve deep into the annals of wrestling history in an effort to pluck seven lesser-seen Bret Hart matches that are well worth going out of your way to see. The two rules: the match cannot be from a pay-per-view and it cannot feature on a Bret Hart compilation release (which includes his two comp DVDs, the Bret vs. Shawn disc, and the Hart Family Anthology set).
The author of the highly acclaimed 'Titan' book series, James Dixon has been involved in the wrestling business for 25 years as a fan, wrestler, promoter, agent, and writer. James spent several years wrestling on the British independent circuit, but now prefers to write about the bumps and bruises rather than take any of them. His past in-ring experience does however give a uniquely more "insider" perspective on things, though he readily admits to still being a "mark" at heart.
James is the Chief Editor and writer at historyofwrestling.co.uk and is responsible for the best-selling titles Titan Sinking, Titan Shattered, and Titan Screwed, as well as the Complete WWF Video Guide series, and the Raw Files series.
