One MIND-BLOWING Secret From Every Year Of WWE History

39. 1986 - A Little-Known First-Time Meeting

WrestleMania X Bret Hart Owen Hart
WWE.com

At WrestleMania X, Owen Hart upset his own brother Bret in what remains the greatest ever opener in the history of the most famous wrestling show on earth. An incredibly plotted technical stunner, watching Bret’s temper slowly defeat his sense of obligation was a layered, absorbing tale - the brilliant use of nuance with which WWF fans clung onto wrestling after the fad died in the playground. Wrestling wasn’t real - but it was great. 

“Wrestling wasn’t real” is right. WWE told a very effective lie with the story of that match. 

Bret first wrestled Owen in a WWE ring all the way back in 1986 when, as Owen James, Owen Hart teamed with S.D. Jones to do a job for the Hart Foundation. It was the third match with which the WWF took a brief look at Owen when, just three years into his career, he had cultivated a reputation as a prodigy. 

So - other than the size bias that existed at the time - why wasn’t Owen, every bit the natural as Jun Akiyma and Kurt Angle, signed to a deal? 

Dave Meltzer in the February 15, 1988 Wrestling Observer Newsletter, reckoned he outshined everybody else in the entire company - “which is probably why he hasn’t been brought back”. 

Perhaps Vince didn’t want his juiced monsters to be exposed… 

 
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Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!