Posted on by bdamage1
Brian Damage
There is the old saying, “If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it , does it make a sound?” Well, in pro wrestling…If a wrestler defeats a reigning world champion and it isn’t televised, is the wrestler now a champion? In the case of Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart, the answer is yes.
1992 was a very interesting year for the World Wrestling Federation. The owner, Vince McMahon, was staring at charges of distributing steroids to his employees and facing serious jail time. His biggest star, Hulk Hogan had taken a leave of absence and business for the company was on a serious downward trend. Despite all of that, McMahon and the WWF were still the biggest wrestling game in town. There were still a number of capable stars to weather the storm including their reigning world champion…’Nature Boy’ Ric Flair.
While business was down in the United States, it was booming elsewhere for the company including Europe. The WWF were still drawing packed houses across places like England and Germany. One of the biggest stars on their European tours was none other than Bret Hart. Bret acknowledged that him wrestling in Europe made him feel like a member of the rock N roll band the Beatles. Some of the loudest cheers were directed at the Hitman. Hart says fans would rush the railings when he made his entrance to the ring with fans grabbing his butt and crotch as he walked down the aisle.
Bret Hart was indeed a bonafide star overseas and the WWF took notice. Meanwhile, the reigning WWF champion Ric Flair was booked all over the U.S. in a program against The Ultimate Warrior. On one particular house show match, The Ultimate Warrior botched a suplex and accidentally dropped Flair on his head. After that, Flair said he ws extremely dizzy and couldn’t gain his balance. Flair said he thought he was having a stroke in the ring. The match was stopped and Flair retained his title.
For days after, Ric Flair couldn’t stop feeling the dizziness and went to his doctor. He was diagnosed with vertigo and told he couldn’t compete. With Flair being taken off the road, the WWF needed to get the title off of him as quickly as possible. The question was, who was going to become the new face of the World Wrestling Federation? The Ultimate Warrior couldn’t really be trusted and others had their positives and negatives. Apparently, a list of five names were written to become the new champion.
According to Hart, he was called by the office while he was in Italy with a woman. He made his way from Italy to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in Canada. When Bret arrived at the arena, he saw Flair leaving Vince McMahon’s make shift office. Not realizing what was about to happen, Hart met with Vince. At first, Bret thought he was going to be fired for spending time in Italy without the company’s consent. Instead, McMahon broke the news to Bret that he was becoming the new WWF champion.
Bret was both shocked and relieved and didn’t give much of a reaction. McMahon even questioned if Bret realized what was about to happen. After the initial shock wore off, Bret called his family and invited his wife and kids and his parents to come to Saskatoon to witness his crowning achievement. Bret Hart was about to win his first ever world title in front of family and friends in Saskatoon….the sight where Bret had his very first professional match fourteen years earlier.
Bret then met with Flair who told the Hitman that he would be calling the entire match. The match itself took place on October 12th, 1992…and was not a part of the WWF’s regular television tapings. Instead, it was a match that was filmed for a Coliseum Video special release. According to Ric Flair, because of his vertigo and lack of balance….it was one of the worst matches of his career.
During the match, Bret Hart suffered both a legitimate twisted ankle and dislocated finger. Despite the injuries, Hart defeated Flair with the sharpshooter and became the new WWF champion much to the shock and awe of the fans in attendance. Bret Hart was now the new face of the World Wrestling Federation.
Bret Hart cited that evening in Saskatoon as one of the greatest highlights of his wrestling career. A match that was not televised and placed on home video instead. It would be the changing of the WWF guard, at least for a little while.
