Why is Bret Hart important?

Answer 1

Bret Hart is important to Wrestling in several ways, which I will try to outline for you here:

Early in his career, he was a major draw for his father's wrestling promotion, Calgary Stampede Wrestling. It was here that he met several wrestlers who would train with his father and wrestle for the promotion, such as the British Bulldog, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, and even Andre the Giant. With the skills these men learned in the Dungeon (Except for Andre, who I believe never actually trained there) they traveled the world with their brand of hard-hitting mat-based wrestling, even winding up in WWF/E and winning their world championships in some cases.

Bret was also instrumental in ushering in the era of smaller wrestlers in the WWF. While most of the popular draws on the roster where being scrutinized for steroid abuse by congress, Vince McMahon needed a smaller wrestler without the look of a bodybuilder to carry his promotion, and Bret stepped up to the plate to carry the WWF during this time. He has been credited with showing the world that smaller men could be champions just as good as larger heavyweights, and he likely made it easier for men such as Shawn Michaels to earn championships later in their careers.

Bret was also at the center of the match that has become known as the Montreal Screwjob. At Survivor Series 1997, in Montreal, Quebec, Hart was scheduled to face his rival Shawn Michaels with hart's championship on the line. Due to intense personal problems between the two men, Hart refused to lose to Michaels in Hart's home country, but offered to let the match end in a disqualification and then lose the title to Michaels the next night on Raw. As Hart's contract was up and he was heading to WWF's rival, WCW, Vince McMahon was nervous about whether Hart would keep his word, and instead orchestrated a plot with Michaels and referee Earl Hebner that would involve Michaels locking Hart in Hart's own submission maneuver, the Sharpshooter, and Hebner calling for the bell despite Hart never submitting. The plan was pulled off, leaving a shocked Hart in the ring as Michaels grabbed the belt and was quickly escorted to the back by numerous security guards. Livid, Hart spat in the face of McMahon, smashed the broadcast table, and spelled out W-C-W in the air before punching McMahon out backstage and leaving the WWF for what would be 12 years. As fans scrambled to learn what had occurred, they realized that McMahon had cheated one of their favorite wrestlers and turned on McMahon, who used the opportunity to make himself the largest heel (Bad guy) in the company, which would launch the Attitude era of WWF and carry him through his bitter feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

After an unremarkable run in WCW that ended with Bret sustaining a career-ending concussion at the hands of Bill Goldberg, he suffered a stroke while riding his bicycle. He fought back through his physical therapy and wrote his autobiography "Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling", which was praised for its attention to detail, humorous stories from his time on the road, and the emotional weight of the book in describing events such as the death of his brother, Owen.

More recently, Bret Hart came back to the WWE on the January 4, 2010 edition of Monday Night Raw, the first time he'd been seen on WWF/E TV since the Montreal Screwjob. In a shocking turn, he publicly forgave Shawn Michaels for his role in the Screwjob and hugged him the the middle of the ring. He also called out Vince McMahon to do the same, though Vince turned on him again and attacked him, leading to a match at Wrestlemania 26 twelve years in the making. This match saw, among other things, the entire remaining Hart Family attack McMahon, Hart destroy McMahon in the ring with numerous chair shots, and finally McMahon submitting to the Sharpshooter.

Bret is now the General Manager of Monday Night Raw, where he has also won the United States Championship, and oversees his nephew D.H. Smith, who is currently the tag team champion with Tyson Kidd, the last graduate of the infamous Hart Dungeon, and his niece Natalya (Daughter of Hart's former tag team partner in the original Hart Foundation Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart). Smith, Kidd and Natalya are known collectively as the Hart Dynasty in reference to their uncle's championship-winning tag team.