WWE held their Bret Hart Appreciation Night festivities after last night’s RAW in Calgary. Here is a report courtesy of WrestlingNewsWorld:
* Jerry Lawler welcomes everyone watching. Lawler says today was declared “Bret Hart Day” here in Calgary. Lawler says if you’ve ever wondered how to have an entire day named in your honor, this is how it’s done.
* Bret Hart career highlight video is shown.
* Lawler introduces WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart to the ring. Hart comes out to his theme music to a tremendous pop. He’s wearing the same teal shirt that he had on during the broadcast. Michael Cole and JBL stand at announce to honor him.
* Lawler reads from a card and runs through Hart’s massive career accomplishments. He says Bret Hart is the best technical wrestler in the history of WWE. Lawler says Hart has held 32 titles in his career and 17 between WWE and WCW. He puts over Hart being voted one of CBC’s “Greatest Canadians” and of course his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame. Lawler announces that May 27, 2013 is Bret “The Hitman” Hart day in Calgary and hands him the plaque.
* Bret gets on the mic and says he hasn’t done one of these in a long time. He says it’s a huge honor and he can feel his father, his brotherOwenandThe Bulldogwatching. The crowd breaks out in an “Owen” chant. Hart says this is as proud of a day as he could have and he’ll remember every Calgarian that came there today. He says this goes beyond wrestling titles, this came from the people of Calgary and that means a lot to him. He reiterates he can feel the presence of his family there. Hart thanks his kids for putting up with him being gone for 23 years. He starts to choke up and says his kids are out there somewhere in the crowd. The camera shows them, who are also tearing up.
* Hart puts over people from his past including The Dynamite Kid. He said when he first started in WWE most Americans didn’t know where Calgary was. Ten years later they knew exactly where Calgary was and what kind of men came from there. He namesMr. Perfectand British Bulldog as people that helped him. Hart thanked every single wrestler that stepped in the ring with him one time. He thanked his wife Stephanie and “The King” Jerry Lawler. He said he always remembers Lawler as one of his biggest adversaries. Hart tells a story about Owen telling him they needed to go to Jerry and tell him to lighten up on their family. Bret said when they got home his mother was enjoying Jerry’s work so much, she actually became a wrestling fan. He says if you knew his mom, you would know how much that took. Hart called Lawler one of the greatest villans he’s ever worked with
* Hart regrets he didn’t have more matches in Calgary and just wants everyone to know that Calgary guys can wrestle. Lawler says there are more people here that want to show their love for you tonight. Pat Pattersonis the first to come out and honor Hart.
* Hart puts over people from his past including The Dynamite Kid. He said when he first started in WWE most Americans didn’t know where Calgary was. Ten years later they knew exactly where Calgary was and what kind of men came from there. He namesMr. Perfectand British Bulldog as people that helped him. Hart thanked every single wrestler that stepped in the ring with him one time. He thanked his wife Stephanie and “The King” Jerry Lawler. He said he always remembers Lawler as one of his biggest adversaries. Hart tells a story about Owen telling him they needed to go to Jerry and tell him to lighten up on their family. Bret said when they got home his mother was enjoying Jerry’s work so much, she actually became a wrestling fan. He says if you knew his mom, you would know how much that took. Hart called Lawler one of the greatest villans he’s ever worked with
* Hart regrets he didn’t have more matches in Calgary and just wants everyone to know that Calgary guys can wrestle. Lawler says there are more people here that want to show their love for you tonight. Pat Pattersonis the first to come out and honor Hart. Patterson says he’s going to make this short. He’s been in the business for 55 years, he’s a Canadian and he’s going to say it. Bret, you will always be the best wrestling Canadian of all time. Hart says when Pat starts getting on his knees, he starts getting scared. Lawler makes a joke about Patterson getting on his knees for his matches (although Hart may have beenreferringto something else).
* Chris Jerichois out next. He says it’s really cool to come out and stand one-on-one with Bret Hart in the ring for the first time ever. He says while he never got the chance to wrestle Bret, he wrestled him thousands of times in his head. Jericho said his two heros growing up in Winnipeg were Owen and Bret Hart. He wanted so bad to say one day that he got to wrestle with one of them. Jericho said in 1995 there was a Stu Hart birthday show and he wasn’t booked because he wasn’t good enough or something like that. He said Bret was asking for a finisher for an upcoming pay-per-view and Jericho recalled how he told Bret that he had something.
* Jericho saysSean Waltman(X-Pac) was there [and helpeddemonstrate and Hart said it was interesting. Jericho said two days later that Hart used his move on pay-per-view. He said it was one of the coolest and classiest things that the world champion would take advice from a nobody. He thanked Bret and said he’s one of his top two favorite wrestlers of all time and he deserves this night.
* Shawn Michaelscomes out next to the introduction of Jerry Lawler explaining the Montreal Screwjob of 1997. Shawn grabs the mic and pauses before speaking. He thanks the fans, saying it wasn’t too bad and he was expecting a lot worse tonight. Michaels says everyone great hero needed an arch enemy. HBK ran through super hero villans and told Hart he was honored to be his Lex Luthor (Superman’s villan). Michaels said it was an honor my friend and shook his hand.
* Lawler introduces Vince McMahon. McMahon struts to the ring, completely in his Mr. McMahon character. Vince says how fitting that you started your career here in Calgary and here you are being honored tonight. He called Stampede one of the greatest promotions ever. McMahon says Hart established his own era to WWE and that he brought a certain level of legitimacy and in-ring skill to the promotion that it never had before. He said Hart brought an in-ring skill the promotion often overlooked and he became champion the old fashion way, by earning it. McMahon says Hart was the excellence of execution. He says Hart should rightfully behonoredtonight as the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be.
* Vince says you’ve done so much for the city of Calgary, when are you going to leave this cow dung pile city. He says he’s just ribbing but he’ll be leaving on his private plane in about thirty minutes. Vince says there are millions of fans watching on the WWE App and they want to say something that he wants to say two words right now – thank you.
* Bret says they got off to a shaky ending, it was a little fuzzy but he had so many great memories in WWE. He says if it wasn’t for what WWE did for him for all those years that no one would ever know who Bret Hart was. Hart says he really enjoys being a Calgarian hero and recognized around the world. He says he can honestly say he owes it all to Vince. Hart puts over Shawn and says he really appreciates him coming out. He puts over everyone in the ring, as guys that spent a lot of time with him in a lot of dressing rooms across the world.
* Hart thanked everyone and said he will continue to try and be one of the best old heros in Calgary. Hart jokes with the crowd that now would be a good time to “get ‘em both” if they really wanted too. He thanked everyone and Lawler wrapped it up. Bret hugged everyone in the ring as his theme music played.
* The locker room cleared and came out on the stage to honor him. John Cena visibly leading the pack. Natalya and Tyson Kidd came down and got in the ring with him.R
