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Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels met in the ring at the 1997 Survivor Series. Because Bret was leaving the company and because Bret wouldn't agree to lose to Shawn Michaels in Montreal, Vince McMahon decided to end the match early and award the title to HBK. Known now as "The Montreal Screwjob", Survivor Series 97 went down in history as one of the most intriguing nights in WWF / WWE history where Bret Hart got screwed by Vince McMahon.
One week after the Montreal incident, Jim Ross interviewed Vince McMahon. The interview was shown on WWF Raw, and the interview has now become known as the "Bret Screwed Bret" interview. In a rare example of Vince McMahon pulling back the curtain, the Chairman tried to clear his name while giving his side of the story. McMahon said that neither he, the referee nor Shawn Michaels screwed Bret Hart, Bret had done that himself.
This video looks at the entire interview that aired on the 17th of November 1997. We also look at each comment Vince McMahon gave during his sitdown with Jim Ross to see if Vince was being honest, or if Vince was doing some damage control.
00:00 - What was the "Montreal Screwjob?"
04:16 - Vince says "Bret Screwed Bret"
09:39 - Vince comments on Bret's WCW deal
14:50 - How Survivor Series 1997 should've ended
20:06 - Did Bret Hart leave for the money?
25:31 - Vince comes to terms with losing Bret Hart
- Much More!
#WWE #Documentary #Wrestling
Vince McMahon & The "Bret Screwed Bret" Montreal Interview
638 Shikime 65 mijë
I wonder if Brett would have spit on/ punched Vince, and quit., if there was no WCW to go to... Messed up what happened I suppose, but I still have fan preference for HBK!
I wonder if Brett would have spit on/ punched Vince, and quit., if there was no WCW to go to...
Both sides made mistakes. I disagree with Bret not dropping the belt but I disagree with Vince for handling it the way he did. Both screwed up in different ways.
I loved Brett & will always respect him but after watching some interviews lately I can see why ppl said he took himself to serious. I mean damn. He's still one of the best ever tho.
Bret would have folded Vince into a pretzel if there was a proper shoot fight between the two of them. Bret came through from the dungeon and that is not something to be taken lightly.
Bret was haggling for more money and that’s his right, but there is no way that I would have paid that for Bret either. I enjoyed watching Bret but I don’t think that you build much excitement around him as your top guy. WCW was just dumb to pay him that much, but their business model at the time was to take all of WWF’s talent and win that way. Granted, both companies thought this was the way to go for a time but after disasters like Lex Luger and others, Vince changed tactics and I think time has proven that Vince had the better financial plan.
It was a blessing for Vince if you think about it, as it made him one of the greatest heels in wrestling history.
Bret made stone colds career on his way out imo. At that point most fans had no idea vince was "the boss", (well not until bret outed him earlier that year with all his promos about how he was getting screwed , at least). As much as i liked stone cold at the time, when he wrestled brett he meant nothing to me. Without bret vince would have still been the geek announcer and prob wouldnt of had any use for the juice. Vince owes so much to bret for setting off a chain reaction that catapulted stone cold, the rock, triple H and all the other wrestlers of the attitude era into legends ...period. And he also made vince the greatest villain in wwf/wwe history, i mean i still hate that sob no matter how old he is in 2021. The only time brett screwed brett, was when owens wife was offered a huge amount of millions for owens death and bret had told her to hold out for more. In the end i think she got only 18mil.
Brets future prospects with the WWF ended when goldberg kicked his head in. I have no doubt when wcw folded Bret would have been the head of the invasion just imagine reigniting his rivalry with stone cold then in 2002 when shawn Michael's returns
Bret would have wiped the floor with Vince! absolutely love this channel! keep it up
Man i love your channel man,. Thank you so much
I'm not sure where you were going with the ratings comment, IMO, 97 WWF was better than 97 WCW. Hands down! I watched both in real-time as a kid have gone back and rewatched them as an adult and still 97 WWF is better. In-ring maybe not, maybe. But as a show WWF all the way.
In terms of comunication, this interview is a big plus of how to react in crises. Vince is a 10/10 on mic skills
Vince is a genius, he knew exactly what he was doing, it caused fans and people that were not interested in wrestling, to take notice, that is how you get ratings!!! I would take an ass whooping, especially if it makes me a few million extra dollars!!! That's what controversy does, it calls for attention!!! Bret played right into Vincent's hands. ....
I always wanted Owen to leave with him...
I think we all wish he would have but thr option was sit and home and do nothing or stay in wwf
Thanks for another excellent video. Would love to see a detailed video on the 'McMemphis' saga!
I seem to remember Cornette just casually letting it slip that the Montreal screwjob was his idea. He said he got fed up of all the meetings about what to do about Bret and the title, so he just snapped and told Vince how he could get the belt from Bret without Bret's consent. McMahon always gets the blame, which I guess is somewhat fair because he had to greenlight it, but Cornette was the mastermind.
Bret Hart is my all time favourite wrestler
"I have no symphy for Bret" - Scott Steiner
Goat
Greatest angle ever
Bret was always a selfish little bitch, he had to drop the belt and dropping it at the pay per view only makes the best sense. He should have let go of his ego just a little bit and realized he had no other option. Even Taker lost his cool on Bret during a meeting and told him it wasn’t always about Bret.
Its Sucks That This Happened to Bret Hart When He Got Screwed While He Was Heading to Wcw
Brett, Vince, Shawn, Earl, and the time keeper all screwed Brett They were all in wrong and in the right
Im a huge bret hart fan as a performer. But maybe he should have been more open minded. I mean losing to canada ... but the undertaker lost 2 wrestlemanias ! I think the screwjob was totally necessary , because thank to this insident mick foley had his spot in the business . Thanks to him and michaels being pop star wrestlers , their ego was so big that they needed a performer like foley in the 97. Its like the broken neck , if werent for that they wouldnt have needed the rock to be as big as he was. And austin got the huge pop. In this crazy business things goes so weird everything is uncertain. Good ol wrestling historys i love it !
Vince had The Finishing Punch Finisher Move 🤣🤣🤣🤣
How is El Dandy left out of this video? No respect given to El Dandy! Who are you to doubt El Dandy? Next Video should be all about El Dandy and the lack of respect given to him.
Great wrestler! But one of the biggest crybabies ever!!!
I screwed Bert
Everyone in this story sucks.
I believe Vince would’ve put up a fight but Bret would’ve won if they did end up fighting.
Vince did the right thing as a business man. Brett screwed Brett. Vince had to protect his image. Bischoff would have went on Nitro the next night and screamed from the top of this lungs that he signed the WWF champion. It wasn’t that Vince didn’t trust Brett, Vince didn’t trust Bischoff.
To me, the screwjob and subsequent "Bret screwed Bret" interview, was absolutely pivotal in turning the momentum back in the favour of the WWF. No screwjob, no Mr McMahon, no Austin vs McMahon.. and Austin vs McMahon was absolutely HUGE. I don't think there is a more important or influential rivalry in their history of wrestling. IMO, their rivalry saved the company. It's unfortunate that Bret Hart wasn't with the WWF during the best years in wrestling history, but as I said before, without the screwjob, WCW may have won the "war". And for that, Bret Hart should always be remembered as The Best There Is.. The Best There Was.. and The Best There Ever Will Be!!
The Hart ball washing in here is on another level
I just love Bret
lol Vince thinks he could have taken Bret lol
I do agree that Bret should have lost on the way out but it didn’t need to be at Survivor Series and even if it had to be, it didn’t need to be Shawn Michaels. There were so many ways this could have gone down. Vince is so desperate to make himself feel and look like the good guy that he is painting Bret as this selfish man even though he has done a lot of things for the company. He lost to Shawn a year and a half previous, he was even willing to lose to him again until Shawn opened his big mouth and insulted him. Hell, Bret lost the belt at Wrestlemania 9 in order for Hogan to get it before he left. The man was willing to do business, he just got tired of being pushed around by people who always got their way. Some can say that Bret should have just sucked it up and lost to him but when someone insults you like that and he’s going to be rewarded for something that he has no respect for, of course Bret was going to refuse to lose to him. The bastard was selfish and being an ass. Vince is the real villain! He’s chasing off an honest superstar that people want to see, rewarding an asshole who has no respect for anyone, decides to screw someone over because he can’t have his way for the billionth time, and wants to appear as the good guy by saying he had no choice when he had ton of choices.
Had I been a booker I would have had Bret been a WCW loyalist, coming in and breaking the celebrations up. He could have been teamed with Sting, DDP, even the horseman to fight the nwo!
Great video. Here's my comments, including some revelations, and differences of opinion. 1-Shawn told Bret he wouldn't job to him, plus Shawn very often forfeited a belt instead of getting beaten in the ring. This, plus Bret's creative control made me side with Bret. But you shined the light that HBK lost many times earlier to Bret. So Bret wasn't fully right in Montreal. 2-I disagree that McMahon misjudged the fans in his interview. Vince always loved a wrestler who could generate heat, and he's a smart business man. I think Vince brilliantly judged the fans would hate him in the interview and purposefully did so to become the heel. 3-I think Vince let Bret punch him, for a counter-sue in case Bret sued Vince for the screwjob.
Hogan refused to put Bret over. Bret refused to put Shawn over. Funny how Bret bitches about Hogan but thinks what he did is ok.
never been a B.Hart fan always felt he took himself to seriously. vince did what he felt he had too. in my opinion hart was in the wrong, if there's any wrong doing on vinces side it was putting that creative control in his contract.
In my opinion Bret Hart is the best wrestler that ever lived. Pound for pound technically the best that has ever stepped into a ring. Mr perfect was very close.
راح يبقى بطل 💪🏼💜 ولن ننسى هذي الخيانه
I have just watched a beautiful biography of Paul Orndorff. In that video he states that the psychology of the match is missing in the matches seen now and this is exactly your point in one of the videos that you mention. I believe it was Bret Hart vs Piper. That the storytelling in the ring is missing from today’s matches. If they want people coming back to wrestling they need people who can bring that art form back.
The best whiner there was is and will ever be
Bret said to Eric Bischoff, I want the same deal that Hogan has plus one penny more.....
Bret would have whipped Vince's ass and Vince even knew that
BRETT SCREWD BRETT
Damn that intro is so fn sickkk. Love it. Great content as well. Much love.
Them trailer park rats fight the dirtiest.... Might just have surprised all of you... I put my dimes on Kenny...
Say when bret and vince die, a video is released saying ''hey we got you'' say they gave to some judicature who was bound by a contract, and could only release it, once they died.
I love the story of how taker made Vince go see brett backstage to get punched
What has always bothered me about this speech... is Vince trying to put himself off as a proponent of wrestling's "time honored traditions." What? He had proudly spit on so many time honored traditions throughout the time since he took over. He was in no position to criticize anybody for not being a traditionalist. By stressing this in this speech, he lost his credibility and came off as an extreme hypocrite. There are people that could make that criticism, like Stu Hart or Lou Thesz, but not Vince McMahon. He made a better point of saying that other people jobbed to Bret Hart to make him a superstar, and he owed it to the other wrestlers in the business to job, but by wrapping himself in the mantra of "time honored tradition," he hurt his credibility for the rest of his speech.
You dont get to set your terms when your leaving a company , especially one that has giving you a platform for a majority of your success. To think otherwise is to think like a diva. Also VInce at 52 and in the shape he was in would have been no push over. He would have had what my CADD teacher in high school called "old man strength".
For me there's 2 answers. Bret Hart is RIGHT IF... ... he was willing to drop the title in a match to someone. It may not have to be at Survivor Series, it may not have to be against Shawn, but if he was willing to go out passing the ball to someone else then Bret shouldn't have lost at SS. Bret had creative control and that's that. Bret Hart is WRONG IF... ... he only wanted to forfeit the belt. That is, simply just go on a mic and hand over the belt. In which case, that would be the ONLY time (at least in this context), that an owner of a company should not honor it's employee's contract.
6:13 when the hell did he ever do that?
If only Bret didn’t leave and Vince can’t pay him. Bret could sue for breach of contract. Might of changed the landscape today.
Thanks for all the content!
Wrestling with shadows was good as well that part were bret attacks vince when he's in the steel cage.. That's a segmant and it's on youtube and it's ALL a work.. Wrestling with shadows portrayed that as being real when it was all a work
How many other great wrestlers have we seen do the job. I’m sorry but Bret was wrong thinking he was above that. But I can’t blame Bret for not wanting to do that in his home country but again how have. Lots. Bret and Shawn didn’t like each other at all. But still we will never know hat they talked about.
I’m going to disagree with you about saying if Bret wanted to stay he could’ve found a way. 1) he wasn’t happy creatively. 2) Bret did ask what the plan was for him if he did stay, Vince gave weak answers according to Bret. 3) Bret’s final title run was a lame duck run. Vs The Patriot in one ppv and Patriot and Vader in a flag match in another? Neither of which were the Main event? 4) The One Night Only incident that made him and his family look like Morons. All these lead up to 1 fact... 5) Vince wanted Bret gone. Why? Because he needed money to bring in Tyson.
@Mike Skillz by the way I love ECW but unfortunately it was a level bingo hall event.
@Mike Skillz but ratings did thick upwards after the MSJ in 97 leading to wm 14.
@Attie Pollard If Shawn was the answer ratings would have increased in 96. And what’s with the belief WWF HAD to go edgier? It didn’t. If that was the case ECW should have won the wrestling war.
@Mike Skillz actually hbk was the answer but only for short term. Once again wwe needed edgy Because of wcw rantings. Lucky hbk was injured and retired in 98
@Attie Pollard Bret on his own wasn’t the answer, true. But neither was Shawn. Austin great as a character he was, was greatly helped by competent booking with a relatable top heel. And let’s not forget what Tyson’s appearances did for the WWF. A rarely discussed point for this period as well is if WCW had actually stuck the landing at Starrcade that year.
Bret should have done what was right for business.. He took being champion too seriously & acted as though he'd actually won it, when the accepted reality is people are given the title.. Now he earned the right to be champion, & this is where it gets murky.. Vince McMahon promoted Bret & gave him the chance to run with the title. Bret was a hit with the crowds & made Vince a lot of money. Vince paid Brets wages & gave him a very good pay packet at that. Vince gave Bret the platform to get such fame, & all he wanted was for Bret to lose in his last match.. it's not as if Vince booked survivor series in Montreal knowing it would be Brets last match with WWE.. so basically, Bret just got the hump about being expected to do what is traditional.. you go out on your back & help another wrestler, in this case, Shawn Michaels. Again, the match wasn't booked with Bret & Shawns real rivalry in mind, it was made in what Vince thought the fans wanted the most, & that was Bret vs Shawn. So what if it was in Canada, American wrestlers lose in America & there home towns all the time. Shawn wouldn't bitch about losing in America, the actual win loss record between them is some like 150-3 (including house shows) in Brets favour, & I'd imagine most of them were in America. Basically Bret is just a spoiled little brat with a complex, & Vince McMahon was put in an impossible situation & he did what he was advised was the only way of getting his title to stay out of Eric Bischoffs bin. Bret screwed Bret.
AmazIng coverage as usual
it's a work.
Like most things in life, the blame can be shared, I think all three were at fault due to ego's.
vince is a disgusting corporate people crusher and racist.
Exactly how is he racist and he has given many wrestlers to championships?
A) The whole thing was a work. B) It’s a shame that one of biggest moments in an industry is something that could have been avoided with simple common sense. Why not take the belt off of him BEFORE you let him deal with WCW? Why not have it drop it to the Undertaker. Makes ZERO sense that the situation even came about in the first place
Wrong Vince DID NOT do what he had to do.. period..That's a lie.. Vince did what he wanted to do..Vince wanted Bret to put over shawn on his way out. And vince could've had Bret drop the title BEFORE survivor series in america, he could've had the survivor series match switched a 3 way where Bret got pinned by somebody other the shawn. Vince had Options. but he had an idea in his head on what he wanted to see. and that has nothing to do with what's best for business. he gave Bret creative control for his final 30 days. so Vince could've taken the strap off Bret a month prior and that would've been fine.. But Vince did not do what was best for business. he did what he wanted to do.
@Attie Pollard Vince literally agreed to give Bret Creative control in his last 30 days. To give somebody creative control literally means you're accepting their interest might not align with yours.. That's exactly why Vince didn't do what was best for business. He literally agreed to those terms. then Decided not to honor it because he wanted to force bret to have the ending he wanted with Shawn when Bret didn't want to do with business with him to begin with
He could have but why should he? What makes Bret Hart so special that he can't lose his home country?
Vince spins allot of BS but the way he handled it is admirable. He was ringside the whole time, did it himself, and was face to face with Bret afterward, all things he could have easily made other people do.
As someone who has done boxing wrestling and bjj...is it possible vince could have won? Yes its possible. Is it likely? No its not.
Vince would have had no chance in hell if he “fought back” lol
Maybe but you ain't about to let somebody beat your ass are you?
Vince..... Hey pal were they saying bo or bu ...rns ............ Bruce Pritchard I was saying bu..... urns
assuming you have actual employment... deny your bosses orders.... see how long you last there.. end of story
bret boringman hart refused to do the job so forced wwf to screw him bret skrewed bret . vince was absolutely right
But vince could afford bret. he just didnt want him anymore. He wasnt a big draw anymore, not like before in 93 and 94. and bret took the offer from wcw because he knew he was just going to be jobbing in the wwf for the rest of his days and the money offered ws great. vince i feel didnt want bret anymore the day bret attacked him at the announce table. if you remember that. he was done with him.
@Attie Pollard well ive always liked bret but he was never one of my favs. shawn michaels was. ppl like goldberg, angle, mr perfect etc. nash and hall were on about 1.5 mil on their first year at wcw in 96. bret was the top guy in wwf at that time along with shawn and taker so 1 mil or 1.5 is probably fair. they work nearly everyday.
@Andy B yeah but how can you even justify that much money for Bert. In a alternative reality do you think Bert could have handled the attitude era in wwf?
@Attie Pollard i think Bret's deal back in 96/97 was 1.5 million or around that. vince could afford that. he clearly just didnt want him anymore. I think he was getting on his nerves but who knows the real story.
But $3 million? Even for a billionaire almost close in 1998 like Vince McMahon that's still a lot for one wrestler
Vince can't complain about Bret being unreasonable when he signed the contact giving Bret creative control in the last 30 days, And he put up with Hogan's and Warrior's demands by that point
This was very well done. Good job! Its brets fault. You do what your boss says or you get screwed over. However, I think vince could've just had bret drop the title to taker on raw the next night. I think bret and vince are both stubborn as hell and felt like they were losing if they didnt one up the other one. It made a good story though. We're still talking about survivor series 97.
Bret Hart - The Best Of All Time 🏆
Everyone thinks beat lost twice to Shawn ... WRESTLEMANIA 12 and Survivor Series 97 but we know Survivor series 92 Shawn lost plus the ladder match they shot
To the casual fan losing on house shows does not count lol
Thank goodness that Bret was recording wrestling with shadows because Vince would have been perceived “right”
I can listen to the Montreal screw job anytime lol it’s wrestling brudda lol
I’m officially addicted to your channel bro! From one creator to another, thank you. This is exactly the type of wrestling content I’ve been looking for. Cheers!
Kindly do the bios for Power of Pain. One of the greatest the team ever and super under rated.
The Screw Job was PERFECT as is, it needed to happen.
Lol I don't know about you guys but if I didn't screw someone over, I wouldn't give them any "free shots," especially if they were Bret Hart... That's basically an admission of guilt in my book.
It needs to be remembered that while Vince couldn't alter the money going to bret to keep him (pay little now with guaranteed more later), he was able to pay for Mike god damn Tyson two months later. So, I call horseshit on the money issue.
First off Vince screwed Bret, second 1997 Vince has no chance against Bret, third Bret would have done the job for a friend and not a low life like 1997 HBK
Didn't Vince try to shoot on Angle and took him down? He wanted to do that with Bret in his prime?
14:45 I always wondered why Bret didn't sue the WWF for breach of contract and his creative control clause. Vince was smart to take that punch.
*It's pretty much what I tell AEW fanboys when they try to make excuses as to why Kenny Omega isn't a draw and why AEW is a sinking ship - "Omega screwed Omega."*
Dude, you're a Fuckn genius!!!👏👏👏
Wrestling bios I have a suggestion have you ever thought about doing a video on Christian Cage's TNA run?
Another solid video. I appreciate that you presented both perspectives and really made me think how both Vince and Bret must have seen things throughout the entire ordeal.
Looking back on it now ,its funny to think that Vince chose Shawn over Bret ,only to have Shawn lose his smile again and leave after the next Wrestlemainia, and then to keep him from going to WCW Vince kept paying him.
Vince fighting back? Yea right 😂.
I actually never liked Bret. I feel like I’m alone in this.
If Vince had taken a shot at Bret, the Hitman would have beaten the piss out if him.
Honestly I kinda of agree with bret screwed bret cause if he didn't finalize the deal with wcw he wouldn't have gotten screwed in 97
Vince could afford Bret Hart's contract in 97, but Bret Hart wasn't drawing what's he worth.. Vince was trying to get Hulk Hogan back in the WWF/WWE in 97 so Vince claiming that he couldn't afford Bret was total bs.. Besides i Vince f was going through financial problems during that time he wouldn't upgrade Monday Night Raw' set from the Raw letters to The Raw is War set which had an upgrade 3 times in 97
17:29 Bret doesn’t get Vince’s sympy