Throughout the history of the Hart Foundation forever has there been success has long been tied to it. Whether it was as a team or as individuals, success has often followed them regardless of the place or time.
As explained in the initial part of this series, fans can see the established success of Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart, as well as the growing success of Owen Hart. But what loomed on the horizon for this family?
Hart Foundation Forever – SummerSlam 94
Owen Hart, now calling himself the King of Harts, acted like a whiny, jealous baby. Bret Hart, on the other hand, was sick of Owens’ antics and blamed The Anvil for causing the rift between the brothers.
At SummerSlam ’94 in Chicago, IL, Bret “Hitman” Hart defended the WWF Championship against Owen Hart in a steel cage.
In most cases, the cage is meant to keep the wrestlers inside; this time, it was meant to keep the family members out. The Hart family were in the front row.
Jim Neidhart was by himself, but there was a familiar face in front of him: Davey Boy Smith, the British Bulldog, was in attendance.
After a grueling match including a superplex from the top of the cage and dueling sharpshooters, Bret Hart successfully retained the WWF Title.
After the Hitman won, Neidhart clotheslined both the British Bulldog and his wife, Diana Smith, over the railing. He then attacked Bret, threw him in the cage, and padlocked the door.
The rest of the Hart Family tried everything they could, but none could scale the cage….except British Bulldog. Bret Hart eventually lost the WWF title, but to a returning Bob Backlund; however, it was Owen who had a hand in that title change.
The match was at Survivor Series ’94. It was a submission match, where British Bulldog was in Bret’s corner and Owen was in Backlund’s.
Each corner man had a towel to throw in, declaring surrender. Davey Boy got knocked out. While he was out, Backlund put Hart in a cross-face chicken wing. Since Bulldog was knocked out, he couldn’t throw in the towel.
Helen Hart was in the front row. Owen begged and pleaded with Helen to throw in the towel, claiming he did not want to see his brother hurt.
As soon as Helen threw in the towel, Owen Hart grabbed it and ran back to the locker room. Backlund was declared the new champion.
Owen Hart Tag Team Specialist
Owen decided the tag team title would be better suited for a King. At WrestleMania, he surprised the world with his new partner, Yokozuna. The duo defeated the Smoking Guns. Owen also acquired two new managers in Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji.
Owen and Yokozuna held the belts for five months until losing to two dudes with attitude, Shawn Michaels and Diesel. In 1995, The British Bulldog joined Camp Cornette.
The two brothers-in-law started tag teaming. They were an unbeatable combination. That year, Owen had a match with Shawn Michaels in which a well-placed Insiguri made Michaels pass out.
Owen took credit for the injury. He also won a Slammy award and began calling himself the Slammy Award Winning Owen Hart.
Owen took his heel persona a bit further and wore a cast for many months. However, he had no problem using the cast as a weapon.
Bret Hart Defends the Title
Back to settling some unfinished business, Bret began feuding again with Jerry Lawler. Their rivalry became the focal point of the first In Your House PPV, defeating Hakushi.
Next, he set his sights on Jerry Lawler. Hart ended his feud with Lawler and then focused back on the WWF Title. At Survivor Series 1995, Bret Hitman Hart defeated Diesel after he rolled up the big man.
Bret’s first title defense was at In Your House 5 Seasons Beatings against his brother-in-law, the British Bulldog. Unlike their classic SummerSlam match in 92 Diana Smith was firmly behind her husband.
This was not a friendly rivalry; it was an all-out brawl. At one point in the match, Bret was split open, bleeding all over. Despite everything, Hart retained the title.
Bret then went on to the Royal Rumble to defend against The Undertaker and Diesel at In Your House. That year, Shawn Michaels won his second Royal Rumble.
Therefore, he would face the champion at Wrestlemania XII. The match would be an Iron Match. Whoever got the most falls in 1 hour was the winner.
Hart used his technical ability. HBK used his speed to put on a show like no other. With less than a minute left on the clock, The Hitman trapped Michaels in a sharpshooter.
Michaels did not submit, but the time limit expired. President Gorilla Monsoon came to the ring, declaring there must be a winner. Unfortunately, Bret Hart got caught with a superkick. Shawn Michaels won the WWF Championship.
Bret Hart returns to the WWF
After WrestleMania, Hart was going over his career options. During that time, he mentioned that he had received an offer from WCW; however, after being offered a 20-year contract from the WWF, he decided to stay.
Not only did he decide to stay but he agreed to face a man that had been taunting Hart for months. Stone Cold Steve Austin made a major impact while The Hitman was away.
Austin won the King of the Ring, and his take-no-prisoners attitude began to resonate with the fans. Little did anyone know that this feud between Bret Hitman Hart and Stone Cold Steve Austin would be the catalyst to a new Attitude Era, an unforgettable rivalry, and a Hart Foundation reunion.
After an 8-month hiatus, Bret Hart returned at the 1996 Survivor Series against Steve Austin. It was a brutal match, but in the end, the Hitman was victorious.
Battle for the European Championship
In the meantime, Owen Hart and The British Bulldog became WWF tag team champions. At the Royal Rumble, Owen “accidentally” eliminated the Bulldog.
Things escalated even more when the WWF decided to crown its first-ever European Champion. The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith was crowned the first WWF European Champion. This got Owen even more jealous. The two began to stop effectiveness as a team.
Hart Foundation Forever Hitman vs Stone Cold
Bret Hart and Steve Austin’s rivalry was really starting to heat up. Austin told Bret, “It will never be over”. At the 1996 Royal Rumble, both Steve Austin and Bret Hart entered.
Hart actually won the Royal Rumble by tossing out Austin. However, the referee did not see the elimination. Austin went back in the ring and threw out Hart, winning the match.
The next night on Raw, Bret Hart quit the WWF. However he was lured back by the announcement that at the next ppv there would be a final 4 match to determine the WWF Champion.
Previously, in the night, Shawn Michaels relinquished the title. At In Your House Final 4 , Bret “Hitman” Hart defeated Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and Vader to win his fourth WWF title.
The Hitman only held the title for 24 hours. The next night on Raw, Bret Hart lost to Sycho Sid due to Austin’s interference. Bret Hart was starting to lose it. Week by week he was becoming more angry.
The next week on Raw he got a rematch against Sid in a steel cage. If Bret won the championship, he would go on to WrestleMania 13 to defend against Stone Cold Steve Austin.
If Sid retained, he would defend against The Undertaker. Ironically, Austin tried several times to help Hart get the win, but it was not meant to be.
The Undertaker slammed the door on Hart’s head as he was exiting the cage. The Hitman was fed up with the federation.
In a very uncharacteristic manner, Bret Hart shoved Vince McMahon to the ground. Then came the promo that arguably marked the beginning of the Attitude Era.
“Frustrated isn’t the damn word for it . This is bulls**t. Everyone here in that damn dressing room knows that I’m the best there is , the best there was, the best there ever will be”
At Wrestlemania 13, Hart and Austin would switch places in their Hall of Fame Submission Match. Bret began to get more violent as Austin was getting cheered by the Chicago crowd. The finish of the match was Austin locked in Bret Hart’s Sharpshooter.
However, Stone Cold refused to quit and passed out from blood loss. This gave The Hitman the win. However, the fact is that Austin never gave up. To add to his heel turn, Bret Hart attacked Austin after the match, causing special guest referee Ken Shamrock to intervene.
The Hart Foundation 1997
The next night on Monday Night Raw, Bret told the fans exactly what he thought about them. To clarify, Bret ensured that he was referring only to his American fans. He told them they did not respect him anymore .
This was the first time any superstar was going to be a heel in America and a face in all the other countries. Bret has said that 1997 was the most fun he ever had in wrestling.
Meanwhile, Davey Boy Smith and Owen Hart were scheduled for a match. This was mostly because the two could not get along after Davey Boy won the WWF European title.
During the middle of the match, Bret Hart ran to the ring and tried to restore order between the two brothers-in-law. He told them he needed them. Davey Boy, Owen, and Bret all hugged.
This was the family reunion of The Hart Foundation. After years of fighting each other they were now a family again. Blood was thicker than water.
The Hart Foundation had reunited.
The Hart Foundation placed a target on the back of Stone Cold Austin. Austin likewise would antagonize the Harts every chance he got.
Eventually, Jim The Anvil Neidhart and Brian Pillman joined up in the fight against the Texas rattlesnake. Things became so out of hand that Bret Hart and Steve Austin got into a street fight, which injured Bret Hart’s knee, causing him to be out of action.
Bret was in a wheelchair for a few months, but that didn’t stop the Harts. Owen Hart defeated Rocky Miavia and won the WWF Intercontinental title.
The British Bulldog was still European Champion and co-holder of the tag titles with Owen. Jim the Anvil Neidhart decided to match strength with Ken Shamrock. Brian Pillman developed an obsession with Marlena , Goldust’s manager.
By the Summer, Bret was back in competition and fully recovered. The next WWF pay-per-view would be In Your House Canadian Stampede, live from the Harts’ hometown of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
The Harts we looked at like idols in Canada, especially the Hitman, who was a national hero. The entire Hart family would be in attendance. The Main Event was a 5 on 5 tag team match.
The Hart Foundation, comprised of Bret, Owen, Jim, Davey, and Pillman, vs Austin, Goldust, Legion of Doom, and Ken Shamrock. The match did not disappoint as the Hart Foundation won after Owen got the victory. After the match, the entire Hart Family celebrated in the ring.
Now that the Foundation had re-established dominance, Bret and company turned their attention to SummerSlam. The Hitman challenged The Undertaker in the main event at SummerSlam.
Bret upped the stakes by saying if he did not win the WWF Championship at SummerSlam he would never wrestle in the United States again.
Unfortunately for Bret Hart, the WWF surprised him with making a returning Shawn Michaels the special guest referee. To make things fair, Michaels agreed that if he showed any favoritism, he also would never wrestle in the United States. Things were about to heat up.
On August 3rd, 1997, SummerSlam had arrived. The WWF Championship match was a classic. Three of the best of the best in one ring. The stakes were high. The finish to the match was a display of timing excellence.
At one point, Bret grabbed a chair and went after the Undertaker. Shawn Michaels, the special referee, grabbed the chair. Bret had had enough of Michaels and spat at HBK.
HBK went to level the Hitman with the chair, but missed and knocked the Undertaker out cold. Bret covered him, and Shawn had no choice but to make the three count. Bret Hart was the new WWF Champion.
The animosity between the Hart Foundation and America grew to an all-time high. Finally, Vince McMahon had to bar Steve Austin from the arenas for his own good.
Vince McMahon tried to tell Stone Cold that it was for his own good and that the WWF cared about the rattlesnake. Austin proceeded to let Vince know how much he appreciated that the WWF cared by stunning Vince McMahon. This was the beginning of the war between Austin and Mr. McMahon.
Shawn Michaels now had an insurance policy to watch his back. He along with Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Rick Rude, and Chyna formed a clique.
HBK eventually found himself trapped inside the first-ever Hell in a Cell Match with The Undertaker. Michaels survived because of interference from Undertaker’s brother Kane.
That same night, WWF Champion Bret Hitman Hart and The British Bulldog faced off against the Patriot and Vader in a flag match.
The Foundation won the match, but the night was not a good memory for the Harts. Before the PPV started, WWE was informed that Brian Pillman had been found dead in his hotel room.
In early November 1997, the WWF was facing some major competition. World Championship Wrestling had just started its nWo angle.
When Bret Hart returned to the WWF in October of ’96, he was given a 20-year contract. Now, unfortunately, the WWF could not afford that. Bret started negotiating with Eric Bischoff and WCW.
After serious consideration, Bret Hart agreed to join WCW the Hitman was the WWF Champion. At the Survivor Series PPV, he was going to defend the title against his nemesis, Shawn Michaels.
Ever since Bret Hart lost to HBK at WrestleMania 12 these two legends were at each others throats. The Hitman and the Heartbreak Kid hated each other personally and professionally.
It was also during this time that Shawn Michaels and crew were developing a new attitude. In a promo, Bret Hart called them degenerates. Degeneration X was born.
