Imagine sitting in front of The Undertaker and say "I can hardly imagine anyone better than Bret and Shawn." Amazing.

One of my favorite quotes is “don’t party like a rockstar if you can’t wake up for the concert”

I'd give anything to just sit down and bring a bottle of Jack and just have a conversation with Mark Calaway.

I don't think the Screwjob would've been as infamous as it was if Bret's WCW career wasn't such a colossal clown show. But thanks to Bischoff being a hack and Goldberg being... well Goldberg... the Montreal Screwjob has been tied to Bret as the moment that destroyed his career. It's a shame that he's mostly remembered for this and not all the legendary matches he had.

Bret didnt want to leave and in the contract Vince gave him Bret insisted on clause for last 30 days should vince want to terminate, which was mutual creative control, to avoid getting ruined on way out. Bret was 100% honest.

It's a shame that Montreal overshadows their careers. A Master Gunnery Seargent once told me, "One thousand attaboys can be knocked out by one Oh Shit moment."

And the fact that Bret was 40 when he left.... meaning.. if he stayed healthy. He could have easily gone til he was 50.we could have gotten ANOTHER 10 years of Bret Matches in WWE. I get mad just thinking about it.

Remember Brett said he would have dropped the belt to Shawn but right after Brett told him that Shawn immediately said if the roles were reversed he wouldn’t drop it to him 😂

I would like to believe Bret would have done the right thing, but one can never know for sure. Plus I wasn't there and had no idea what the environment felt like.

The problem is that Bret never wanted to leave and had an agreement with Vince already to work for 1/5th of what WCW offered him on a per year basis, but Vince still didn't feel as if he could pay Bret, so he told Bret to get in contact with Bischoff for a deal to leave. Then he comes back after increasing the price on the In Your House PPV with more revenue to Bret that he has the money to stay but by then, Bret already made the deal with Bischoff (again, because Vince). Bret was also given creative control on how he left, and Bret said he'd lose to anyone BUT Shawn. There were so many other possibilities for how that all would end up and Vince just didn't adapt to the circumstances HE CREATED.

3 things that WWE has tried to re-write history. Bret did not show up in WCW the next night. That is false! That was never going to happen. Bret had creative control in his contract which is Vince’s fault for agreeing to that. And Vince gave Bret permission to negotiate with WCW, again, Vince’s fault. Bret didn’t debut on WCW tv until December 15th 1997… more than TWO WEEKS after the screwjob. They had time to have him drop the title… they chose to screw him instead… those are facts.

It’s not like Bret was on WCW the next day or even the next week. There was plenty of time for Vince to work something out with him.

Get Jim Cornette on the show and talk about his version of the story and aftermath. That would be some notes sharing!

I respect Taker but he is completely wrong on this. Bret Hart still had dates in his contract and it wasn't a situation where he was showing up the next day on Nitro. Bret would have definitely put over anyone other than Shawn at Montreal btw. Also Bret had a creative control exit clause on his contract to prevent what ended up happening from well happening. Had Bret wanted he could have easily sued WWE for breach of contract. Vince was 100% in the wrong and he did this not because some worry about Bret going to the opposition with a belt but because he wanted to fuck over Bret.

Without the Montreal Screwjob, there is no Attitude Era.

This podcast has been awesome hearing all these stories

Bret was under contract with the Fed until 23:59 December 7th. Survivor Series was not considered by anyone involved to be Bret's last day with the company. Bret had told Vince he would lose to belt to literally anyone from Steve Austin all the way down the the Brooklyn Brawler. He initially had agreed to lose to Shawn until Shawn told him there was no way he would lose to Bret. There was literally no way Bret was going to appear on the Nitro after Survivor Series. The proof of this is thay he did not, in fact, appear on thr Nitro after Survivor Series when he clearly would have had no greater motivation to do so.

0:25 I'd like to think that Bret was similar to yourself, Deadman... Regardless if he was bitter, upset and had those negative feelings towards the company, he respected the business and above all, respected his legacy of carrying himself with pride/integrity.

Shawn needed to be put in his place

Huge fan taker ty so much for 30 years of the dead man...dead man ink was my favour tho

I said on here a few days ago, Bret must be the next guest....after this title? We can forget that now 😂

Why wasn't an angle with Hitman/Taker a thing up to Survivor Series and Bret could loose to Taker? Only reason Bret wouldn't drop it to HBK was because Shawn did he wouldn't drop it for him.

Man, every time I see Taker or hear him speak, I just respect him more and more. Mark is such a class act. Got through that entire career with his nose clean and his reputation intact, and anyone who knows anything about wrestling, that's really, REALLY saying something.

July 31 is the anniversary of Roddy Piper's passing. Would love to hear some Piper stories from Taker in a future episode around that date.

Why didn't they just make it a multi-person match at the last minute to get the belt off Bret without a screwing taking place?

Bret said he would drop the belt to ANYONE but HBK. He definitely would have done the right thing.

They didn't have to do it. Vince literally could've put Bret in the ring with anyone else and he would've put them over clean in the middle, except Shawn, But Vince only wanted HBK with the belt. Could've thrown Taker in there and Bret would've done the honours, and Taker could've lost it to HBK further down the line, who then would've put Austin over at WM 14. There was no need for the screwjob, none.

The best podcast out there I love Mark and Matt’s humor and chemistry

“Vince was only in the locker room because of Taker” @Undertaker pounded on Vince’s door and demanded that Vince go in there and explain himself” - Bret Hart from a podcast and his book. Also Mick Foley quit and Rick Rude left the company after both good friends of the Hitman.

Mark is quite correct in his claim that Brett did not want to leave, according to a Storyville documentary. I saw some years ago, the negotiations were extremely protracted and even though Bishoff’s offer was for more money than Vince was able or prepared to match, Brett was willing to compromise with a set of stipulations in return for his commitment to the company he’d remained loyal to throughout his career. These included a reduction to his compulsory working hours and a specific number of reigns/or time as WWE champion (I think!) Vince initially accepted these terms only to then renege and suggest to Brett that it would be in his interest to reopen contractual discussions with WCW. After that, it became an acrimonious battle over whether Brett was going either to “surrender” or lose the belt before departing. Brett wished the latter, and I believe would have honoured such a pledge after his SSeries title bout, which could have just as easily ended in a DQ or count out victory for Michaels as a “clean win” for Brett. Though from Vince’s perspective, none of these scenarios would have avoided precipitating the promotionally damaging notion that Hart was voluntarily “resigning” as an undefeated champion and in so doing, affording “unearned lustre” to his arch rival brand. Personally, with or without hindsight and regardless of any subsequent legal developments, I’m still on Brett’s side, though purely from a business standpoint I can understand why Vince made the decision he did. Quite honestly, considering Brett’s consummate professionalism and passion for conveying his sport’s intricate story arcs and deep rooted drama, WCW must have felt like walking onto the set of a Starwars movie.. after Disney bought the franchise!

I'm glad this finally came up. Thanks for sharing!

Is there such a thing as to many stars ? Does managing so many great wrestler story lines get watered down if you're spread out? Or do you think its a good thing? Is it a good problem or a bad problem to have so many greats at once?

The host is really nice and listens to the fans and knows his stuff ..can we have bret in person on the podcast..

The problem is Bret may have left for "greener pastures" so to speak. But i always felt they shit on him his entire time in WCW. Totally misused someone of his caliber. I also wish the screwjob didn't happen and something could have been worked out. It was a bad move on WWE's part "business wise". But they were also boxed into a corner at the same time.

When Bret went to WCW it felt like WCW didn't want Bret they wanted WWF to not have him.

We waited almost 30 years for this man's thoughts on the Screwjob

Bret was like royalty in the business. He was not only a top guy who helped many others, he was as serious and loyal as one can get.

The Hart's were actively trying to sabotage WWE's success in 1997

Bigger question: What if Shawn/Bret 2 happened at WM 13? What if Bret went over while turning heel to win? The butterfly effect with this would have been enormous.

Having your champion give up the belt and leave to a different promotion would have killed wwf.

Wwe also remembered when Flair jumped to the “F” with the big gold so they knew what a bitch slap it could be.

The screw job was completely unnecessary. Bret had creative control over his character the same way Hulk Hogan did. "that doesn't work for me brother" was what Bret gave Vince and Bret earned it. No matter how you feel, and I feel Bret was being the biggest embarrassing baby, he still had creative control on his contract. Because of that.... The blame is put on Vince. And Vince has always been on the wrong for what he did. Especially with Bret saying he would have dropped it to someone else. Doesn't matter if it works for you or not.

I could listen to this big dude talk wrestling all day everyday , legend dosen't cover him , he truly is one of a kind.

Except Bret wasn't going to vacate the title the next day. He was booked to lose it at the December PPV and had been granted a one week contract extension by WCW to do so. This whole "Vince had to do it" fantasy is nothing but bullshit and WWE propaganda.

So what would WWE have done if Bret suspected Vince was planning something dirty and refused to fight against Michaels or chose to lose by DQ or 10 count that night?

During the Rivals DVD with Bret vs Shawn and JR was the interviewer, Bret knew after Summer of 97' that him and Shawn would be at Survivor Series 97'. He approached Shawn and told him despite their differences and beef, he had high respect for him as a talent, what we brought to the business and will always protect him in the ring and never has issues putting him over. And Bret Explained how Shawn looked at him and said thanks for saying that but I don't think I would do the same for you. And it left Bret feeling the way he did and telling Vince I'm not putting him over again until he shows that he respects me. And Vince was more on Shawn's side because he wasn't willing to pay Bret the reminder of his contract and also Bret being a family man wasn't for the adult theme storylines the attitude era were starting to produce, and Shawn was willing to go there with DX and ratings talked.

I think the greatest moment in sports entertainment history

One thing that I’ve always wondered is why couldn’t WWE hold on to the title belt after the Bret & Shawn match? If they were concerned that Bret would take the belt to Nitro, then just don’t let him leave the building with it. Then let him have the belt the next night so he could vacate it. Is there a reason behind this?

I feel like in hindsight, it became something special, but in the moment it's just awful. Without Montreal, Vince never would've came out as the owner, there would never have been the Austin and McMahon feuds, the attitude era would never have unfolded the same, and I think it broke kayfabe in a way that, again, in the long run was good for the wrestlers- As it meant that people became AWARE that wrestlers COULD get screwed over in the business, because if it could happen to Bret Hart, it could happen to ANYONE. And THAT in a way made fans want to support the wrestlers they loved more, because if there were EVER anything like Montreal again, all hell would break loose today, and there WOULD be repercussions because people are now more conscious of it. It became a story that was an irreplaceable, if dark, part of wrestling culture. There will never be another Bret Hart, in more ways than one.

One of the best rivalries in the WWF/e. They had some great matches before the screwjob but they don't get talked about because of how big the screwjob became.

Start having more wrestlers on! You want success for the podcast and crave the content! Hopfully Matt or Mark see this!

I’ve heard from a lot of industry veterans about Shawn Michaels, “I don’t like him personally, but he could put on a great match.” I know Mark and a few other prominent wrestling podcasters are too respectful to badmouth him, but it would be interesting to hear what Micheals was really like backstage. It seems he was rather disliked by a great many wrestlers.

Man I miss Bret. Those matches that involved family were epic. Bulldog and then Owen. Then they all got together. There was only ever one match that I didn’t care for with Bret and that was against Bob Backlund where he lost the title. Never hear that match talked about.

Question for the podcast. 1 thing I’d love to hear Undertaker discuss is the rumours that lead in into WM 8 there was an allege program with the returning Andre the Giant around Summerslam that was to set up Undertaker vs Andre at WM 8. Andre’s health was bad and Warrior got fired but I’ve seen an alleged card of Hogan v Flair, Warrior v Jake, Taker vs Andre, Savage vs HBK. Just wondering the truth

i love to see hulk hogan on here keep up the great work

Forget Bret and Shawn's matches. Bret being there means Owen's accident doesn't happen. Bret then has matches with Angle, Benoit, and Guerrero and so does Owen. That's the real legacy of this hypothetical.

This is a bit of a stretch on my part, so I'd appreciate a little rope on this. But, you could consider that the idea of Money in the Bank was, in part, a result of the Montreal Screwjob. Money in the Bank (The ability to drop the belt when needed, at a moment's notice, and no one questioning it, and in such a way that all parties are satisfied), feels like it resulted from how messed up Montreal was. If someone like D'Lo Brown or Billy Gunn runs down to the ring as both Shawn and Bret are lying in the ring after an incredible match, cashes in MITB and goes 1-2-3 on either one to claim the belt works so well for all parties. Both Wrestlers maintain their character's status, neither has to "drop" the belt to the other and a young wrestler gets a bump that can be as long or as short as needed. But back in the day, this wasn't possible and forced the power-that-be into Lose-Lose situations. It also didn't help that a "Gentleman's Agreement" was understood that when you left a territory, you dropped it's belt as a gesture of good faith which provided a false sense of security on WWE's part, but still. It seems so obvious now that many of these "faux" accolades (Royal Rumble Winner, King and Queen of the Ring, MITB) are not just ways to sell a PLE or merch, but they are safety measures to pull in case something like this happens again.

They didnt need to do it. Bret has always been straight up about the story and it hasnt wavered all this time. Said he would drop it to anyone but Shawn. Loyal company guy for 14 years. If there is anyone to blame for the entire situation it is Vince. He fumbled on the contract, he put the title on Bret at Summerslam. Bret had creative control on the last 30 days. If he didnt knockout vince he could have sued him for big money.

Brett vs Taker and Brett vs Shawn were highlight moments for wwe

There’s no way in hell you have Bret vacate the belt to go to another company. That’d be horrible for business.

Bret leaving likely caused HBK's back injury scenario and his early retirement which likely saved his life, which may have also affected Austin at Mania 14 going over if Bret had stayed...Steve Austin may have went over, but would have had Bret to face and likely no evil Vince McMahon. Very weird that Bret leaving caused a series of dominos that made WWF for the next 4 years.

That Washington shot hurt lol

I am really sick of people saying that the screwjob is what Bret is remembered for . To me that is more so what Shawn is remembered for. Bret's catalogue of wrestling speaks for itself.

I remember watching this live and thinking "this doesn't feel right"

my favorite

Bret was great in the ring but dogshit on the mic up until he retired. Acting like Bret vs. Vince would've even come close to the Stone Cold rivalry is some smark ass revisionist history

Thanks!

Does anybody else think that either a Mick Foley or Edge guest appearance would be awesome? I mean some of the stories these guys must have would be phenomenal.

Looking back it's a real shame Bret left WWF at the time. Shawn didn't want to give up the belt so put on a weak match at the following WM. I think Bret having a return match with Austin at WM, maybe even another I Quit match that Austin could have won. It would have been epic. Vince put a lot of work in putting the title on Shawn with very little reward.

What I think the WWF should've done is have Bret drop the belt to Taker, and then Taker drop the belt to Shawn after interference from Kane, setting up Shawn/Austin & Kane/Taker for Mania 14 as it happened in the real timeline. That way, Montreal doesn't happen in the first place, HBK doesn't get hurt & both guys are still with the company. But revisionist history is often a boring thing to ponder.

People say wrestling is fake but the screw job shows the sacrifices that 3 man had to make to keep the belt at its rightful home. And I personally think that Brett, Vince and Shawn should be shown the respect of that sacrifice rather than the industry trying to villainise those men.

i do wonder if that studio is in takers house

My two favorite wrestlers ever were Bret Hart and The Undertaker. And they both had that ultimate professional mindset. They both did matches that had a sensibility to them in that they wanted it to feel like a realistic fight was happening when they were in a ring. Not a bunch of flashy flippy BS, just good technical moves that told a story and had impact on the viewer. I don't think we'll ever see anyone again reach the lofty standards those two men set for this industry. There's a LOT of talented athletic people in wrestling, but no one that has the mental acumen, professionalism and psychological understanding that Bret and Taker had. No one.

What does taker mean when he says he wishes they would have communicated with him better about it because he could have figured something out? Like he could have helped find a creative solution vs the screw job?

every single theory of the Montreal Screwjob includes a he-said/she-said and people will cite books and documentaries ad nauseum the legs that angle had on it, the money it's generated, the legacy it will leave behind (and hopefully the interest in both men's careers) will be right there with Taker/Mankind in the cell.

Over the years when people have spoken on the Montreal screw job when Conversation comes up the people talking about the situation always hesitate to talk about it at the start of every conversation

One thing I never understood about was the people that sided with bret, you can’t take the keys to one job and take it to a new job

Anyone else notice that the mic stands and urn look like handlebars and a headlight?

Was it true that wwe wanted abyss to face the undertaker at wrestlemania years ago?? I personally think this would of been great, he could of been a surprise entrant in rumble and set up a match with taker.. I've always liked abyss and would of loved the character in wwe.. What was the story behind this and what was the story going to be.. I think this would of been amazing... Also what was it like facing new jack in smoky mountain and did you get on with him etc I'm personally a fan of new jack and would of loved to see him in wwe,, what are takers memories of the match??

Vince should never of let Bret go in the first place!!! He was loyal and should of been paid what he deserved

Haven’t watched yet, does he do the blew chew plug in this one?

1:03 1000% yes, I believe Bret would've done the right thing. He's too old school to do something that shady.

Can you ask Taker about the Boiler Room Matches? How dangerous was it? And was it a Real Boiler Room?

Did they ever show the case getting finalized?

The cops in Bastrop are asking questions about the red corvette

Maybe vince was afraid bret would take the title to WCW. I think Bret would do the right thing.Bret was my childhood hero. Best in ring worker in my opinion.

MC, do you keep in touch with “The Hitman”?

Correct me if I’m wrong. I thought Bret said he would drop it the following night to Shawn

Washington catching random shots 🤣🤣🤣

SummerSlam: Bret beats Shawn. Bret must leave the belt with a WWF official rather than taking it home with him. Next night on Raw: Bret loses a surprise match to Owen, says he quits the company. DONE.

They did it so Eric Biscoff couldn't say they had hired The WWF champion. They would have lessened the Belt, and been a blow to WWF business. BOTTOM LINE. It wasn't that they didn't trust Bret, the knew Biscoff to be an asshole.

Bret should have just lost his smile and bailed on the company and the fans like Shawn used to do and left the company scrambling for a new match. At least, Bret showed up. Bret has integrity and respect for the fans.

Yo Taker…. What kind of boots are those?!

Bret the onion fart.

That moment cause a ripple effect in the pro wrestling business and almost cause a mass exodus in #WWE to #WCW!

Michael’s was getting Diddy’d for that belt.

there's been the notion that Bret would have dropped it to someone else, but the night of the show he told Vince he wanted to give up the title the following night.

I would love to know if the Kevin Nash story is true. So supposedly Kevin Nash tells a story where tinker was supposed to come through the rain and pull Bret Hart in after a jackknife. Bret said something to the effect of he was okay with being pulled under but didn't want to take the jackknife beforehand. Something like that I can't remember exactly. And supposedly from what Nash said undertaker stands up and says MF'er not everything is about you to Bret heart. I could have completely butchered the story but the ending is basically what happened, according to nash. It would be cool to know if the story is actually true.

I can't wait for Taker to write a book and do a speaking tour....like Bret..

Bret had creative control in the final 30 days and said he'd drop it to anyone but Shawn in Canada. They had other choices. People think of hogan as an asshole but afaik no one ever screwed him out of a title he didn't want to drop. You basically make Bret leave and then punish him for doing so. I respect that anyone still working at wwe will say they had to do it. But I'll never ever believe that based on the facts we know. Posing it as 'screw him or he vacate' is also a false choice. He said he'd drop it to other people. And it still doesn't justify screwing him.