The past few days have seen the impossible in the worlds of sports & pro wrestling. The Philadelphia Flyers bounced back from a 3 game deficit against the Boston Bruins & won 4 games in a row, sending them to the Eastern Conference Finals against the Montreal Canadiens (LET’S GO FLYERS).
Last night saw something else I’m sure nobody, myself included, thought they would ever see. WWE Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart captured his fifth United States Championship. I’ll say it again as I’m sure you are shocked. Your winner, and NEW United States Champion, Bret Hart. Needless to say, I’m still stunned reading it. Now, you’re probably thinking 1 of 2 things. The first…is it the 1990’s all over again? Bret Hart holds the US Title in WWE & Kevin Nash and Scott Hall hold the Tag Team Titles in TNA…*scratches head* The second…isn’t this a WCW/TNA like move by the part of WWE? Why put a major title on a broken down wrestler like Bret Hart? Isn’t this a dumb thing to do? The answer to that question is…NO.
Now you’re probably asking “But Chris…why is it justified for WWE to put a major championship on Bret Hart & not okay for TNA to put major titles on Hall & Nash?” There are 2 answers to this question.
[adinserter block=”1″]1. NOBODY expected Bret Hart to win the US Title on Raw. Think back to WM26. Did you honestly think you’d see Bret Hart wrestle another match, let alone win a championship after that? This was intelligently done & above all, it worked everyone who reads Internet sites, especially the stories of Bret Hart saying “Raw in Montreal is my last night with WWE.” Much like Tommy Dreamer winning the ECW Championship last year, it swerved everyone & once again proved “You never know what to expect in WWE.” Look at who’s running TNA. You’d be foolish not to think certain people are going to be pushed & given championships over say, more qualified talent. By this point, you’re probably saying “But Chris, there are more qualified people than Bret Hart to hold the belt or push.” Read on young Padawans.
2. Bret Hart like it or not, is a name. He’s a multi-time World Champion & a Hall of Famer. He is one of the greats. Whoever WWE has Bret drop the US Title to, be it the Miz in a rematch or someone else, is going to get a HUGE rub from it. A strong heel persona or someone turning heel can then tout in promos & add to their character “I beat WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart & I beat him for the United States Championship”. In the minds of the fans (especially the younger ones…WWE’s target audience) who don’t know how the business operates, that could be huge for them & get them talking about said heel. For example, let’s say Miz regains or the belt goes to another wrestler…”Well if Miz (or so & so) can defeat Bret Hart for the US Title, what’s next for him? Who else can he beat?” It generates interest. Now I know you’re saying “But Chris, Hall & Nash are names. What’s the difference?” Look at TNA’s roster. Seriously…look at the tag teams. If the Dudleys beat them…so what? They’re the greatest tag team in the world today. If Ink Inc beats them…so what? They’re already name talent; it doesn’t help their careers any. If Beer Money beats them…you see my point. There’s only one team in TNA that would be helped by beating Hall & Nash. I think it’s painfully obvious, so I’m withholding the name. I want to see if TNA can actually figure that out.
[adinserter block=”2″]Now comes the question of who does Bret drop the belt to? I’d like to see the Miz keep running with it, yet at the same time, I could think of a couple others who would benefit from beating Hart. The first would be John Morrison. Morrison’s at his best when he’s heel. The second, & my personal choice if Miz is no longer in the running for US Champ, would be Sheamus. It would add to his storyline of putting Hunter on the shelf. Sheamus stands to gain big time by winning a title & putting another huge name out of action storyline wise. It’s going to be interesting to see where WWE goes with this one.
How to Lose Stubborn Belly Fat, Get Flat Abs the Right Way.
Order the WWE DVD WWE – Bret “Hitman” Hart: The Best There Is, The Best There Was, The Best There Ever Will Be.
Read more about Bret Hart in his autobiography – Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling.
Order the new Hart family tribute, Hart and Soul: The Hart Family Anthology DVD
From the ring to your wall – WWE REAL.BIG Wall Graphics on sale now at Fat Head!
Unfortunately the U.S. Championship has little value today anyway, after being held in high esteem in the NWA during the 80's. The presence of two World Championships, the ECW Championship and the Inter-Continental Championship has done plenty to devalue the U.S. title in today's world. Therefore I had little reaction to Bret winning the title; it was almost like he had won the WWE Hardcore Title or the WCW TV title. Who really cares? Now if Bret and Jim Neidhart had won the Unified Tag Titles from Miz Show (rather than the Hart Dynasty), THAT would have been a big win.
I don't really agree that Hart winning a title is any better than Hall & Nash. It was just as surprising when Hall & Nash won, because nobody remembered that briefcase even existed. It won't matter if they put someone over, because that's just how tag teams work. They can only be built up so high.
Nash at least looks like he's still in great shape and could kick some ass in the ring. He doesn't do much, and never could even in his prime, but at least he looks the part. Hall, of course, is over the hill in the ring and in the appearance department. But at least he can do some wrestling moves.
Hart can punch, hit Vince with a chair for 10 minutes, and lock in a sharpshooter, but at this point he's not going to be able to defend that belt in an actual match. I personally don't like either move, the only good thing I can say is that at least Hart's position is only temporary until he can put somebody over. Hall & Nash think they can still bring it every week. It was cool for nostalgia, but when I think about it, I yawn at both storylines.