Bret Hart and Wrestlemania 14

[TM Punk]

For whatever reason I keep thinking about Wrestlemania 14, and what it could have been had Bret not left. I was wondering your thoughts. Would the main event have been Bret Hart vs Austin rather than Shawn Michaels? If so, what would Shawn Michaels have done? Would Shawn have hurt his back? Would Mike Tyson have been as involved as he was? So many things could have turned out differently with the inclusion of one man. Would there have been a DX vs Hart Foundation clash?

Personally I think the main event would have seen Hart vs Austin. I think Austin finally getting over on Bret Hart would be not only a great conclusion to their two year long feud, but a great launching pad into the Austin era.

In the michaels vs hart rivals dvd, Bret claims there were plans for Hart vs Michaels. I feel like theres some truth to that, as it was probably the back up plan had Austin not been able to return from his neck injury. Thats neither here nor there. Your thoughts.

 

[Wolf Pac]

I reckon we would've seen Hart vs. Austin, so Bret could repay the favour from the year before, and indeed it would have been a great conclusion to their rivalry and be a great launching pad into the Austin era. Probably would've been better aswell if they had Bret speak out against the Attitude Era in the build up to their match too, since Austin represented everything the AE stood for, that could've gotten Bret more heat with the fans since they ate the AE up. I dunno, Bret didn't like the Attitude Era, and I just think it could've been good if they incorporated that into storyline if Bret had stuck around. As for Mike Tyson, I think the same things still would've happened. Him and Austin would have had that epic confrontation, Tyson would've aligned himself with the Hart Foundation, and you know the rest.

And for Shawn Michaels, maybe a match with The Undertaker? I dunno, I just can't imagine Shawn against anyone else with the roster they had at the time, and maybe Kane would've made his debut in that match and cost Taker the win and there'd be no undefeated streak. Unless Shawn suffered that back injury and he was gonna retire then Taker would've won, but I don't think HBK would've gotten that injury cause I heard Bret was supposed to lose the title to Shawn at Survivor Series or D-Generation X, then win it back in a Ladder match at the Royal Rumble, something like that.

Hard to say really.

 

[RKO920]

I think Austin vs Michaels still would have been the way to go. With the way DX was going at the time and the tie in with Tyson it was a no brainer even if the Hitman was still around. Austin was already on the upswing before 14 but that night was not only the launching point for Stone Cold but for Triple H as well with becoming the leader of DX.

Hart vs Michaels was the original plan for 13 but Shawn had a "knee" injury and couldn't go so the classic Hart vs Austin was then put in place, which was a better call anyway as that was the match that propelled Austin into the place he was in. The match with Shawn was just the exclamation point that was needed. Within a year Stone Cold beat the two best that the New Generation had to offer with Bret and Shawn and helped usher in the Attitude era.

 

[donfryeismyhero]

I remember right before Bret leaving for WCW I was reading the WWF magazine & they were hinting at Owen leaving the Hart Foundation. Perhaps he & Bret would of feuded culminating in another classic match at WM 14.

 

[theHeadliner]

In the Hart vs. Michaels Greatest Rivalries DVD Bret said that he was booked against Michaels originally. I have no clue how they would have worked the finish or what Austin would have done. Austin was white hot at that time so it seemed stupid to not have Austin in the main event for the title. If anything, Bret would have done the honors again for Shawn, which would have sent Bret through the roof. Michaels would have probably still been booked against Undertaker at the Royal Rumble because they had history so its likely he would have hurt his back anyways.

 

[dimice76]

Wow, this is actually a great topic. Looking back at that card its hard to see where Austin would of went if Hart/HBK would have happened. Even if Hart/Hbk wasnt for the title, Austin still would of been the odd man out. Kane/Taker was set to happen all the way back from the summer, Rocky wasnt a big enough star yet to face Austin for the title. Owen still could of worked HHH. Bulldog would of made no sense. Wow I really have no idea.

 

[TM Punk]

The plan all along was for this to be Austin's Wrestlemania. Nothing was stopping that, except for his neck. Thats why I believe a Hart vs Michaels match was at least on the back burner in case Austin couldnt make it. I believe that Shawn would have been the odd man out here. Hart was proud of the work he and Austin did together. They had respect for each other. And I dont think he would have had any problem giving Austin the rub. Michaels on the other hand at that time was... for lack of a better word... a ********. So I feel that it would have not only been Austin's choice, but also Vince's choice for Bret to finally put Austin over.

 

[donfryeismyhero]

The plan all along was for this to be Austin's Wrestlemania. Nothing was stopping that, except for his neck. Thats why I believe a Hart vs Michaels match was at least on the back burner in case Austin couldnt make it. I believe that Shawn would have been the odd man out here. Hart was proud of the work he and Austin did together. They had respect for each other. And I dont think he would have had any problem giving Austin the rub. Michaels on the other hand at that time was... for lack of a better word... a ********. So I feel that it would have not only been Austin's choice, but also Vince's choice for Bret to finally put Austin over.

Well if Bret was to wrestle Austin that year, they could of had HBK/HHH vs Bulldog/Owen or had HBk vs Owen or Bulldog with HHH wresting whoever wasn't wrestling Shawn or split up DX and have HBK vs HHH & have X-Pac make his return during the match picking a side that would determine who the leader of DX would be.

 

[thebarber]

well remembereing HHH faced Owen, maybe we would have had Bret and Owen vs HBK and HHH. If Hart doesnt leave, Taker vs Michaels doesnt happen at Rumble and Michaels doesnt hurt his back. Assuming HBK still wins in Montreal,. retains at the DX ppv, then Bret beats HBK at the Royal Rumble. I see Mania 14 being Bret Hart(champ) vs Steve Austin vs Shawn Michaels. Tyson was only brought in after Hart left, all of a sudden Vince had the money to afford Tyson(ahem ahem).Would have been an awesome triple threat, then Austin and Hart fending off DX together. Interseting to think what may have been

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

I believe that WWE's plans for this year's wrestlemania were the following:
Austin vs Hart for the WWF Championship
Kane vs Taker
HBK vs Rocky Maivia

I know it seems odd, considering the fact of HBK being a complete jerk at that time. I've read somewhere that HBK and Rock's behind the scenes rivalry, started there, and not one year later, where Shawn tried to put Triple H against Austin in the Main Event of Wrestlemania... A Rocky Maivia was supposed to go over a heel HBK at 'Mania 14.

But still, not very sure on this one...

 

[Y 2 Jake]

If Bret Hart was around when Mania 14 occured he wouldn't have been world champion. The two headline matches would've remained the same. Bret Hart often had lulls throughout his career where he was placed in fairly meaningless feuds, 1998 wouldn't have been any different.

He probably would've been tasked with getting a decent mid-card match out of hot prospects like Ken Shamrock, Triple H or The Rock.

 

[Wald]

It's a hard one to call as the WWF with Hart and Michaels still being in it is tough to imagine after Montreal.

If we assume that Michaels still wins the title off Bret at Survivor Series or shortly afterwards (but not in a screwjob and not with Bret leaving) than I would have thought it would go like this.

HBK wins the title off the Hitman only to lose it to the Undertaker at the Royal Rumble due to interference from Bret. Bret turns face around this time to take on a heel HBK at Wrestlemania 14 to get his win back from Wrestlemania 12. I actually thought that Bret and the Hart Foundation had gone so over as heels that they were becoming cool heels anyway, in the feud with the Patriot and in comments Bret made about HBK and DX leading up to Survivor Series you could see really hear cheers starting to come back in American arenas for him (one instance on Raw that stands out is when he insults Michaels for not being a proper man and has to tell the American audience to not cheer that because he doesn't want their support).

Austin wins the Rumble and goes on to defeat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania for the title. Tyson is still the enforcer, Austin still has his run in with him and the only difference is the tease for Tyson screwing Austin isn't that he's pals with HBK but that he has a grudge to settle over the Raw altercation.

After Wrestlemania (still assuming that HBK leaves due to injuries) we have a WWF landscape of Austin as top face with Bret playing second fiddle. McMahon, Dude Love, Kane and maybe a turned Undertaker as heels whilst the new look DX and the Rock take formation.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

If the screwjob doesn;t happen this is how I would envision the card shaking out.

As many have said, by the time Austin came back from injury and still had the insaine crowd reaction he got WrestleMania XIV was going to be his. So he still wins a Rumble that was centered around him and goes on to Mania to win the title. Now as for his opponents, with Bret still on board and him and Shawn not wanting to cooperate with one another the only way I can see this one playing out is with a series of disqualifications and no contests ranging from Survivor Series to the February ppv. As a result of this, Austin gets his title shot, and either Bret or Shawn (whomever is not champ going into Mania) gets thrown into the match as a result of the dq's and no contests leading up to Mania. The triple threat match solves all the issues at the time. It allows both Bret and Shawn to be in the title picture, keeps Bret and Michaels from putting each other over as that was not possible at the time, continues to give Austin his push leading to a title victory against the top 2 superstars of the past 5 years in the WWF (at that time). Also all three men had history with one another so the match works from a logical standpoint as well. Everything else on the card could remain as is.

The fallout would be interesting. With things going down this way, Michaels doesn't have the casket match at the Rumble and thus doesn't blow out his back. However, he would have been a full time performer for quite some time leading up to Mania and would have been in line for some time off. The perfect way to do this would be to have HHH call out Shawn for not getting the job done over the past 5 months and with the help of X-Pac, and the Outlaws, take out Shawn, create the new DX and give Shawn the time he needs to recover from whatever pains he had at the time minus the back injury. This allows HHH to be the leader and continue his growth and lets Shawn come back at some point and set up a nice fued between the two.

Bret on the other hand is a little more difficult to book. He would have had his long break back in 96 so I would assume he would still be on the active roster moving forward. I would imagine maybe finishing up with Austin after Mania before moving on to have a story with Mankind. That should take Bret into or through the summer. At the same time he could still be involved in the Hart Foundation and have other stories centered around his group v DX v The Nation. Then by the time Michaels comes back and after he's done dealing with HHH, Bret and Shawn could have their one on one rematch at WM XV so long as they are able to work with one another.

After that it would probably be time for Bret to take another break. He could return at some point (probably after Austin leaves with his neck injury) for one last run involving the title. It makes sense because I'm pretty sure Bret envisioned himself being an active wrestler no longer than the year 2000 or 2001 at the latest.

 

[justtxyank]

What should have happened...

Michaels should have still ended up the heel champion by WM 14. Hart should have continued his bitter gimmick and got more and more angry after losing the title. (no screwjob here obviously) The Hart Foundation splinters a little bit when Davey Boy eliminates Bret Hart from the Royal Rumble. He gets turned on after that, setting up Bret Hart vs British Bulldog at WM 14. This keeps Hart busy.

After WM 14, the Hart Foundations feuds with DX and the Nation, keeping Hart away from the title while Austin and Taker feud. Eventually it is Hart who is the chosen one by McMahon to be the "corporate" champ. This leads to WM 15 being Austin vs Hart for the title with Austin going over Hart.

In my opinion Rock wasn't ready at WM15 so this buys him more time anyway.

 

[HBKperfect23]

From what I have heard the plans were Austin/Michaels for awhile. Maybe that was decided knowing Bret wasnt going to be there. I think either way its Austin/Michaels mainly because Tyson fits into that so well.

Another possbility and I believe this could have happened: Austin vs Michaels vs Bret. I hate triple threats (especially at WM) but I think this actually may have worked.

 

[rocksaviour]

Those three matches (Bret/Austin, Kane/Taker and HBK/Rock) would of made some sense with Owen/HHH just beneath.

I like the idea of possibly Bret bringing up about his dislike for the Attitude Era in the lead up to his match with Austin and then putting him over on the night, maybe a No DQ match with Tyson at ringside as the enforcer (aligning with Bret and the Hart Foundation beforehand and then turning on Bret on the night).

 

[Ruthless-RKO]

I like the way WM14 turned out with Tyson/HBK/Austin! It was a good match and an even better feud!

Honestly, you talk about Austin/Hart rematch from the previous Mania, and Austin finally getting over.. In my eyes, Austin got over in his loss at WM13.. They had 2 fights, one at Survivor Series 96' which in my eyes was an absolute classic, they went for over 30 mins.. Even though Bret won that match, which I think was more or less a number 1 contenders match.. The WM13 was even more of an epic, but tbh, the most that pops into peoples mind hearing about that match, was the aftermath, the double switch, does anyone think o the match itself? Those 2 matches in my eyes, were great and that was it, Austin was happy and moved on after the USA/Canada feud..

I'm happy with the way things turned out, only being 5-6 years old, that was wrestling that I enjoyed!

 

[Rabbid Wolverine]

If Bret doesnt leave after survivor series, I would have liked to see a triple threat match between HBK, Hart and Austin. My choice would have been Austin winning over HBK. It's kind of sad that Bret didnt have more Mania matches, the ones he had were pretty good (Piper,Yoko, Owen, HBK, Austin).

 

[TM Punk]

Im liking all of the ideas. I dont think that a triple threay would have been possible, as it was not a match yet in WWE. There were 3 way dances in ECW, but WWE to my recolection had not yet attempted it. I dont think Vince would just randomly use a never been done before, experimental match type for the main event of his biggest ppv of the year.
I just think Bret was the bigger heel at that time, and yhat it would have made more sense for the biggest face to go over the biggest heel.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Im liking all of the ideas. I dont think that a triple threay would have been possible, as it was not a match yet in WWE. There were 3 way dances in ECW, but WWE to my recolection had not yet attempted it. I dont think Vince would just randomly use a never been done before, experimental match type for the main event of his biggest ppv of the year.
I just think Bret was the bigger heel at that time, and yhat it would have made more sense for the biggest face to go over the biggest heel.

I can remember a few triple threats in 98. Rock/Mankind/Shamrock in a cage at the September or October ppv in a cage. Rock/HHH/X-Pac for the IC title in the Summer on Raw. And Austin/Taker/Kane at the September ppv for the WWF title.

I think they could have pulled one off at Mania between Hart/Michaels/Austin.

 

[midgensa]

I think that for pure profit the only match they were going to go with was Austin vs. Michaels. Michaels was a bigger draw than Hart ... period.

Hart would have maybe gotten a match with Undertaker ... how great could that have been? Maybe would have ended the streak before the E thought of it?

I just don't think that Hart vs. Austin would have been as enticing to McMahon and to the average buyer and McMahon wanted to put Austin over against the other top draw ... which at the time was definitely Michaels.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

I think that for pure profit the only match they were going to go with was Austin vs. Michaels. Michaels was a bigger draw than Hart ... period.

Hart would have maybe gotten a match with Undertaker ... how great could that have been? Maybe would have ended the streak before the E thought of it?

I just don't think that Hart vs. Austin would have been as enticing to McMahon and to the average buyer and McMahon wanted to put Austin over against the other top draw ... which at the time was definitely Michaels.

I don't know how you can seperate Bret's drawing power from Shawn's. Neither man was the focal point of the WWE when they distanced themselves from WCW. While Bret was the man in WWE (94) and when Shawn was the man (96) I don't think there is a difference in how well the WWF drew in those years.

 

[donfryeismyhero]

Im liking all of the ideas. I dont think that a triple threay would have been possible, as it was not a match yet in WWE. There were 3 way dances in ECW, but WWE to my recolection had not yet attempted it. I dont think Vince would just randomly use a never been done before, experimental match type for the main event of his biggest ppv of the year.
I just think Bret was the bigger heel at that time, and yhat it would have made more sense for the biggest face to go over the biggest heel.

Triple threats had been done prior. Off the top of my head in 97 there was one on Raw that pitted Owen defending his IC title against HHH & Goldust and IYH: Ground Zero ppv with Faarooq, Savio & Crush.

 

[Steamboat Ricky]

Looking at the card here, I can't find a place where Bret really fits. The only thing that really pops into my mind is if they would have done Bret/Shawn for the belt and had a legit Tyson/Austin match. Buys would have been ridiculous, though the match quality for Tyson/Austin would have been horrible.


I don't think they would have done a Triple Threat. Part of the big lure of Mania XIV was in Austin going for the title, so it's hard to speculate.

 

[thebarber]

remembering, Vince did not look at Tyson until AFTER Bret Hart was goone. Vince "suddenly" found the cash to fund Mike Tyson for a handful of appearances. If Montreal doesn't happen, Bret Hart vs Shawn Michaels happens at Mania 14. Austin was thrust into the title picture only when Bret was gone. Undertaker was always set to feud Kane, maybe Austin and Mankind were given something to do together.