Canadian wrestler and World Wrestling Entertainment legend Bret “The Hitman” Hart has taken to Instagram to reflect on the 25th anniversary of the “Montreal Screwjob” where he lost to Shawn Michaels.
He called it one of “the biggest – and most notorious – moments of [his] career.”
The “Montreal Screwjob” took place during the 1997 WWE Survivor Series at the then Molson Centre, now Bell Centre. The “Screwjob” refers to the league’s owner, Vince McMahon, manipulating the outcome of the match in favor of Hart’s opponent Shawn Michaels behind Hart’s back.
At the time, The Hitman was the league’s reigning WWE champion and was supposed to continue his reign in his match against Michaels. However, McMahon coordinated with referee Earl Hebner to call for the bell following a “shoot screwjob” move that resulted in Hart losing his championship title. In turn, Michaels became the new WWE Champion.
The incident was said to occur due to McMahon’s frustrations against Hart for signing a contract to join another league. While Hart would not leave the WWE as its Champion, he did not want to lose it against one of his biggest rivals, especially not in his home country. What resulted was McMahon’s betrayal of Hart and an unprecedented move that spawned a new era of wrestling known as the Attitude Era.
“You might remember it as the Montreal Screwjob but I remember it as the day I took control of my destiny. We can’t control everything that happens to us, but we can control how we react,” wrote Hart in his commemorative Instagram post.
“And now, when I look back on my career I stand proud in knowing I brought ‘the excellence of execution’ every time I made that walk.”
The “Montreal Screwjob” remains one of the most iconic moments in wrestling history.
