WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has made several public statements regarding his relationship with WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque that present conflicting views. At a recent live Q&A event with Inside The Ropes, Hart spoke at length about his history with Levesque, while in a WWE interview last year, Hart described a backstage meeting with him as a “pleasure.” These differing accounts follow several recent appearances Hart has made for the company under Levesque’s leadership.
During the Inside The Ropes show, Hart was asked for his professional opinion of Levesque and provided a direct assessment. “I know that, just being honest, I never rated him. I just never ever thought he was any good,” Hart said. He continued, stating Levesque’s success was self-orchestrated. “Everything he’s done, everything that he’s created, it’s all stuff that he wrote out for himself… He never earned it, he never deserved it, he just married the boss’s daughter,” Hart stated.
Hart also connected Levesque to the 1997 “Montreal Screwjob” at Survivor Series. “I think he became Vince’s, um, hit guy,” Hart said. Referencing his physical confrontation with Vince McMahon after the event, Hart added, “I wish he’d been in the dressing room when I knocked Vince out. I have no doubt in my mind that Triple H would have had the exact same ride… I wish he was in the dressing room because he might not be married to Stephanie anymore”.
Hart recalled a specific incident before a Monday Night Raw taping in Germany, ahead of his WrestleMania 13 match with Steve Austin. According to Hart, Levesque was on the booking committee and had scheduled himself to beat Hart cleanly. “I said to Vince, I said, ‘Why would you beat me in Germany… with a guy that’s not over, you, Triple H… and why would you beat me in the middle of the ring?’ And I remember Vince… he goes, ‘You’re right, we’ll have to change it,'” Hart recounted. He added, “You could just see Triple H just about, like he just turned white… he didn’t get to beat me”.
These statements contrast with Hart’s recent interactions with WWE. His last on-screen appearance was on Monday Night Raw last year in a segment involving Gunther. In a WWE interview following that show, Hart said that running into Levesque “was a pleasure.” A cordial handshake between the two was also captured on video posted on social media. However, Hart has also noted friction, stating he was a guest at SummerSlam where he was not provided with a seat.
In the Inside The Ropes interview, Hart acknowledged his effort to move on from past issues, comparing it to dropping a “big bag of rocks,” but concluded with strong words about his final months in WWE in 1997. “The heat that Triple H and Shawn had for me for all those months leading into Survivor Series… they were all such scumbags,” Hart stated. “They were set out to destroy me after I had given them everything I ever had”.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit Inside The Ropes with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
