#1. The Montreal Screwjob
Was there any doubt which double-cross would top this list? Of course not. Everyone knows the story, so I’m not even sure what to write in this space.
The year was 1997. The town was Montreal. The key players were Bret Hart, Vince McMahon and Shawn Michaels — in that order. Bret was leaving WWE to head to WCW, although unlike Luger and Rude, he made it clear that that’s what he was doing. He did it the right way. Certainly he would be rewarded for handling himself like a professional when many before him did not, right?
Wrong.
Because the match — which took place at the Survivor Series pay-per-view — was in the place where Hart was a hero, and because Michaels allegedly told Bret that he appreciated that Hart was willing to put him over, but that he would not do the same, Bret refused to drop the title to HBK in Montreal that night.
Bret offered to drop the title a number of different ways, however at the end of the day, without Bret’s knowledge, “the powers that be” in WWE decided that he was in fact going to drop the title in Montreal, whether he liked it (or even knew about it) or not.
The decision was made to “screw” The Hitman live on national pay-per-view, in his home country of Canada.
Bret, feeling this was a possibility, made sure to talk to referee Earl Hebner before-hand, a man who promised Bret that no matter what, he would not screw him in the match. Gerald Brisco, a former legitimate amateur wrestler, offered to give Michaels some tips on how to “defend himself” if things got ugly. He should have given McMahon those tips.
So it played out as we saw it. Ironically enough, Michaels puts Bret in his own finishing move — the sharpshooter, and without Bret’s knowledge, the bell rang. He “submitted” without even knowing it. Earl, who was pulled aside seconds before going out to the ring and told what was going to happen, called for the bell, immediately jumped out of the ring, jumped into a waiting car and drove the hell out of there.
Michaels did his best acting work of his career, pretending to be confused, then pissed, then celebrating with the belt right before he went through the curtain.
Bret went from shocked, to spitting in Vince’s face, to throwing a temper tantrum at ringside, smashing up television monitors and then finger-signing the letters “W” “C” and “W” before heading backstage where he would knock Vince McMahon unconscious with one punch in the dressing room.
Thus, you have the Montreal Screwjob.
So, there you have it! Those were the top five double-crosses during the Monday Night Wars that stand out the most in my memory. What do you guys think? Which double-crosses would have made your lists? Leave your feedback in the “Comments” section below! You can also hit me up directly on Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBooneWZR and/or on Twitter @MBoone420.
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