Back in the Ring Hart Seeks Closure in Comeback

Even in a game so weird and tumultuous as the pro wrestling business, most fans would have bet they'd never see Bret (The Hitman) Hart perform in a WWE ring again.

For that matter, The Hitman himself never thought he'd consider it.

There was just too much bad blood between him and the company from which he departed amid fisticuffs, betrayal and acrimony in 1997.

Furthermore, the seven-time world heavyweight champion was physically incapable of wrestling, due to a career-ending concussion in 2000, followed by a serious stroke in 2002.

But last Monday on World Wrestling Entertainment's flagship TV program WWE Raw, Calgary's world-famous son appeared on the show for the first time in more than 12 years.

"It was a bizarre night. It was surreal," said the 52-year-old Hart when contacted by the Herald. "I kept asking myself if I was really there."

"Shawn and I had a rough idea of what we were going to do . . . but we didn't really speak to each other (before)," Bret says. "My impression was that (he) was actually pretty sincere. He apologized for a lot of what happened. . . . I think it was like a million pounds off of his back. . . . There was a couple of times when it looked like he was going to start crying.

"There was a lot of real emotion in that little segment. . . . I think it was a surprise to him as much as to me."...More?

source: calgaryherald.com