Bret Hart Reveals He Offered To Work Backstage With WWE, Talks Rating Triple H Vs. Brock Lesnar Bout
Many former WWE superstars have found success in backstage roles within the company. Wrestlers like Road Dogg Jesse James, Fit Finlay and, most notably, Triple H have seamlessly transitioned to behind-the-scenes positions once their in-ring careers had ended. Bret Hart recently was a guest on the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast and discussed whether he would want a backstage role in the WWE.
Hart, who was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2006, is one of the best technical wrestlers ever and undoubtedly has a great mind for the business. He revealed that he once approached Triple H and Vince McMahon about becoming a writer, but the fact that he couldn't commit to their travel schedule basically made him ineligible for the position.
"I hesitated on that for a long time; it was about four years ago I went up to them and threw the ball at them, made that pitch that I would give them ideas and help with the writing of the shows, creation of the matches and how storylines would go and so forth," Hart explained. "I think I would be really good for them, but I sort of made the offer, but the way it was thrown back at me was about the schedule; I was letting them know that I didn't want to be on the road everyday but that I could fly in for TV, and I think I left with letting them know that I can fly in for TV and never heard from them. Vince [McMahon] and Triple H thanked me for the offer and we left it at that."
Hart's in-ring knowledge would be a welcome addition to NXT. Up-and-coming wrestlers who are training at the Performance Center would greatly benefit from his tutelage. Hart said he is willing to work something out to move down to Florida, but he hasn't gotten a call.
"It could be figured, and worked out. It's not impossible. I can go anywhere. Sometimes a change of scenery might be fun, but I'm also very happy where I am at," he said. "I have a beautiful house, and life, but you know, working on Monday Night Raw might sound good for me, but realistically maybe they need more; they look at their agents: Mike Rotunda, Arn Anderson, whoever they are, they're on the road all the time with all that consistency and commitment, and I don't really have that which is why I most likely haven't gotten a call. I want to be a helper but don't want to give my life away for it."
Hart also had the opportunity to shoot on other topics. He made headlines after WrestleMania 29 when he rated a match between Triple H and Brock Lesnar a 4 out of 10. Hart explained that his comment was misconstrued as him tearing down Triple H, and what he really hoped to convey was that his input could've made the match better.
"I remember showing up at WrestleMania 29 where Brock Lesnar and Triple H wrestled, and I remember thinking that i had so many ideas that they could have done in their match," he explained. "I remember seeing them talking and working out their match, and I thought to myself that I should go over there and talk to them because I had some ideas. I talked myself into not doing it, but then I watched the match—but my quote on that match became famous now where I gave it a 4 out of 10, but it was a 4 out of 10 match, it was nothing special. I remember thinking, I could have made that match really awesome, and give them a few things where it could have really taken that match up a few notches, so I know that there is a potential there to pass on some wisdom. I regretted that I didn't do it, and I think a lot of my criticism on that match are misunderstood, which is perceived to be that I am trying to tear down Triple H, but that wasn't what I was trying to say; I just believe that I could have made that match better."
Hart commented on the current state of WWE, specifically expressing his dislike for how rivalries no longer culminate at pay-per-views. In his day, feuding wrestlers wouldn't face each other until a big event. Nowadays, wrestlers would have multiple matches on RAW or SmackDown before facing each other again at a pay-per-view, which Hart said he doesn't enjoy.
"I liked the way it worked before where they kept you away from each other until you had the match," he said. "Now, I notice on RAW they are wrestling the same match that they would have on the pay-per-view, so now it's no wonder that their tickets for SummerSlam weren't going so briskly as they would have liked because people have already seen it."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast with an H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Source: Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast
Peter Bahi contributed to this article.