Bret Hart's 10 Most Random PPV Opponents
Bret "The Hitman" Hart is one of the best wrestlers of all time. He carried WWE through the New Generation Era where he feuded with stars like Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin. Hart is also one of the most beloved wrestlers in the history of WWE and has inspired countless current wrestling stars.
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Hart had a very famous divorce from WWE in 1997. He wrestled in WCW for a few years before an injury courtesy of Goldberg caused him to retire. Hart has wrestled many different opponents throughout his long wrestling career and his pay-per-view matches were usually reserved for bigger-name stars. This list, however, will examine the 10 most random pay-per-view opponents of his career.
10 William Perry
William "The Refrigerator" Perry is well known in the world of sports for his time with the Chicago Bears. He helped the team win Super Bowl 20 and was used as a tailback thanks to his massive 335-pound stature.
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WrestleMania II featured a WWE & NFL Battle Royal that included both Hart and Perry. He was one of many NFL players that Hart outlasted. Andre the Giant bested Bret Hart to win the battle royal in the end.
9 The Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks had a gimmick that would not resonate with audiences today. Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov portrayed Soviet heels that were awarded "Worst Tag Team" by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 1988. The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart) squashed the two in a random match that somehow got booked at WrestleMania VI. It was weird to see a tag team like The Hart Foundation in this match at WrestleMania.
8 Bruno Sammartino
Bruno Sammartino is the longest-reigning WWE Champion of all time. He held the title for over 4,040 days during his two combined reigns as WWE Champion. Although some fans may assume that Bruno and Hart existed in two different eras and never crossed paths, the two were opponents, randomly, in the late '80s.
Sammartino also partook in the WWE & NFL Battle Royal at WrestleMania II, which was the first time they crossed paths. The two also competed in an Elimination Tag Match that featured Bruno Sammartino, Jake Roberts & Tito Santana against The Hart Foundation & The Honky Tonk Man.
7 David Otunga
David Otunga was one of the worst wrestlers of the Nexus. He existed in WWE for over a decade after Bret Hart left the company after the Montreal Screwjob. Otunga was also one of Hart's opponents in the last pay-per-view match of Hart's wrestling career.
At SummerSlam 2010, "Team WWE" (Bret Hart, Chris Jericho, Daniel Bryan, Edge, John Cena, John Morrison & R-Truth) battled and defeated The Nexus, which consisted of Darren Young, David Otunga, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Michael Tarver, Skip Sheffield and Wade Barrett. The match ended up lasting almost 40 minutes and Hart was DQ'd for using a chair.
6 The Patriot
In 1997, Bret Hart became a top heel in WWE by adopting an anti-American pro-Canada gimmick. The Patriot was an act that was supposed to provide a Captain America-level savior to WWE. At Ground Zero: In Your House 1997, Hart competed against The Patriot in a forgotten match for the WWE Championship. The Patriot lost but did score a victory over Hart on an episode of Raw.
5 Jean-Pierre LaFitte
WWE changed the creative direction of Pierre, of The Quebecers, and turned him into Jean-Pierre LaFitte, a French-Candian pirate. The gimmick was awful, but LaFitte was a decent wrestler and even competed against Bret Hart at In Your House 3. The two put on an above-average match that many fans forget ever happened. It's one of the best "random matches" of Hart's career.
4 Skinner
Skinner was a wrestler from the Florida Everglades that came to the ring with an alligator claw. He was a gruff bearded man that chewed tobacco and spit it all over himself. In 1991, Skinner wrestled Bret Hart at This Tuesday In Texas. The two competed for the Intercontinental Championship and Hart retained in the random match.
3 Tito Santana
Tito Santana made his WWE debut in 1979 when Bret Hart was only 22 years old. He was also the first holder of the Intercontinental Championship belt design that Hart would help become well known.
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They only crossed paths in one pay-per-view match (excluding Royal Rumbles). At WrestleMania III, The Hart Foundation & Danny Davis defeated The British Bulldogs & Tito Santana. The match lasted less than ten minutes.
2 Hakushi
Hakushi was a poorly booked wrestler from Japan that was completely wasted by WWE creative. His debut in the company showed he could entertain well in the ring, although his gimmick did little to elevate him as a star. He entered into a feud with Hart and the two competed against each other at the very first In Your House. The match is very random in retrospect. It was the first and last time the two would clash at a pay-per-view event.
1 Isaac Yankem DDS
Before he was The Undertaker's brother, Kane, Glenn Jacobs adopted the Isaac Yankem DDS gimmick. The gimmick was used during an era when a bunch of WWE wrestlers used occupational gimmicks. The closest wrestling ever got to a Kane vs. Bret Hart match was the few matches Hart had against Isaac Yankem DDS. The two wrestled their first televised match at SummerSlam 1995.
