“Do you think Hulk Hogan will ever be back in WWE?”
“Let’s hope not.”
That’s Bret Hart during his time on TSN’s Periscope account, holding a Q&A session and interacting with fans. Hulk Hogan was a frequent topic of conversation, and Bret says he’s off in Tampa in a “world of idol worship of himself.” Here’s what The Hitman had to say about the racist rant that got Hogan fired from WWE, and whether or not he was witness to racism in pro wrestling locker rooms:
“I can say that, through my experience, that a vast majority, of course not all of them, but a vast majority of the white, Southern wrestlers tend to be a little bit racial all the time, and the n-word was frequently used by a lot of wrestlers in the dressing room when there was a black guy not around, kinda thing. And being a Canadian, I found that really difficult, I didn’t see eye-to-eye with that kind of stuff and never felt like that, and I’ve never been in that kind of mindset, but for Hulk Hogan to make the comments that he made that is something if you had a camera like that in most of the dressing rooms with a lot of the Southern wrestlers from Florida, Tennessee, Mississippi, even Texas, you get a lot of that kind of slant on things. And I’m kinda glad he got busted for that reason, that times have changed, and y’know, you have to answer for that stuff, and he’s answering for it. He’s probably glad that Roddy Piper passed away, because he took all the edge off all that.”
Other highlights from the Q&A include:
- Bret says Kevin Owens is his favorite wrestler in WWE right now, and that he doesn’t consider him a “fat guy.” He puts him over in the same breath as guys like Bam Bam Bigelow. Heavy praise. No pun intended.
- Bret says he loves CM Punk, “wrestling has never been the same without him” and that he’s the best wrestler of his generation. He misses him, and hopes he gets a chance to get back into a WWE ring and show how great he is.
- On Seth Rollins breaking John Cena’s nose: “You can’t call yourself a great wrestler when you make those kinds of mistakes.”
- He names Tyson Kidd the most underrated wrestler of all-time, and is the kind of wrestler we won’t appreciate until he’s gone.
- The Iron Man match vs. Shawn Michaels (boo) and the WrestleMania 13 match against Stone Cold Steve Austin (yay) are his picks for his best matches.
- It “pisses [him] off” that the Sharpshooter is a transitional move, and people always get to the ropes.
- His real name is Bret Hart, but “Hitman” is just a moniker. Come on, who asked this question?
- He hopes his brother Owen will get into the WWE Hall of Fame next year, although he’s wary of WWE’s upcoming documentary. He says Owen’s widow has “totally made an ass of herself,” and has “done more to erase Owen’s career and legacy” than help it. “For God’s sakes, you’ve gotta move on.”
- Stu Hart would beat Chuck Norris in a fight.
- A lengthy hockey conversation, which is to be expected. He supports Calgary and Edmonton, and thinks Toronto’s going to turn it around.
Be sure to watch the entire thing, as he talks UFC, how tag team wrestling works, and how terrified he was of recovering from a stroke. It’s great stuff, even without him ethering Hogan.
