Bret Hart says Donald Trump storyline with Vince McMahon inspired his return to WWE
During an interview with Inside The Ropes, WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart commented on his decision to return to WWE following the “Montreal Screwjob” at Survivor Series 1997. Here is what Bret had to say…
“So I called WWF. I remember watching WrestleMania [23] — I don’t know what year it was — but it was Vince wrestling good old Donald Trump. I remember watching it and thinking, ‘I could do that.’ And next thing I knew, the wheels started turning. ‘Why don’t you throw that card out? I’ll come back, work with you guys, put all this behind me, and make a distinct point where everything changes and I don’t have to deal with the screwjob issue anymore. It’s gone.’
So I made the decision to call. I was living in Hawaii at the time — I had a pretty good life down there, I was happy. I didn’t need wrestling. But I called WWF and talked to some guy named Kevin Dunn, one of Vince’s right-hand guys.
I said, ‘Yeah, I’d like to talk to Vince about maybe doing a storyline and coming back.’ I had just watched him wrestle Donald Trump. I said, ‘I could wrestle him,’ but I explained I had a concussion injury, which was very real. I can’t fall backwards or land on my head — it could probably kill me. I can’t even shake my head vigorously. It’s a serious problem.
I told Vince, ‘I can’t take any bumps, but Donald Trump never took any. I can fall on my knees, fall on my stomach, but I can’t fall backwards or take blows to the head. But I could do something. I can beat the crap out of you for sure.'”