Since the response to the placement of Bret Hart at No. 8 on the top 25 stars of WrestleMania list has been overwhelmingly negative, I figure I should explain my reasoning behind the pick.
Before getting into that, however, I just want to reiterate that I do these lists because I think they're fun and they spark interesting debates. I do admire the passion that a lot of you bring, but, please, let's not lose perspective here.
As I have said several times, it's all subjective and there is no right or wrong or definitive list. I have no problem with people disagreeing with me and I respect everyone's opinion – even if a segment of readers don't respect mine.
A good number of the comments I received felt that Hart should have been ranked in the top five or six. Actually, I wouldn't have a problem with him being as high as six. The truth is that I feel pretty strongly about the top five, but I struggled with six through eight. I think a strong argument could be made for any particular order with the three guys I have in those spots.
I have to admit that I was surprised by the outrage at placing Hart just two or three notches below where a lot of you thought he belonged. When you consider all the wrestlers who have been at WrestleMania over the past 24 years, I think No. 8 is a very good ranking.
There were several factors that led to my decision to rank Hart where I did. His longevity as well as memorable matches against Roddy Piper, Owen Hart, Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin guaranteed that he would be in the top 10. But part of the criteria also was position on the card and impact on the business.
The first six of Hart's 12 WrestleMania appearances were either tag team matches (against the likes of The Bolsheviks, Greg Valentine and The Honky Tonk Man and The Nasty Boys) or battle royals. When Hart did work in main events – at WrestleManias 9, 10 and 12, WWE business was in a down turn. And as much as we all love the Hart-Austin match at WrestleMania 13, that event has the lowest buy rate of any WrestleMania. WWE's signature show had lost a lot of its luster, as WCW's big event – Starrcade – destroyed WrestleMania that year. None of that is necessarily Hart's fault, but facts are facts.
Did the Hart-Austin match at WM 13 make Austin? It certainly played a large role, but what really shot Austin through the roof was his match against Michaels the following year with Mike Tyson as the special guest referee. The buy rates at WrestleMania 14 saw a huge increase from the previous year and led directly to WWE overtaking WCW in the ratings and sending the company to unprecedented heights.
Whether Hart was a victim of bad timing of circumstances or whatever, the truth is that he was on top during a period when interest in wrestling was in decline. His world title reigns occurred after Hulkamania and before the Attitude Era.
In response to those who pointed out how great of a wrestler Hart was, I agree, but this list isn't about who the best worker is, was or ever will be, it's about who the biggest stars were at WrestleMania. But let's look at match quality just for argument's sake. There is no question that Hart had four fantastic singles matches at WrestleMania, but his two matches against Yokozuna are among the worst WrestleMania main events in history. And I was sitting in the second row at WrestleMania 11 in Hartford, Conn., so I can say firsthand that the Hart-Bob Bob Backlund submission match was a stinker.
So there you have it. Agree or disagree, as least you now know where I was coming from.