The Montreal Screwjob

Yesterday marked the tenth anniversary of the most controversial wrestling match in the history of the genre.

It has been nicknamed the 'Montreal Screwjob' because of the way it ended.

I would be here all day telling you the story of what went down that night in Canada but to keep it short I will give you the quick version.

Bret 'Hitman' Hart was the WWF champion and was signed to the company on a twenty-year deal. He was one year into his contract when the owner, Vince McMahon, approached him to say he couldn't afford to keep him and implored him to strike a deal with their rival, World Championship Wrestling.

The Hitman signed with WCW but - as he was still WWF champion - he needed to drop the title at the Survivor Series event in Canada.

Bret had two reasons why he didn't want to lose the title in that match. His opponent that night was Shawn Michaels, a man he had professional rivalry with for numerous years. Michaels had, on occasion, refused to lose to Bret and his family so there was legitimate heat between the two.

The second reason why there was a reluctance to drop the belt was because Bret felt it would damage his credibility if he were to lose it in Canada as it was his home country and the place where WCW were planning to make regular visits with Bret as their headliner.

The agreement was Bret and Shawn would wrestle to a draw and then the belt would change hands a few weeks later.

This agreement wasn't adhered to.

During the match, Bret Hart was placed into his own finishing move and the bell was sounded indicating the champion had surrendered. Vince McMahon had called for the bell despite the champion not having given up.

Bret got up and spat in his former boss' face and then beat him up in the dressing room in the minutes after the finish.

Shawn Michaels denied knowing what had happened. In the years since this match he has come clean and admitted that he was involved in the set-up.

The wrestling documentary 'Hitman Hart : Wrestling With Shadows' manages to capture this whole story. It is very insightful and I highly recommend it if you would like to find out more on Hart's career and this infamous night.