Ian Hunter here, walking on out to the black and pink of Bret Hart. You want a cheap pop anywhere in the country (or out of it in some respects), say "Bret Hart". He may not appear like the Candyman when you do it, but you'll sure as hell hear how many people love him. Like this week when Jericho dropped his name in the U.K. In fact, a lot of people have been doing that lately. As if there's no other names they could bring up when referring to Shawn Michaels and the ever lasting legacy of burden and blood on his hands and tragedy he's had to endure and whatnot. Too bad no one will bring up any other names, I'm sure Marty Jannety could use the boost every now and then. So since WWE is so fixated on one single event, we're going to do trivia on the job to end all jobs... The Montréal Screwjob. But first, we need to answer last weeks questions.
1: C. Shawn had to drop the belt after being beaten up by a bunch of people at a bar. Could be worse, Jarrett lost the belt in an apron.
2: Triple H. The belt was unified in late 2003 in a match against Kane. But we don’t try to remember that because it involves the words Katie Vick. So let’s move on.
3: B. For a short time they wanted to put the belt on Bam Bam Bigelow. But Scott Hall lobbied for the belt in Shawn’s absence and it was decided to put it on him.
4: B. Ricky asked for time off because his son was going to be born soon. Originally he wanted to keep the belt, but McMahon wanted a champion on television frequently. Ricky dropped the belt and went to be with his family for six months, and thus began the longest I.C. reign in WWF/E history.
5: E. Test was going to be the champion with all was said and done, keeping with the idea that anyone who was a champion had a job set in stone. (Which is why most of the champions were Invasion wrestlers) But plans were changed a few weeks in advance and he was moved to be the winner of the company Battle Royal.
We only have one winner this week, and it’s Peter McVine. In congratulations for this honor, you get the yellow foam belt held by the Ultimate Warrior, because no one ever liked that version of the belt. And now you’re being stripped of it for a whole new week of competition for a new champion, because just like WWE management, I don’t know what I’m doing with titles. Answer the questions and email your answers to TorchTrivia@gmail.com. We'll post the names of those who got ALL FIVE correct. Good luck to you all!
1. First will be a write-in question. The plan between Michaels, Hunter and McMahon has been discussed in various forums. Vince was thinking about doing it, Hunter chimed in and said it was necessary, the idea was discussed with others and then the plan was formulated to carry it out. But the day of the event Bret was still talking to Vince about how the match would end. Even though Vince had already planned it the week before, he pretended to have an actual discussion with Hart about the match and they eventually agreed that Hart would keep the belt via disqualification. Part of that was having the British Bulldog and Owen Hart running out along with a second referee after Hebner went down. Who was the replacement referee to take Habner's place?
2. Before the match even took place, McMahon had everything in place. Hebner was told what to do, Brisco practiced holds with Shawn in case Bret attacked him, Vince made sure there was extra security, and a number of other precautions were put into place. One of which was making sure a number of people were kept in the dark, including those running the match and at ringside. Years later one individual commented that they got the worst set of phone calls in their entire career after that night, and because they knew nothing of what was planned until after the event, had nothing to say to people asking for their opinion on it. Who was this?
A. Stephanie McMahon
B. Rick Rude
C. Linda McMahon
D. Jerry Lawler
E. Jim Ross
3. Now once the deed was done and they had to make their way to the back, they were of course met with great anger. If you think the fans were pissed, imagine the talent waiting behind the curtains. First they encountered Pat Patterson who was beyond angry that he was in the Gorilla Position and was told nothing about it. Then they ran into Shane McMahon second who was trying to direct traffic for them to get to the back. Immediately then a tag team came up to them and reassured Shawn, Hunter and Chyna that they were on their side and escorted them to the dressing room in front of a slew of confused and angry wrestlers. Who escorted them?
A. Legion Of Doom
B. New Age Outlaws
C. The Godwinns
D. The New Blackjacks
E. D.O.A.
4. After Bret was done tearing ringside to pieces, flipping off management and telling people he was headed to WCW, he made his way backstage to confront several people. But by that time he found that Earl Hebner had taken off in a cab and McMahon had locked himself in his office along with Gerald Brisco and Sgt. Slaughter. While Bret went to change and confront Michaels on the issue, people were knocking on Vince's door to get him to come out and talk to Bret. Most of the knocking went unanswered, but one individual not only got Vince to open the door, he got him to go talk to Bret on walkout threat alone. Who was this?
A. Steve Austin
B. The Undertaker
C. Ken Shamrock
D. Mic Foley
E. The Rock
5. We all know the fallout in spades now. Bret went to WCW, conflict continued, Attitude Era, Owen tragically dies, skip six years ahead to Bret and Vince making good with each other again, Bret does a DVD and goes to Hall Of Fame, Bret doesn't want to do anything else with WWE, writes a book, and who the hell knows what else down the road. But in the almost eleven years since the incident, Bret and Shawn still haven't been able to come to terms and just let it go. Or should I say Bret refuses to let it go with Shawn, while Shawn got past it own his own after finding God again. But there was one person who at least tried to get the two together and failed because Bret refused to take part. Who was this?
A. Jim Neidhart
B. Steve Austin
C. Ted DiBiase
D. Vince McMahon
E. Shane McMahon
LATEST PRO WRESTLING TORCH NEWSLETTER #1039 (17 PAGES)
This issue begins with a cover story by Wade Keller who attended Brock Lesnar's first UFC victory on Saturday night in the semi-main event in front of a record-setting crowd in his hometown. Keller's BBL looks at Lesnar's place in MMA and in what ways he seems more comfortable than ever... Bruce Mitchell's Memo examines the dilemma of Chris Benoit and the Hall of Fame... Sean Radican reviews the two latest TNA DVD releases... In-depth coverage of the TNA Hard Justice PPV including Keller's match report with star ratings and the newsletter-exclusive Roundtable Reviews... Jason Powell's "Page 2 Buzz" with scoops and insider analysis... WWE Newswire, TNA Newswire, and ROH Newswire with insider news, big story analysis, and notebook tidbits... Plus Keller's reports on Raw, Smackdown, and Impact, the Top 5 Stories of the Week, and more....
