By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart reportedly signing with WWE comes at the end of a year where Hart has commented he would never sign a contract with WWE again.

The following is a detailed look at 2009 events concerning Hart and his views of/relationship with WWE and Vince McMahon.

-- February: Hart said he never wants to be in a position where he has to collect a paycheck from WWE after they broke his contract in 1997.

"I try to cooperate with them when I can, I think its good to be on better terms with them (WWE), but I have no plans at all to appear on any TV show or pay per view for them, ever. I don’t ever want to be in a position where I have to work and actually expect to make a check from them or contract.

"I’ve already made a contract with them that they broke, and I don’t think you can really do business with them after that. I don’t want to be a character in wrestling at all. I don’t want to do that again anymore."

-- September: Hart avoided questions on a rumored WWE return after WWE re-created the Montreal Screwjob at the Breaking Point PPV.

"I'm going to keep following my usual guiding rules in life of doing what makes me happy and taking care of myself," Hart said on the Monday Night Mayhem radio show. "I've done my hard work and just looking to fulfill whatever dreams I have left. I'd like to write two or three books and delve into what it was like to be a pro wrestler in the 1940s and 1950s."

Caldwell's Analysis from Sept.: After listening to the interview, I got the sense that Hart was content sitting at home writing a few more books, studying the history of the wrestling business, and not worrying about the stresses of constant travel. Hart doesn't sound like a guy who's looking for another payday or really needs life on the road again. If he does return as an on-air authority figure, I imagine a lot of his segments would be "Jack Tunney style" with him appearing on the video screen from a make-believe "WWE office" to make "official" decisions when necessary. I never got the sense in the interview that Hart was interested in being back on the road full-time working for WWE.

Question: Is Hart familiar with the current WWE product?

-- August: Hart Dynasty member Tyson Kidd said Bret Hart watches his matches and regularly critiques his work.

"Bret stays on top of my matches more than I do," Kidd told Slam Wrestling in an interview. "He has recorded and given me feedback on every one of my televised matches. Between all three of us (Kidd, D.H. Smith, and Natalya), we talk to him weekly. We get a report card."

Questions: Would Hart and Shawn Michaels get along?

-- March: Prior to WrestleMania 25, Shawn Michaels said he wants Bret Hart to induct him into the WWE Hall of Fame because he wants an honest perspective on his career and not a "fluffy" induction.

"He's always been a guy even know that despite all of our differences, he's still always been objective about my ability," Michaels told Brian Fritz for Between the Ropes radio. "It was just something that I thought, gosh, my Hall of Fame induction to be more about truth more than anything else. I just figured it would be neat or nice to have somebody that can give a real perspective on the journey because it hasn't been a fairytale."

-- May: Hart complemented Michaels and The Undertaker on their legendary match at WrestleMania 25.

"I'll be the first to say that I thought Taker vs. Shawn was the best match at WrestleMania, maybe one of the best matches I've seen in years," Hart said on the U.K. Sun's WrestleCast podcast. "I never take away the fact that Shawn was a great wrestler and he did a lot of great stuff. I've always been really proud of the match we had in Anaheim (the Iron Man match at WrestleMania 12), when I dropped the title to him."

[Bret Hart photo credit Wade Keller (c) PWTorch]

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