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Owen Hart

Owen Hart

Height: 5’11”
Weight: 227 lbs.
Real name: Owen James Hart
Hometown: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Pro debut: May 30, 1986
Finishing move: Sharpshooter, Hart Driver (Belly-to-belly piledriver)
Other aliases: The Blue Blazer (WWE), “The Rocket” (WWE), “The Black Hart” (WWE), “The King of Harts” (WWE), “ The Slammy Award Winning” (WWE)
Career highlights: WWE World Tag Team Champion (3), WWE European Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion (2), USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion, IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, Stampede North American Heavyweight Champion (2), British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Champion, Stampede International Tag Team Champion (w/Ben Bassarab)
Trained by: Stu Hart

History: When he first appeared in the WWF, everyone pushed him behind his older brother, Bret. Yet Owen Hart fought for everything in his life, achieving the heights that he dreamed of. Tragically, though, his career and wrestling abilities will always be less remembered than the way he left this earth.

Owen started his wrestling career much like most of the Hart brothers, training in his father's Dungeon. Stu Hart rode Owen hard, making him into a budding athlete, as he began to wrestle in the family's Stampede organization. He wrestled there for a few years, honing his skills and becoming a top-notch wrestler. In August '86, he teamed with Ben Bassarab, winning the Stampede International Tag-Team Titles from Duke Myers and Kerry Brown. They would hold the belts for two months before falling to the Viet-Cong Express. Hart rebounded quickly, winning the British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Title from Les Thorton later that month. He would stay the champion for nearly 10 months, then finally was beaten by Gama Singh. During this time, Hart also had a feud with Makhan Singh, trading the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title, which Hart at one point held for 13 months.

In 1988, Owen became the first westerner to win the coveted IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, beating Hiroshi Hase. While his reign was less than a month, it was still a major victory for the young man. It also got him noticed, as he was later invited to join the WWF. As the Blue Blazer, he wrestled multiple matches in 1989, including an appearance at Wrestlemania V, where he was beaten by Mr. Perfect (Curt Hennig). But the Blue Blazer was not yet a successful gimmick, and Owen soon left the WWF to continue to grow as a wrestler. He spent time overseas as well as in the states, even having a short run in WCW. But it took a few more years for Owen to be brought back to the WWF.

At the end of '91, Owen was brought back to the WWF, this time under his real name. He was promoted as Bret Hart's brother, and even placed in a tag-team with Bret's former tag-team partner (and Owen's brother-in-law), Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart. As the New Foundation, the team wrestled against various tag-teams, but never really found their mark. When the team broke up, Owen tried out another team, joining Koko B. Ware as High Energy. Once again, though, the chemistry just wasn't quite right. When Owen went down with a knee injury near the end of '92, the team was taken apart, with Koko B. Ware eventually being released by the WWF. Owen rehabbed for a time, then moved around in 1993, being 'loaned' out to the USWA. There he defeated Papa Shango in June '93 to become the USWA Unified Heavyweight Champion. The reign only lasted a few weeks, though, as the perrenial winner, Jerry "The King" Lawler, returned to claim the belt. Owen then returned to the WWF, still wrestling under his brother Bret's shadow. This would all soon change.

At the 1993 Survivor Series, "The Rocket" Owen Hart teamed up with his brothers Bret, Bruce & Keith to take on "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels & his Knights. The match seemed to be comfortably in the Hart family's hands, as they systematically chopped down the Knights. Owen himself made one of them submit to his version of the Sharpshooter. Soon it was Michaels vs. the entire Hart family. Michaels persevered for a while, going at it with Owen. On the outside, an injured Bret walked the apron, trying to pull it together. Meanwhile, Michaels reversed an Owen whip, sending Owen crashing straight into his brother, who flew off the apron and into the guardrail. While the rest of the brothers checked on Bret, Owen was rolled up and pinned by Michaels, the only Hart brother to be eliminated. Later on, when Michaels left, getting counted out, Owen came back to ringside, apparently to celebrate the victory with his brothers. Instead, he verbally berated Bret, saying that it was Bret's fault that Owen was eliminated. He even demanded a match, which Bret would not give him.

For a time, it seemed like Owen & Bret had patched up their differences. They even formed a tag-team, and were given a Tag-Team Title shot against the Quebecers at the 1994 Royal Rumble. During the match, Bret's knee was injured severely, and the Quebecers quickly focused on it, doing enough damage that the referee called for the bell, ending the brothers' title hopes. Owen then came into the ring and angrily kicked Bret in the knee, blaming him for the loss. He complained mightily about being Owen "The Shadow" Hart, even going as far as to accuse Bret of forcing him to wear the Blue Blazer mask early in his career. Their feud led to a match-up at Wrestlemania X, where Owen surprisingly came out on top. His anger was not sated, though, as Bret, later in the night, won the WWF Heavyweight Title. Owen believed that he deserved a shot at the belt, since he had beaten Bret, but he did not get one, until he fought in the King of the Ring Tournament.

In the tournament, Owen showed his stuff, beating down wrestlers like Tatanka and the 1-2-3 Kid to make it to the finals against Razor Ramon. It was a close match which was eventually decided by outside interference, when Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart helped his brother-in-law win. This made Owen the King of Harts, in his own mind, as well as getting him the title shot he craved against his brother Bret. The two faced off in a Steel Cage at Summerslam '94. Neidhart stood outside the cage, supporting Owen, while the British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith stayed out for Bret. The match turned out to be as close as they come, as both left the cage at the same time. A shot from Bret tangled Owen in the bars, though, allowing Bret to get out first. As soon as he landed, though, Neidhart attacked Smith, taking him out, then joined with Owen to beat up Bret inside the cage. This led to a massive family feud that lasted until the beginning of 1995, when Neidhart left the WWF again.

Hart's next move in the WWF was to hire a manager, signing on with Jim Cornette. He then openly challenged the Smoking Gunns to a Tag-Team Title match, while saying that he would find a great tag-team partner. At Wrestlemania XI, Owen came out with a former WWF Champion, Yokozuna, forming a tag-team with different styles. The two rolled over the Smoking Gunns to win the Tag Titles, Owen's first belts in the WWF. for the majority of 1995, Owen & Yokozuna stayed at the top of the tag-team division, flooring many teams that thought they could get through them. However, things started to fall apart in September '95. A match was scheduled between the tag champs and Shawn Michaels & Diesel. The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith substituted for Owen, and the match commenced. During the fight, Owen surprisingly reappeared, trying to interfere for his team. Instead, he was pinned by Diesel, apparently transfering the tag-team belts. Jim Cornette complained, though, saying that Owen was not legally involved in the match, and President Monsoon was forced to agree, transfering the belts back to Owen & Yokozuna. Unfortunately, the second reign was much shorter, as the two lost to the Smoking Gunns later that night. Although Owen & Yokozuna stayed together for much of the rest of 1995, they never again climbed back to the top before breaking up.

Going into 1996, Owen still seemed to have little direction in his singles career. He had some feuds with Diesel, Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon, with little to show for it. So he returned to his roots, joining up with the British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith as a tag-team, still under the managerial skills of Jim Cornette. After learning how to team better together over the summer, the two faced the Smoking Gunns at In Your House: Mind Games. The challengers managed to overcome the champions, with Owen & Smith hoisting up the tag belts. During the night, they also changed managers, as Clarence Mason was able to trick a groggy Jim Cornette into signing them over. With the belts, Owen & Smith continued to rule over the tag-team division. But a split seemed to be forming between them. At the 1997 Royal Rumble, Owen accidentally eliminated his partner, causing a riff. Later on, Smith fired Mason as their manager, despite Owen's feelings about it. Turmoil appeared to be building between them.

Things became more intense when Owen and Smith faced off in the finals of the European Title Tournament in February '97. Smith managed the victory, taking the belt and keeping Owen away from a singles title. The two continued to try to work together, though, defending the tag belts against teams like Vader & Mankind and the Headshrinkers. Things finally broke down, though, when an angry Owen demanded a shot at Smith's European Title after a tag-team title match. The next week, the two went at it, with no mercy for either competitor. Just when chairs were becoming involved, though, Bret Hart interceded, saying that family shouldn't fight each other. He blamed the Americans for breaking up their family, and said that they should work together against the USA. Owen & Smith agreed, forming a union. A few weeks later, Jim Neidhart and Brian Pillman joined them as well, as the Hart Foundation was reborn.

This finally seemed to push Owen in the right direction. With the support of his family, he wrestled better than ever, managing to take the Intercontinental Championship from Rocky Maivia only a few weeks after the Hart Foundation came together. The Hart Foundation started to look unstoppable, which proved to be a bad thing, as former enemies allied against them. Steve Austin & Shawn Michaels, two wrestlers who had never gotten along, allied to take the tag-team titles away from Owen & Smith, ending their reign. The war continued between the Canadian group and the American one, leading up to a 10-man match at Canadian Stampede between the Hart Foundation and Austin, Ken Shamrock, Goldust & the Legion of Doom. During the match, Owen's knee was injured by Austin, and he was taken to the back. Later on, though, Owen came back and scored the pinfall victory over Austin, igniting their already smoldering feud.

At Summerslam '97, Owen and Austin went at it, with the Intercontinental Title on the line. This was the match where Owen injured Austin's neck with a piledriver. He still lost, however, as Austin managed to get the pinfall victory and take away the IC Title. Owen was proud, though, of injuring Austin, bragging about it at every opportunity. This led to repeated run-ins from the Rattlesnake, usually ending in a stunner. Owen even tried to get a restraining order against Austin, with little success. Meanwhile, the IC Title was eventually vacated and put up for grabs in a tournament. Owen defeated Goldust and Brian Pillman to reach the finals at Badd Blood against Faarooq. Surprisingly, Austin ran in and attacked Faarooq, helping Owen win the belt. This set up Austin's chance to beat Owen again for the belt, as they faced off at the Survivor Series. Unfortuantely for Owen, the results didn't change, as Austin once again walked away with the title. It was also a bad night for Owen's brother, Bret, as the infamous screwjob from Vince McMahon went down. Owen, angry at how his brother was treated, took a month off to straighten things out.

At Degeneration-X in December '97, Owen returned, attacking Shawn Michaels. He then had a brief war with the Degeneration-X stable, going after the European Champion, Hunter Hearst Helmsley. During a regular show, Hart was scheduled to face Helmsley for the title. Instead, the Artist Formerly Known As Goldust came out, dressed like Helmsley. Owen, angry about the switch, nonetheless quickly disposed of Goldust. The Commissioner, Sgt. Slaughter, then came out and said that, since the match was sanctioned, Owen was the new European Champion. The two kept feuding for the belt, even after Owen tore a ligament in his ankle. Helmsley later used this to his advantage, challenging the injured Hart to a match. After Helmsley's manager, Chyna, used a baseball bat on Owen's leg, Helmsley got an ankle lock for the victory, taking the belt away. The two wrestlers met again at Wrestlemania XIV, with Helmsley again stealing away with the victory, thanks to a low blow from Chyna.

Owen continued to feud with Helmsley for the next month, allying himself with the Legion of Doom 2000. It was worked out that Chyna would be suspended in a cage, out of harm's way, and 1998's Unforgiven. This seemed to give Owen the advantage, but it was dashed when X-Pac came down and interfered, helping Helmsley retain the title once again. A furious Hart vowed that things would change. At the next Raw Is War, Owen teamed with Ken Shamrock against Rocky Maivia & Mark Henry. Just as the match started, however, Owen attacked Shamrock, viciously dropping from the turnbuckle onto a steel chair on Shamrock's ankles. He then locked Shamrock in the Sharpshooter, then followed it up by biting Shamrock's ear, causing blood to flow. It took many officials to get the wildman off of Shamrock, and to the back. It was later confirmed that Owen Hart had gone heel and joined the Nation of Domination.

With the Nation of Domination on his side, Hart began a brutal war against Degeneration-X, which culminated at Over The Edge '98. Hart, D'Lo Brown and Kama Mustafa (the Godfather) went at it with Helmsley and the New Age Outlaws. Hart eventually grabbed the victory by pedigreeing Helmsley. A few days later, as the war between the Nation and Degeneration-X continued, Hart was attacked by a returning Ken Shamrock, leading to a war between the Nation of Domination and Shamrock and his ally, Dan Severn. Hart also continued to feud with X-Pac, as both wrestlers caused the other to be eliminated from the King of the Ring tournament. The two foes met up at the KOTR PPV, with members of the Nation and Degeneration-X involved. In the end, with Owen looking for the win, Chyna nailed him with a chair, allowing X-Pac to get the victory.

Hart next concentrated his sights on Ken Shamrock, with the two fighting back and forth for a month before signing a match for Fully Loaded. It was a submission match, held at Stu Hart's Dungeon, giving Hart an edge. It also had Dan Severn as the special guest referee, though, evening things out. During the match, Shamrock nailed Severn with a kick, knocking him down. Owen stepped in and knocked Shamrock out with a dumbbell, then grabbed Shamrock's arm and made it seem that he was tapping out. A dazed Severn called for the bell, giving the win to Owen. At the next Raw Is War, Owen was going after Jason Sensation, when he was attacked by both Severn and Shamrock. However, Severn turned heel, saving Owen and ambushing Shamrock instead. For the next few weeks, Owen & Severn teamed together against Shamrock, who was aided somewhat by Steve Blackman. Another match was signed between Hart and Shamrock, placing them in a Lion's Den cage match. Just when it seemed Hart had the victory, Shamrock reversed a submission hold into an ankle lock. With Severn walking away from the cage in disgust, Owen was forced to tap, losing the match.

After a brief feud with Edge, Owen went back after his former trainer, Dan Severn, looking for some payback. During a Raw Is War, though, Owen appeared to have injured Severn with a piledriver, the same maneuver that injured Steve Austin. Severn was carted off and taken to the hospital. The next week, Owen appeared on television, deeply depressed, and announced that he was sorry for what had happened to Severn, and that it was over. He then left the arena. Soon afterwards, the Blue Blazer began to appear in the WWF once again, going after Steve Blackman time and time again. When confronted about it, Owen claimed that he was retired, and that it wasn't him. When Blackman attacked Owen, trying for revenge, the Blue Blazer shockingly appeared and nailed Blackman with another assault, making it seem as if the Blue Blazer was, in fact, NOT Owen Hart. In actuality, it was a trick, with Jeff Jarrett and Owen switching the mask back and forth, to confuse the issue. At Rock Bottom in December '98, Owen 'returned' to the ring, fighting a match with Blackman. However, Owen became discouraged during the bout and left, losing via countout.

On the next show, during a match between Goldust and the Blue Blazer, Steve Blackman came down to the ring and unmasked him, showing it to actually be Owen Hart. Hart and Jarrett later took Blackman out with a guitar shot, keeping the feud going. A Lion's Den match was later scheduled between Owen and Blackman, with an injured Dan Severn watching from the outside. The injury, though, was greatly exaggerated, as Severn tore off his neckbrace, entered the cage and helped Owen beat down Blackman. Owen & Jeff Jarrett next focused on the tag-team titles, which were held by Ken Shamrock & the Big Boss Man. At a Raw Is War, they fought it out for the belts. The match was decided when another Blue Blazer, this one an African-American, knocked the Big Boss Man out with a guitar shot, allowing Jarrett to get the pin and the tag-team titles. Owen's problems with Shamrock continued, while he and Jarrett were put into a month-long feud with D'Lo Brown for the tag belts.

At Wrestlemania XV, a battle royal was held before the PPV, to choose two competitors to challenge the tag-team champions. D'Lo Brown and Test were the last ones remaining, so they faced Owen & Jarrett with the belts on the line. With interference from PMS, Owen & Jarrett once again defended their gold. Confident, the duo unleashed an open challenge to anyone in the back. Kane answered the challenge and attacked the two men on his own, looking unstoppable. The tag champs were forced to use a guitar, getting them disqualified, but allowing them to keep the belts. As they attacked Kane, though, X-Pac came out and aided him. A week or so later, Kane & X-Pac took on Jarrett & Hart for the belts, with the challengers coming out on top, finally stripping Owen & Jeff of the tag-team titles.

Owen & Jarrett continued to try to get the belts back from Kane & X-Pac for the next month, with little success. They lost a #1-Contenders match to the New Age Outlaws at Backlash, seemingly ending their title hopes. Soon afterwards, a feud began between the duo and the Godfather, who won a match over Jeff Jarrett that supposedly had Debra on the line. The Godfather wanted to make Debra one of his ho's, but Owen kept that from happening. A few weeks later, Owen was supposed to wrestle Val Venis. Instead, the Blue Blazer returned once again, and was able to defeat Venis. He then announced that everyone should drink their milk and eat their vitamins, acting like a 'hero'. Unfortunately, this was one of the worst angle turns in history, as it would lead to Owen Hart's tragic death.

On May 23rd, 1999, Owen Hart was scheduled to face the Godfather for his Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship at Over The Edge '99 at Kemper Arena in Kansas City. Hart appeared as the Blue Blazer, 'flying' in from the ceiling on a cable. Somehow, during the move, the cable came loose, sending Owen Hart down nearly 50 feet to the ring below. Despite CPR and a quick trip to the hospital, it was later announced from a crying Jim Ross that Owen Hart had died due to cardiac arrest. It was a devestating blow to professional wrestling, losing one of the top stars in the business in such a senseless way. Many criticized how things were run in the WWF, as well as how they continued the show after Owen's death. The next Raw is War, a touching memorial show was run for Owen, with many of the superstars talking about their feelings towards the man. Many of them teared up.

Owen Hart's talent will always be remembered. He was a true wrestler, not bound by a single speciality. He could be a high-flyer, a technical wrestler, or as hardcore as they come. He was the future of professional wrestling, which left many wondering what could have happened, if he had not fallen that day. Most believe that he was a future WWF World Heavyweight Champion.