Bret Hart’s Greatest WWE SummerSlam Matches

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WWF SummerSlam 1994, United Center, Chicago, Illinois

WWF Championship Steel Cage Match
Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart (c)

Result: Bret Hart defeats Owen Hart by escaping the steel cage and retains the WWF Championship

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

By the Summer of 1994, Bret Hart had became one of the most popular wrestlers in the world. He main evented WrestleMania IX  and X. He was the current WWE champion going into SummerSlam that year, currently in his second reign.

However, a family member of Bret’s could not stand the attention he was getting. Owen Hart had became jealous of the attention and praise that his brother Bret had received. Through his anger and jealousy Owen challenged Bret to a match at WreslteMania X, which Owen won.

Owen’s success after that monumental win continued, when in June he won the 1994 King of The Ring, but that wasn’t enough for Owen. Owen became obsessed with beating his brother for the WWF Championship, to prove his superiority over his brother. Owen got that chance at SummerSlam 1994, inside of a steel cage.

The match begins with Owen viciously attacking his brother once he enters the steel cage. Bret starts to fight back and tries to climb the cage quickly but Owen catches him and brings him back in. After knocking Bret down Owen tries to climb the cage but Bret stops him.

The brothers then exchange attempts on trying to escape through the door with both stopping one another every time.After knocking Bret down Owen climbs the cage getting to the other side. Bret catches him though and the two exchange blows on the top turnbuckle.

Owen wins the exchange and knocks Bret off the top. Owen then connects with a drop-kick. Owen then tries to climb the cage again, but yet again Bret catches him and both fall off the top of the cage into the ring. Bret is then able to connect with a bit of offense keeping Owen down on the mat.

Bret then tries to climb the cage and gets to the top before Owen catches him. Bret is able to kick Owen off of him for a second, but Owen grabs Bret’s leg and flings him flying off the cage. Owen then tries to escape through the door, but Bret is able to stop him.

Bret tries to land and elbow drop from the second rope onto Owen, but Owen moves out-of-the-way. With Bret down Owen tries to climb the cage and once again gets to the other side. Before he can hit the bottom though Bret catches Owen by his hair and forces him back into the ring.

Bret and Owen then exchange a multitude of times trying to escape from the cage each time being stopped by one another. Back in the ring Owen is able to pick Bret up and connect with a pile-driver. Owen tires to climb the cage again, but Bret is able to stop him. Bret then tries to escape to the ground getting within inches of the floor, but Owen is able to stop him. Owen then tries to escape through the cage, but Bret catches him by his legs drags him to the middle of the ring and flings him into the cage.

Again, Bret tries to escape through the door but at the last second Owen makes a diving leap to catch and stop Bret before he can. The two then to reverse grapples until Bret is able to shove Owen into the cage. Bret tries to climb the cage again, but again Owen catches him. Owen then whips Bret into the ropes and connects with a flying kick. Owen then tries to climb out, again though Bret stops him.

The two then begin fighting on the top rope, exchanging blows, until Bret connects with a kick to the face knocking Owen off the top rope. Bret tries to escape, but Owen stops him bringing him back into the ring. The two then knock each other down. Owen gets to his feet first and again tires to climb out of the cage. Bret is able to grab Owen and super-plexes him from the top of the cage all the way down to the mat.

After lying on the mat after the super-plex, Bret begins to crawl to the door. Owen drags him back and applies the Sharpshooter on Bret. However, Bret is able to counter it, and he locks the Sharpshooter onto Owen. After knocking Owen out with the Sharpshooter Bret starts to climb the cage. Bret makes it to the other side but at the last second Owen is able to catch him and bring him back into the ring.

The two both punch each other in the face on the top rope and they both go crashing to the ground. The two then begin again to climb the cage. The two both make it to the other side, the two are fighting on the other side. Bret knocks Owen into the cage. Owen falls back but his leg gets caught in the cage, hanging him upside down. Bret then jumps to the floor landing on the outside making him the winner.

After the match Owen Hart and Jim Neidhart bring Bret back into the ring to attack him. However, the rest of the Hart family climbs into the ring to help Bret and to stop the attack on him.

The win for Bret Hart, helped validate the notion that he was the best wrestler in the world after that grueling cage match. The match has been considered one of it not the greatest match in the history of SummerSlam, and one of the best matches of Bret’s career.

After the match Bret continued to shine as one of the most popular wrestler in the world, but a new attitude was on the horizon changing the landscape of the wrestling world.

Next: Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker