WHAT IF: Montreal never happened?
 

WWE.com has been doing this "What If" section, asking wrestlers and crew how wrestling would be like if a certain event didn't occur or was done differently (they have "What if Hogan never slammed Andre" and "What if Austin never won the 1996 KOTR"). I saw this as interesting, but they don't do this from a business standpoint (I think it's within kayfabe, as the wrestlers are in character when forming the responses). So I'm thinking, I can do this in some ways here.

So here's the first one. We all know the aftermath of the infamous 1997 Survivor Series match. Michaels/Hart. Vince screws Bret, Shawn is booed every time he is in Montreal, "Mr. McMahon" is born, and Earl Hebner's rep is never the same.

HOWEVER, what if something happened in which the controversy never happened? Bret tapping out, Shawn going over cleanly, Bret agreeing to lose the belt humbily, Vince letting Bret drop the title the next night after winning it. Whatever the case would be that it wouldn't happen...

...if that scandal never happened, how would the WWE and wrestling in general be different NOW? May have the obvious, but the no-so-obvious differences will be there, too.
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MY Take, by the way...

Mr. McMahon would've never been born, and in a sense, the Vince/Austin feud would have a new way to be fueled, if it were to even happen. Shawn would never be booed. However, maybe Bret would actually sign for more years with the WWE. I think that, if Montreal never happened, Bret would think of Vince SO differently that he might agree to another year or whatnot. And, in essence, the Hart Foundation would've still had some steam left. And the "Monday Night Wars" would've not hit such a fever pitch that it did in 98.

But that's me.

Canada would have one less thing to talk about.

Bret Hart would still suck, TRUE STORY.

If Vince didn't screw Bret, nobody would screw him.

Come on, they'd have plentyt to talk about.

"Pretty cold, eh?"

"How 'boot them Americans?"

Actually, that's about it.

You guys are assholes.

Thinks that would be different if Montreal never happened...

1) Austin/McMahon would have never happened.

2) Austin would have still been big, but wrestling would have never experienced the second boom phase since so many people tuned in simply to see a redneck slam around his boss.

3) Bret Hart would simply be the answer to a trivia question, and not overhyped into someone who actually, you know, did jack shit worth mentioning.

4) Canada would still suck.

5) Maybe Starrcade between Hogan and Sting wouldn't have sucked it up with the ending. (I'm still convinced Bret's involvement probably made it so cluster fucking confusing)

6) RANDOM THEORY: Shane McMahon would have been the big bad bossman heel.

7) The internet wrestling community would be a FRACTION as large or widespread as it is.

8) Canadians would love Shawn Michaels.

9) Nobody would know the name Earl Hebner.

10) Bret wouldn't have been such a whinny bitch for the rest of his life and instead would have to find some other random pointless shit to soil himself over.

I love Shawn Michaels, I hold no ill will towards him, he was just doing his job.

Vince would probably be alive today :'(

I doubt that. That whole thing was done just to make Hogan agree to lose; it really had nothing intrinsic to do with Hart.

The One and James Steel would have almost nothing to bitch about on a regular basis.

1. Bret Hart would've dropped the title to Ken Shamrock shortly after the PPV.

2. Bret would've still been misused in WCW, thus leading to his career ending concussion.

3. Owen still probably would've died at Over The Edge.

4. Bret would've made appearances on Raw years ago even if he wasn't wrestling.

One less event that made HBK look like a bitch.

But watching HBK and HHH lie to save their lives and Earl fucking jetting as fast as possible was pretty hilarious.