Owen Hart was an important wrestler in the then-World Wrestling Federation (WWF) during the 1990s and one of the members of the mythical Canadian family linked to pro wrestling. Tragically, he would die on May 23, 1999, following an accident while making his way into the ring.
Born on May 7, 1965, in Calgary, in the Canadian province of Alberta, he made his in-ring debut in 1983, debuting with his father’s promoter, Stampede Wrestling, after training at the famous Hart Dungeon, also owned by his father.
After stints in Japanese wrestling, he debuted in the WWF in the summer of 1998, initially as The Blue Angel and later as The Blue Blazer, a masked superhero character.
In mid-1989 he left the WWF, returned to Japan, passed through Mexico and even World Championship Wrestling (WCW), but in late 1991 he returned to the WWF to integrate the new version of the Hart Foundation, The New Foundation, along with the brother-in-law Jim Neidhart.
Over seven and a half years, he starred in memorable matches and won the WWF European Championship (once), the WWF Intercontinental Championship (twice), the WWF Tag Team Championship (four, twice with Yokozuna, once with The British Bulldog and once with Jeff Jarrett) and the King of the Ring tournament in 1994.
These are the 10 Best Owen Hart matches, in my opinion, from the WWF, in chronological order. RIP Owen.
WrestleMania X
Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart
At the previous year’s Survivor Series, Owen Hart was eliminated from one of the traditional team matches between the Hart Brothers and a faction led by Shawn Michaels, due to a miscommunication with brother Bret. After the match, Owen interrupted his brothers’ victory festivities to verbally attack Bret, creating a wound that would open at the 1994 Royal Rumble, when Bret and Owen challenged The Quebecers for the tag team titles. That match was stopped by the referee due to an injury to Bret, which frustrated Owen, who attacked his brother. Interestingly, the night ended with Bret as co-winner of the Royal Rumble match, alongside Lex Luger.
King of the Ring 1994
King of the Ring Tournament Semifinal:
Owen Hart vs. The 1–2–3 Kid
At the time an annual pay-per-view, King of the Ring 1994 and the finals of its respective tournament were scheduled for June 19.
A month earlier, qualifying matches began, with Owen Hart defeating Doink the Clown on the May 23 episode of Monday Night Raw and The 1-2-3 Kid beating Adam Bomb five days later on WWF Superstars. In full King of the Ring pay-per-view, Owen Hart and The 1-2-3 Kid qualified for the semifinals after defeating Tatanka and Jeff Jarrett, respectively.
Monday Night Raw (August 15, 1994)
Owen Hart vs. The 1–2–3 Kid
A rematch of the semifinals of the King of the Ring tournament, in which Owen Hart came out the winner, but a match without much of a story behind it, not least because The King of Harts was focused on their rivalry with Bret Hart, which would lead to a duel between brothers at SummerSlam for the Hitman’s WWF World Heavyweight Championship.
Interestingly, The 1-2-3 Kid had starred in a beautiful title match against Bret Hart on the July 11 episode of Monday Night Raw, having failed to become world champion.
SummerSlam 1994
Steel Cage match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship :
Bret Hart (c) vs. Owen Hart
It all started nearly a year earlier when Owen Hart was eliminated from one of the traditional Survivor Series team matches, between the Hart Brothers and a faction led by Shawn Michaels, due to a miscommunication with brother Bret. After the match, Owen interrupted his brothers’ victory festivities to verbally attack Bret, creating a wound that would open at the 1994 Royal Rumble, when Bret and Owen challenged The Quebecers for the tag team titles. That match was stopped by the referee due to an injury to Bret, which frustrated Owen, who attacked his brother. Interestingly, the night ended with Bret as co-winner of the Royal Rumble match, alongside Lex Luger.
In visible conflict, the two brothers measured forces in the ring at WrestleMania X, with the victory smiling at Owen. However, Bret redeemed himself that same night by beating Yokozuna to win the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. Meanwhile, the sibling rivalry continued, with their brother-in-law, Jim Neidhart, siding with Owen. And to solve the problem once and for all, a Steel Cage match between Bret and Owen was scheduled for SummerSlam, with the company’s top belt at stake.
Monday Night Raw (January 9, 1995)
WWF Intercontinental Championship :
Razor Ramon (c) vs. Owen Hart
At King of the Ring in 1994, Owen Hart beat Razor Ramon in the finals, thus achieving victory in the tournament. At Survivor Series 1994, Owen Hart and Razor Ramon were on opposite sides of the barricade. Ramon was part of The Bad Guys faction, which along with The 1-2-3 Kid, The British Bulldog, Fatu and Sione beat The Teamsters, of Owen Hart, Diesel, Jeff Jarrett, Jim Neidhart and Shawn Michaels, in a 5 -on-5 Survivor Series elimination match. Razor Ramon was the only survivor, following the countout eliminations of five of The Teamsters in one sitting, at a time when Fatu, 1-2-3 Kid, Sione and British Bulldog had already been eliminated. A month and a half later, a match was scheduled between Owen Hart and Razor Ramon for January 9, 1995, Monday Night Raw, with Ramon’s WWF Intercontinental Championship on the line.
Monday Night Raw (November 20, 1995)
Shawn Michaels vs. Owen Hart
At In Your House: Triple Header in September 1995, Diesel and Shawn Michaels won the WWF Tag Team Championship from Owen Hart and Yokozuna, in a match in which Diesel’s WWF Championship and Michaels ‘ Intercontinental Championship were also on the line . . Initially, Owen Hart did not appear in the match, having been replaced by The British Bulldog, but Owen eventually attended, having suffered the settlement despite not officially being in the match.
Due to this controversy, the following night the belts were returned to Hart and Yokozuna, who eventually lost them, also on that September 25 episode of Monday Night Raw, to The Smoking Gunns (Bart Gunn and Billy Gunn).
On the eve of their match on November 20, 1995, Monday Night Raw, Shawn Michaels and Owen Hart were on opposite sides of the barricade at Survivor Series. Shawn Michaels was one of the survivors of his team, along with Ahmed Johnson and The British Bulldog – the other element was Sycho Sid –, in the victory over Yokozuna, Owen Hart, Razor Ramon and Dean Douglas in a 4-on-4 Survivor Series elimination match…
In Your House 6 (February 18, 1996)
Match to determine the main contender for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XII:
Shawn Michaels vs. Owen Hart
In the match between Shawn Michaels and Owen Hart on the November 20, 1995 episode of Monday Night Raw, the Canadian applied an Enzuigiri to the Heartbreak Kid, who after some time collapsed in the ring, allegedly because he suffered a concussion.
Michaels even showed an intention to withdraw, but eventually returned in January 1996 to win the Royal Rumble match and earn an opportunity to fight for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XII. However, Owen Hart teased Michaels, claiming credit for the injury he sustained in November, prompting HBK to put his title shot on the line at In Your House 6.
Monday Night Raw (March 3, 1997)
WWF European Championship: The British Bulldog vs. Owen Hart
Established in early 1997, the WWF European Championship established its first champion through a tournament that took place over several events in Germany.
For the final, recorded in Berlin on February 26, but broadcast only on March 3, The British Bulldog qualified, who eliminated Mankind and Vader, and Owen Hart, who eliminated Flash Funk and Bret Hart . And to spice things up, even more, the two finalists were brothers-in-law and the holders of the tag team titles.
Raw is War (December 29, 1997)
WWF Championship: Shawn Michaels (c) vs. Owen Hart
At Survivor Series 1997, the Montreal Screwjob took place. WWF Champion Bret Hart was departing for WCW but refused to lose the title in Canada to a wrestler with whom he had some real-life animosity, Shawn Michaels, for Vince McMahon arranged with Bret and Michaels that the bout would end with a disqualification and that Bret would relinquish the belt or lose it at a later date. However, referee Earl Hebner followed the orders Vince McMahon gave him and had the bell ring when HBK trapped Bret in a Sharpshooter., although the Canadian did not give up, resulting in Michaels winning the WWF Championship .
At the same time, British Bulldog and Jim Neidhart managed to quickly terminate their respective contracts with the WWF, heading to WCW, leaving Owen Hart as the only member of the Hart family in the WWF.
Still, Owen Hart did not appear or be mentioned on WWF programming from Survivor Series until the In Your House: D-Generation X event nearly a month later, having attacked Shawn Michaels after he retained the title following a loss. by disqualification against Ken Shamrock.
Owen Hart took on a new attitude, nervous and antisocial, but still to the liking of fans, having feuded with the DX and challenged Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship on the December 29, 1997, episode of Raw Is War.
SummerSlam 1998
Lion’s Den Match: Ken Shamrock vs. Owen Hart
On April 27, 1998, episode of Raw Is War, during a tag team match between The Rock and Mark Henry and Owen Hart and Ken Shamrock, Hart attacked Shamrock and became the co-leader of the Nation of Domination faction. , along with The Rock.
Meanwhile, Shamrock was out of the ring for some time, due to injury, but came back big, having won the King of the Ring tournament. On the June 29, episode of Raw is War, Shamrock was challenged by Owen Hart, who had beaten King of the Ring in 1994, to a match. However, in 1997’s King of the Ring, Triple H, challenged both to a triple threat match, which was eventually won by Shamrock.
Three weeks later, a Dungeon match between Hart and Shamrock was announced at the Hart family wrestling school at the Fully Loaded: In Your House pay-per-view, with Dan Severn as guest referee. Owen Hart won via submission, after hitting his opponent with a dumbbell without Severn seeing him, as he had been accidentally kicked by Shamrock.
That said, a rematch was scheduled for SummerSlam, a Lion’s Den match, a fight in which a fighter must let the opponent KO or make him give up inside an octagonal cage, similar to MMA fights.