In what may have been the greatest confrontation in Federation history, Bret "Hit Man" Hart put up his title against Shawn Michaels. According to the special rules of this Iron Man Match, the winner would be the individual to score the most decisions within a 60-minute time limit.
Michaels' mentor, Mexican wrestling star Super Sock Jose Lothario was first to enter the ring. As fans looked around for Michaels, Lothario climbed the ropes and pointed up to the ceiling area - where a spotlight shined on the dancing challenger high above the crowd. With a harness strapped around his waist, Shawn then swung down a cable into the audience and began his march toward the ring for the most important battle of his life.
Hart chose a less ostentatious entrance, simply walking down the aisle like the proud soldier he is. In a poignant moment, he kissed his championship belt and handed his sunglasses to his 6-year-old son Blade before beginning the fight.
The two were cautious at first, relying on fundamental maneuvers like go-behind takedowns, escapes, reversals, wristlocks, headlocks, arm bars, back heel trips and front facelocks. Around seven minutes into the match, they opened up a bit, running the ropes. Shawn came out on top after the brief flurry, taking Bret to the canvas with a series of armdrags. About three minutes later; they left the mat and charged at each other again. This time, Michaels also bested' his rival, snatching Hart in a headscissors and rolling to the canvas, while flipping Bret to ringside.
Bret decided to take a more ag-gressive approach, ramming his head into the Heartbreak Kid's lower abdomen and dropping a leg across Shawn's collarbone. Fifteen minutes into the match, the champion clotheslined the challenger out of the ring and delivered a forearm smash on th earena floor. There, the Heartbreak Kid shoved Bret straight onto the timekeeper's lap, and then he went after the champion with a side kic. Then the Hit Man slid out of the chair, and the hapless official was knocked senseless.
Ignoring the 'mistake, Shawn targeted Bret's left shoulder in the ring. First, the Heartbreak Kid caught Bret in a wristlock and planted a foot on each side of the arm, stretching the champ in a submission attempt. Frustrated that Hart wouldn't give up, Shawn ran the shoulder into the ring post, executed a shoulderbreaker and came down squarely on the sore region with a double axhandle from the ropes. Grabbing Hit Man in a hammerlock, the challenger raced across the ring, driving the shoulder into the turnbuckles.
Bret's offensive strategy had, thus far, been ineffective, so he switched to defense. He waited until Shawn had him backed into the ropes, then lifted up the challenger over the shoulder, dropping his neck onto the middle strand. Bret next catapulted his opponent over the turnbuckles, and Michaels' chin crashed into the ringpost.
At the half-hour point, Bret delivered a bulldog headlock and began climbing to the top rope. Shawn got off the canvas and tried reaching up and tossing Hart. But the Hit Man rained fists on Michaels' head and chest, spun him around and shot off the top turnbuckle with a knee wedged into the back of the challenger's head. Michaels smacked into the referee on the way to the mat. Observers would later marvel that not only did the official recuperate quickly but his skills remained sharp until the very end of the contest.
Shawn appeared to be out; however, he wasn't. Rather, he was waiting for Bret to slip up. The Hit Man fell into the trap as he whipped the contender into the ropes. Believing that Michaels could not mount a comeback, Hart was stunned when his opponent bounced back toward the' center of the ring and suddenly met him with a powerslam.
As Michaels' momentum grew, Bret rolled out of the ring. Shawn would not be deterred. The Heartbreak Kid scampered up to the top rope and splashed the Hit Man on the arena floor.
Michaels could have probably have gained the, first, fall at this stage via count-out. But there was something inside the Heartbreak Kid that told him it was better to beat a man inside the ring. Shawn forced Bret back between the ropes, then climbed the buckles and launched himself at the Hit Man. Hart managed to pull his opponent out of the air and roll onto him for a two-count.
Disappointed, Michaels tried a perfect-plex, then a sleeper. Bret wouldn't sink. Shawn backed him-self against the buckles, grabbed the ropes on each side of him, boosted himself up and delivered a mule kick to Hart's face.
Bret was hurting, but Michaels was a little too impatient. Instead of measuring his opponent, Shawn charged Bret in the corner. Hit Man had been in this position many times before, and he knew exactly what to do. He bent over and flipped the Heartbreak Kid over the buckles right onto the arena floor.
Shawn landed on his back - a detail not lost on the champion. Hoping to further flame the injured area, he hedbutted Michaels' spine, slung him back-first into the turnbuckles, scaled the ropes and elbow-smashed Shawn's vertebrae. Hit Man followed these manuevers with a suplex and a camel clutch. Then he tossed Shawn over the ropes.
On the way down, Michaels wiped out his trainer, Josa Lothari. Lothario stumbled to his feet just as Bret was whipping Shawn into the ring steps. Once again, Jose was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He collided with Michaels and fell to the floor.
The match returned to the ring, where Bret delivered a belly-to-belly suplex, then back to the arena floor, where Hart dived onto his opponent through the ropes. Shawn struggled onto the apron. Hit Man met his foe at the ropes and tried suplexing him into the ring. But Michaels managed to land on his feet and get behind Bret. Hart quicKly switched places with his apponent and pulled out a German suplex. Shawn seemed finished, but he somehow raised his shoulder at the count of two.
Bret was too close to victory to give up. He delivered another suplex - this time with both men actually syanding on the top turn buckle.He tried a Sharpshooter, but got a kick to the face for his trouble. He caught Shawn in a half Boston Crab. Michaels fought, crawled over to the ropes and grabbed them, forcing the champion to release the hold.
This was getting aggravating. With less than five minutes left, Hart needed to end this thing. However, Shawn was just picking up his second wind. Bret dived at the challenger from the second rope and got smacked in the face with a vicious boot. Shawn rose, surprised Hit Man with a dropkick, reversed an Irish whip and then hit Bret with a flying elbow.
With two and a half minutes left, Michaels executed a suplex, followed by a flying elbow, a gut-wrench suplex and a moonsault. Then came a Mexican maneuver in which Michaels leapt from the second ring rope, wrapped his legs around the Hit Man's shoulders and flipped to the canvas, sitting on top of the champion.
There was one minute left in the match. Neither man had scored a pinfall. Both were exhausted - but they had to give it their all. Shawn tried a dropkick from the top rope. Bret caught Shawn's legs and turned him around in a Sharpshooter. The referee asked Michaels if he was willing to submit. Michaels refused. There were 10 seconds left. Hart applied more pressure, but the fans were counting down now, and Shawn gritted his teeth and shook his head. At the one-hour mark, the bell rang. The Hit Man was forced to release the hold-and' Michaels hadn't quit.
A panting Bret picked up his belt, kissed it and proceeded toward the dressing room as Gorilla Monsoon entered the ring. Just as the Hit Man was about to pass through the curtain, Monsoon made a stunning decision: Sudden death rules would be added to the match. There had to be a winner!
Looking perturbed, Hit Man returned to the ring. Michaels was still on the canvas, desperately trying to get to his feet. "Ring the bell," Hart said, driving fists and knees into the contender's lower back and delivering a backbreaker. The champion slung Michaels into the buckles, then charged behind him. Incredibly, Shawn grasped onto the ropes and vaulted over Bret as he surged forward. Hart looked around - confused-and walked straight into Michaels' superkick. The Hit Man was stunned, but he was still on his feet. He wobbled toward Michaels again, and this time he got kicked straight in the face - the most direct hit of the night.
Bret dropped like a tree struck by lightning. And the Heartbreak Kid fell right on top of him, hooking the leg and holding it, as the referee counted, "One, two, three."
The fans went wild. Shawn was nearly driven to tears as he stood in center ring, realizing that his childhood dream had come true. Then, in one of the classiest moves ever seen in the World Wrestling Federation, he left the ring and shook hands with-first-Bret Hart's son Dallas, then the ex-titlist's father, Stu, proving that the Heartbreak Kid was indeed made of championship material One night before, at the Slammy Awards, Michaels had been called the leader of the New Generation. Now, he had the belt to fully live up to that label.