9 months ago
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Bret Hart says his respect for Vince McMahon isn’t there anymore, and he’s fine with the truth coming out now.
Hart spoke with Abraham Josephine Riesman for Slate about the allegations and lawsuit against his former boss. McMahon is accused of sexual assault and trafficking by Janel Grant, who filed a lawsuit against him, John Laurinaitis and WWE last month.
Hart says he’s not worried about sparing McMahon’s feelings, noting how “he’s never cared about mine.”
“I don’t have any problem with everybody kicking his head around the parking lot,” Hart said. “I’m OK with the truth coming out.”
Hart told Riesman that he had been tipped off months ago that McMahon was in trouble and “wasn’t going to be able to sweep under the rug.” Hart noted how he wouldn’t be the same man if not for working for McMahon, but condemned the alleged behavior and compared him to other vile men of power.
“It’s like Jeffrey Dahmer, Harvey Weinstein, or Jeffrey Epstein: Vince will be a joke,” Hart said. “He’ll be used for humor, and you’ll shake your head at the shock value of some joke about, ‘What did Vince McMahon do?’ He’ll always be associated with this story, especially as it gets bigger and bigger and bigger.”
“I always had a respect for him,” Hart added. “Now it’s tainted. I’m embarrassed that I thought so highly of him.”
Hart’s relationship with McMahon was fractured after the infamous Montreal Screwjob. They made amends when Hart returned to WWE ahead of WrestleMania 26, but Hart now says he doesn’t think he could bring himself to shake McMahon’s hand.
“I think, despite all of the issues I ever had with Vince, I know, deep down, I always respected him; but now, knowing what kind of a weirdo he became, I have absolutely zero respect for him,” Hart wrote to me in a text message after our conversation. “I do not think I could ever shake his hand if he extended it. Too creepy.”
