Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee

Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee
The Rochester War Memorial Arena (now the Blue Cross Arena), the venue in which the match took place.
DateOctober 7, 1986
VenueRochester War Memorial Arena
Kayfabe
Wrestler Bret Hart Tom Magee
Working
Booker(s) Vince McMahon
Promotion(s) World Wrestling Federation
Position 1st on the card
Stipulation(s) Singles match
Result
Tom Magee defeats Bret Hart[1]

Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee was a professional wrestling match between Bret Hart and Tom Magee, of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). The un-televised match took place at the Rochester War Memorial Arena in Rochester, New York on October 7, 1986 as part of a WWF Wrestling Challenge taping.[2]

Context

The infamous match, which was one of Magee's first after signing with the WWF,[3] was a carry job by Hart,[4] impressed WWF chairman Vince McMahon and Pat Patterson, who felt Magee was the next Hulk Hogan.[5][6]

Preservation status

The tape was thought to have been lost, as the WWE could not locate it in its vault.[7] This led many professional wrestling tape traders to consider it a "holy grail".[8] Professional wrestling photographer Mary-Kate Anthony had previously helped Bret Hart convert his VHS copies of his movies into digital, and Hart did not request the physical VHS tapes back.[9] In March 2019 Anthony announced on Twitter she had located the tape.[10] On May 13, 2019, the WWE Network aired a documentary entitled Holy Grail: The Search for WWE's Most Infamous Lost Match which detailed the legend behind the match and the recovery of the tape, and also featured interviews with Magee and Hart.[11]

References

  1. ^ "Former WWE Wrestler Horribly Beaten In A Dispute Over A Parking Spot". Inquisitr. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  2. ^ "WWF @ Rochester, NY - War Memorial - October 7, 1986 (8,200)". The History of WWE.
  3. ^ "Former WWF Wrestler Tom Magee Severely Beaten Outside Of His Home By Six Men". Fightful Wrestling. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  4. ^ "Tom Magee recovering after severe assault outside home". Wrestling Observer Newsletter/Figure Four Online. May 18, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  5. ^ "Documentary on WWE's most infamous lost match to air tonight after Raw". WWE. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  6. ^ "WWE Network to air Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee match, documentary". Wrestling Observer Newsletter/Figure Four Online. May 10, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  7. ^ Bixenspan, David. "Lost Tape Of Bret Hart's Finest Artistic Achievement In WWE Has Finally Been Found". Deadspin. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
  8. ^ "WWE To Air Infamous Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee Match For The First Time". ComicBook.com. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  9. ^ "WWE Requests Footage of Legendary Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee Match For Planned Feature". 411MANIA. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  10. ^ Anthony, Mary-Kate (March 26, 2019). "Which one of you were looking for this??! @Stuttsy @Statmark @davidbix @MikeEpsenhart ??!!pic.twitter.com/O8xZxJzqbz". @marykayfabe. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
  11. ^ "Bret Hart vs. Tom Magee 'Holy Grail' results and recap". Wrestling Observer Newsletter/Figure Four Online. May 13, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.