WrestleMania Rewind : WrestleMania VIII - Rowdy Roddy Piper vs Bret 'The Hitman' Hart

WrestleMania’s history has been punctuated with a good number of Intercontinental Title matches over the years, and it has become an open secret that the IC Title match is booked in such a way that more often than not, it steals the show. One of the earliest exponents of this phenomenon was Rowdy Roddy Piper’s IC Title defence against Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart, at Wrestlemania 8. This match was unique in a few respects – Both Piper and Hart were babyfaces and there was no natural concrete “good guy versus bad guy” angle to work the feud with. Added to that, they were also cousins in real life. Their chemistry through their short feud though, and the resulting match at Wrestlemania 8 were nothing short of tremendous – and proved why Bret ‘ The Hitman’ Hart would go on to be the next face of the company. More than that though, in my opinion, it justifies why Rowdy Roddy Piper holds a WWE Hall of Fame ring, but has never needed to hold the WWE Title to qualify him for it. Piper had cemented himself as one of the top heels in the company by then, playing his understated yet invaluable part in making Hogan the star that he was. Bearing that in mind, it was an interesting dynamic to behold a babyface Piper facing off against a young and upcoming star in Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart. 

#1 The Build-up

Bret Hart had defeated Mr.Perfect at Summerslam in 1991 to capture the Intercontinental Title in what has proven to be a match that has withstood the test of time. However, he dropped the title to a heel character, Mountie, who carried it into the Royal Rumble event. Piper, who had also been portrayed as Bret Hart’s friend until then, stepped up to the plate and fought Mountie for the IC title at the pay-per-view. Hot Rod went on to win his first, and what will remain as his only, Intercontinental Title. It was then announced that Bret Hart would face the champion Rowdy Roddy Piper for the IC Title at Wrestlemania 8. 

The lead up to Wrestlemania, though devoid of in-ring altercation, was inevitably spiced up owing to the fact that now two babyfaces, that were friends both on and off the screen, would have to put aside their friendship and do battle for the Intercontinental Title. One could sense that with Piper, one of the great villains, a heel turn was always around the corner, and this kept the audience hooked on to the plot.

Piper, being also one of the great talkers as well, showcased incredible psychological warfare in the interviews that punctuated the road to Wrestlemania 8. Bret Hart was technique personified in the ring, whereas Roddy Rowdy Piper was a brawler. Perhaps it was this dichotomy in style, added to the fact that the two men were friends, that captured the intrigue of the audience heading into WM8.