"He was touched by that" - Former world champion shook Bret Hart's hand for the first time at Ric Flair's Last Match
Nick Aldis has opened up about his recent backstage interaction with Bret Hart at 'Ric Flair's Last Match' in Nashville. Aldis was one of the many wrestlers who attended the event on July 31, and he recalled sharing a memorable moment with The Hitman behind the scenes.
The former NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion has always considered Bret Hart his wrestling idol, so he didn't want to miss the chance to talk to the WWE Hall of Famer once he realized the veteran was at the show.
Aldis experienced a fanboy moment with Bret Hart as he shook hands with the legendary star for the first time. Aldis also told The Hitman that he fell in love with professional wrestling after watching the former WWE star's iconic work:
Here's what Nick Aldis stated about his recent meeting with Bret Hart on The Kurt Angle Show podcast:
"Bret Hart is my absolute idol; like, Bret's my guy. Bret's my hero, always has been, always will be," said Aldis. "And actually, the coolest moment for me being part of the Flair show was actually, for the first time, getting a chance to shake Bret's hand and look him in the eye and tell him like, 'You're the reason why I fell in love with professional wrestling.' It means so much to me to be able to shake your hand and tell you that.' You know, I thought he was touched by that." [11:25 - 11:59]
Bret Hart helped Nick Aldis fall in love with wrestling, but WWE Backlash 2000 inspired him to pursue it as a career
Aldis has developed a reputation for being one of the most accomplished wrestlers to have never worked for WWE.
The 35-year-old star, however, noted that he chose to pursue wrestling full-time after being impressed by WWE's Backlash event following WrestleMania 2000.
Almost every current talent in the business grew up to be a fan of the WWE product, and Nick Aldis, too, had fond memories of watching The Rock, Triple H, and Kurt Angle perform in their primes.
"Having said that, the moment that I knew that, okay, I'm not just a fan of this; there is more to it for me," Aldis added. "Like, I want to try to do this was Backlash 2000. It was The Rock beat Triple H in the main event, and It was just that the whole show was such a great show, top to bottom. Kurt wrestled Big Show; Big Show dressed up as Hogan. I can tell you everything that was on that show. It was such a well-put-together card." [12:00 - 12:41]
The National Treasure is set to lock horns with Flip Gordon during Night Two of the NWA 74 pay-per-view. Fans will have to wait and see which star will prevail on August 28.
What was your favorite WWE premium live event from the good old days of wrestling? Share it in the comments section below.
If any quotes are used from this article, please credit The Kurt Angle Show on AdFreeShows.com and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.