Bret Hart vs Jerry Lawler (WWF, 6-25-1995)

WWF King of the Ring, Philadelphia, PA

This is the Kiss My Foot match. Stephanie Wiand stops Lawler in the aisle during his entrance and we’re pretending we can smell his disgusting festering foot. Commentary pretending they can smell it. Great stuff. Commentary has Vince and Dok Hendrix so it’s a real all-star team.

Lawler on the mic. He threatens to make the crowd kiss his disgusting feet, too. Vince theorizes that Bret will retire if he loses this match, out of pure embarrassment.

Bret fires right hands to the midsection in the corner, then drops King with a headbutt. Lawler rolls to the floor. Bret follows him out and rams his head into the guardrail. They’re pushing that Bret’s aggression is making him risk disqualification

Another series of right hands in the corner from Hart. Lawler rolls out again, Hart follows again and headbutts him in the lower back. Lawler turns it around by yanking Bret into the ring steps. “Burger King” chant goes up as Lawler soaks in the hate. Hart has a bad shoulder coming in so that’s a concern after getting run into the steps.

Lawler taking his time between action, using old time pacing. Hart rolled back into the ring, Lawler gets in and jaws with the crowd some more. Hart rammed into the top turnbuckle. Lawler sets for the piledriver — he hits it!

Lawler wasting time, doesn’t go for the pin. He wants another piledriver. And he hits it! Lawler again doesn’t go for the pin. But he will step through the ropes to argue with fans, including Hat Guy and Vladimir. A third piledriver connects!

Once again, King takes his time, but this time he DOES cover, and Bret kicks out. Philadelphia isn’t Lawler country so they don’t know how amazing it is that Hart has kicked out of three piledrivers from Jerry Lawler. Lawler annoyed with the crowd again, wasting more time, Bret catches him with right hands.

Lawler back with an eye rake, then dumps Hart back out to the floor. Lawler takes his boot off and we see a very gross sock on his right foot. Lawler hits Bret with the boot, then puts it back on. Dok pretends he’s dying from the smell, meanwhile Vince is fine. Lawler covers, gets two.

Boot choke in the corner from Lawler. “The stench must be HORRIBLE!” Jerry takes the boot off again. Bret catches the foot, takes Lawler down with a trip, and headbutts Lawler in the abdomen. Right hand to the gut from Lawler, Hart back with a right to the head. Elbow to the top of the head from Bret, another, another.

Lawler comes back, though, taking a cheapshot, then hits a flying fistdrop. He rolls Bret over, covers, Bret kicks at two. Lawler trying to drag Bret’s nuts into the ringpost, but Bret kicks him in the face. Bret goes out and throws more right hands to the gut.

Hakushi and his manager Shinja appear at ringside. Shinja distracts the referee, but Bret ducks a shot from Hakushi and it hits Lawler. Back into the ring, Lawler off the ropes and runs into a right hand to the gut. Sloppy Russian legsweep from Hart, perhaps something to do with Lawler’s loose right boot. Lawler hit with the side backbreaker, Bret up to the second rope, hits the elbow. Yeah, he’s cookin’.

Bret gets the legs, steps through, and turns the sharpshooter over! Lawler stuck in the middle of the ring, and he has to give it up. Hart doesn’t want to release the hold, but he does before the referee can reverse the decision.

Hart hops up onto the top rope and unlaces his boot. Lawler up and tries to escape, but Bret headbutts him. Hakushi comes back with Shinja. They’re on the apron. Bret gets distracted and Lawler hits Bret from behind. Hakushi tries for a springboard shoulderblock to Bret, but he misses and hits Lawler again. Hakushi clotheslined out of the ring. Lawler’s down.

Bret steps on Lawler’s face, then makes Lawler kiss his own disgusting foot. DDP Yoga.

Rating: 3/5. It’s VERY simple, VERY basic stuff, but it works with a hot crowd throughout. It’s Memphis wrestling with Bret Hart, which is what the Hart-Lawler feud was, essentially, which was all a good thing. It made for some fun old school rasslin’ bullshit in the middle of the WWF’s New Generation. It works here because the match doesn’t go on too long. They pretty much get to the point and get out in about nine minutes, and the crowd loves it.