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02-24-2006, 08:23 PM
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Death Magnetic
Join Date: May 2003 Location: City of Champions
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Rep Power: 113   gXboxLive Position: 57th | The British Bulldog Davey Boy Smith Smith was trained by Ted Betley and famously by Stu Hart in the Hart Family Dungeon. While training with the Harts, he met Stu and Helen Hart's daughter, Diana Hart, whom he would eventually marry. They had two children: daughter Georgia Smith and son Harry Smith. The British Bulldogs Smith got his start in Stu Hart's Stampede Wrestling and eventually moved on to the World Wrestling Federation along with brothers-in-law Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart. He began his WWF career by forming a Tag-Team with fellow Englishman The Dynamite Kid, fittingly dubbed "The British Bulldogs." Bulldog's power-based wrestling provided a great mesh with Dynamite's high-flying before-its-time style, and the pair were well received by fans. Captain Lou Albano managed the team, and they were often accompanied to the ring by their mascot, an miniture bulldog named "Matilda." Their biggest victory came when they defeated "The Dream Team" of Brutus Beefcake and Greg Valentine for the World Tag Team Championship at Wrestlemania 2. They held the belts for nearly 10 months before dropping them to The Hart Foundation in January 1987. The storyline surronding the title loss was memorable in that Dynamite had suffered a back injury that would eventually contribute to ending his career, and as a result, worked an angle were he was knocked out for the entire match. Their other memorable feuds included The Islanders & Bobby Hennan and The Rougeau Brothers. First Singles Run Smith broke out on his own as "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith in 1990, feuding with various muscled midcarders such as the Warlord and the Barbarian. He defeated Warlord at Wrestlemania VII and teamed with his brother-in-law Hart for the first time at the 1992 Survivor Series in a losing effort on Roddy Pipers team. He reached what was arguably the pinnacle of his storied carer on August 29, 1992, when he pinned Bret Hart in front of over 80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium in England to win the Intercontential Title. Hart revealed in his 2005 DVD release that he had convinced Vince McMahon to allow the match to close the show as their workrate, combined with Smith's popularity, would make the match a rousing success. The image of Bulldog, Hart, and Diana Hart-Smith embracing in the ring is still used today as a symbol of Smith's career. Smith dropped the title to, ironically, Shawn Michaels on November 8, 1992 in a match aired on Saturday Night's Main Event. Shortly after, his contract expired and he took a brief hiatus from wrestling. World Championship Wrestling Smith had a mildly eventful run in WCW in 1993, engaging in feuds with Sid Vicious and Big Van Vader over the WCW World Heavyweight Title, and forming a mildly successful alliance with Sting. He was known simply as Davey Boy Smith, as the WWF had copyrighted the "British Bulldog" moniker. In 1993, he was reportly involved in an altercation with a man at a bar who was making advances towards his wife. As a result of the altercation (and the ensuing legal issues that followed), WCW released him from his contract. Return to World Wrestling Federation Smith returned to the WWF in 1994 as an audience member of the Hart family in a steel-cage match between Bret Hart and Owen Hart at Summerslam 1994. Smith ended up getting involved at the end of the match, helping Bret fend off Owen and ally Jim Neidhart. Smith would return to active competition shortly after, working a reduced schedule initially while letting some nagging injuries heal. He was in the corner of Bret Hart when Bob Backlund defeated Bret Hart for the WWF Title at Survivor Series 1994. He was knocked out after hitting the steel steps while chasing Owen Hart, allowing Owen to take position of Bret Hart's towel and ultimately cost him the match. Smith returned to full-time competition in the 1995 [Royal Rumble] match, entering at #2 and lasting all the way to the end before being eliminated by Shawn Michaels, the #1 entrant. The two would renew their old rivalry following the match and wrestle on house shows leading up to Wrestlemania XI. At Wrestlemania XI, Bulldog formed a team with Lex Luger, dubbed the Allied Powers. With their main-event credibility, many expected them to capture the tag team straps. Luger would leave the company shortly before Summerslam 1995, however, effectively dissolving the team. Smith found himself at a crossroads following Luger's departure; he was a main-event level superstar, but the company was loaded with faces above him in Kevin Nash, Michaels, Hart, Scott Hall, and others. As a result, Smith reinvented himself as a heel, turning on Nash in a tag-team contest and alligning himself with Jim Cornette's stable of Owen Hart, Yokozuna, and Vader. In a memorable move, he cut his trademark long hair and began sporting a buzz-cut. He received a WWF title match against Nash at In Your House 4 in October 1995, and he defeated the champion by DQ following interference from Bret Hart, who attacked Smith upon provocation. He recevied a rematch for the strap at In Your House 5 in December 1995, and was soundly defeated by Hart. In early 1996, the Bulldog would team with stablemates Vader and Owen Hart to battle Yokozuna, Ahmed Johnson, and Jake Roberts. Smith, in particular, fueded with Johnson over who was the stronger of the two. He would become involved with his old nemesis Shawn Michaels over (storyline) accusations that Michaels had come on to his wife. The two battled to a draw at an In Your House event in May 1996 (both men were caught with their shoulders pinned to the mat in a back suplex attempt). Michaels defeated Smith in the rematch at King of the Ring 1996. Smith captured gold again in late 1996 when he and Owen Hart defeated The Smoking Gunns to capture the WWF Tag Team Championship. They also left Cornette and briefly took on Clarence Mason as their manager before Mason left them to focus entirely on the Nation of Domination. Around early-1997, however, Bulldog and Owen engaged in a heated rivalery over who was the superior teammate. The feud intensived when Smith defeated Hart in Germany on February 26, 1997 to become the inaguaral WWF European Champion. Their feud would be diffused, however, when the newly anti-American Bret Hart interrupted a match between the two on an April edition of RAW, ending the long-standing Hart family feud and reuiniting them all as the new Hart Foundation. Smith and Hart remained WWF Tag Team Champions until dropping the belts to the unlikely team of Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin in June 1997. When Michaels went down with an injury, they failed to regain the titles from Austin and new partner Mick "Dude Love" Foley. As such, Smith focused on his European Championship in singles action, defending the title almost exclusively on European tours oversees (where he remained a huge draw). He was also involved in a somewhat bizarre feud with Ken Shamrock that included a "Loser eats Dog Food" match at Summerslam 1997. Smith would drop his European Championship in controversal fashion at the WWF's British-only PPV One Night Only in September 1997. Smith was booked in the main event to defend the belt against Shawn Michaels, and the story goes that Michaels convinced McMahon that he should go over, as it would create build for not only his impending rematch with Bret Hart, but also build for a rematch against Smith at the next British PPV (Many suspect Michaels simply did not want to lose to Smith). Smith reluctantly agreed, and fans at the event, who gave Smith a hero's ovation, voiced their displeasure by booing Michaels out of the arena and litering the ring with garbage. Shortly after dropping the belt, the infamous Montreal Screwjob took place, and Smith, along with Jim Neidhart, left the WWF for WCW in support of Hart. (Though it is worth noting that Smith was the sole survivor of his team in a Survivor Series match earlier that evening). Back to WCW Smith unfortunately did not receive much of a push at all in his second run in WCW, as the card was already heavily saturated with a mix of younger and older talent. Smith and Neidhart where paired in a tag team and featured sparingly on Thunder, WCW's B-Talent show, though they did receive a few tag team title shots. Sadly, the most memorable moment of Smith's second WCW run was a tragic one. He was seriously injured after landing awkwardly on a trapdoor in a ring during a match (the trapdoor had been installed for one the the Warrior's elaborate entrances). The result was a spinal infection that nearly paralysized Smith and lead to his release from WCW. WWF Attitude Smith returned to a new WWF in September 1999, following the tragic death of his brother-in-law Owen Hart. In line with the new attitude of the company, Smith shorted his ring name to simply "The Bulldog" and began wrestling in jeans instead of his trademark tights. He arrived as a face, beating the Big Bossman to win his first Harcore Title and setting his sights on the World Title. Along the way, he turned heel and entered into a feud with The Rock, who upended him at No Mercy 1999. Bulldog, who was still struggling to shake his ring rust and adapt to a new product, found himself mired in a series of feuds throughout late 2000, although he did defeat D-Lo Brown for his second European title. He would drop the belt to Val Venis at Armaggeddon 1999. Tragic Passing In early 2000, wife Diana Hart divorced him and shared custody of their children. Also around that time, he entered rehab at McMahon's behast and expense due to problems with prescription pain killers dating back from his injury. He was released from the WWF/E soon after. Smith sadly passed away on May 17, 2002, following a heart attack while vacationing at Invermere, British Columbia, with Bruce Hart's estranged wife Andrea Redding. Public autopsy results revealed past anabolic steriod use that may have played a part in his condition. Legacy Despite never winning the a World title, Smith forever holds a place as in professional wrestling. He is featured on the WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2006! video game as a unlockable legend. His son, Harry Smith, is following his footsteps and wrestling professionally in Stampede Wrestling. He remains one of the most recognizable WWF/E superstars of all time and is one of the few men to have competed in the Pre-Attitude, transitional, and Attitude eras. He has been rumored as a possible inducteed into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006, along with brother-in-laws Bret (confirmed) and Owen (also rumored). Finishing and signature moves
Championships and accomplishments
Championship succession
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