THIS ARTICLE WAS BORROWED FROM THE JANUARY 1999, PRO WRESTLING ILLUSTRATED.
AUTHOR: UNKNOWN
BEFORE THE MATCH:
KEN SHAMROCK: "I knew going in that I had a big advantage with it being held insides of this 'Lion's Den." There isn't a man in the WWF who can beat me inside of that kind of cage, and I knew winning was just a matter of avoiding mistakes and keeping Hart on the defensive. Only one thing had me worried: He had the foresight to hire Dan Severn as his trainer."
OWEN HART:"I felt comfortable wrestling in the 'Lion's Den' because Dan Severn showed me alot. What bothered me about Severn was that he couldn't resist telling me over and over again how UFC guys are the toughest in the world. Well, if thats what he thought about it, he should have stayed in the UFC. As for Shamrock, I fiqured he might b overconfident."
DURING THE MATCH
KEN SHAMROCK: "Hart was looking for a way ro use his speed, but in a tiny ring like that, it's quickness that counts, and Hart was up against a wall. The key to the match was my powerbomb. That weakened him, and I got him bleeding, and even though he mounted a bit of a comeback, he was never himself after that. Ther was nowhere for him to run, no way to get a breather. Then I got the DDT and clamped on the ankle lock. He was done."
OWEN HART: "Severn kept teling me this would be the shortest test of endurance I've ever experienced, and it was. Shamrock got me on the defensive right away, but I knew I'd find my opening. The big problam was that the size of the ring, the tight confines, really surprised me. and it was hard for me to use my speed. The whole thing was a new experience."
AFTER THE MATCH
KEN SHAMROCK:"All I knew when the match ended was that I finally showed these WWF fans what a UFC champion is all about, and that in one-on-one combat, nobody can beat Ken Shamrock. Hart was stupid to step into the 'Lion's Den' with me, and I made him pay for his stupidity."
OWEN HART: "Listen, Shamrock got me on his own turf, but I have no doubt that with experience, it would be only a matter of time before I beat him in the 'Lion's Den'. As far as Severn, I'm not surprised he walked away from the ring. The man only cares about himself."
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