5 best special guest referees of all time

In the world of professional wrestling sometimes just a one on one match isn’t enough to settle feuds or keep the viewer interested. Sometimes you have to shake up the outcome of a match by putting a twist on the action and adding a special referee to make sure the match is as interesting as possible.

There have been many special guest referees throughout the long history of the WWE, but for this list, only 5 of the best superstars who put on the black and white stripes could be picked.

Here are the 5 best special referees that WWE ever produced.

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#5 Mick Foley

Mick Foley has been a special referee on multiple occasions in WWE and most of his appearances in this role haven't been extremely entertaining.

Why does he make the list you ask?

Well for his performance at Wrestlemania X-7 in the Vince McMahon vs Shane McMahon street fight. Mick normally acts as the standard, down-the-middle official which to some members of the WWE universe is seen as boring, but his role as the referee at Wrestlemania X-7 makes up for all of this.

When Vince got that crazy look in his eye (you know that look), and appeared to be about do something awful to his wheelchair-bound wife, Foley inserted himself into the picture and got up in Vince's face and backing him down. This led to Vince rapping Foley with a couple of genuinely frightening chair shots.

Foley was down for some time but when he regained consciousness he began thumping Vince into the corner and setting him up for a coast to coast by Shane.

It was a great performance by the hardcore legend and nabs him the number 5 spot on this list.

#4 The Rock

So why does The Rock deserve a spot on this list I here you ask ?

It has to be because of his highly entertaining performance in a match between HHH and the British Bulldog.

If you think back to this match neither HHH or The British Bulldog came out of the match looking like the superstar. It was The Rock that looked the most impressive and he wasn’t even wrestling. He sarcastically applauded their finishing moves rather than make a 3-count, repeatedly ignored low blows and other illegal maneuvers, and even opted to switch roles into commentary at various points.

The greatest part of his performance is when he begins to count British Bulldogs pin attempt and says “One . . Two . . it dosn’t matter if The Rock counts to three.”

His wildly entertaining performance in this match alone is enough to put him on this list.

#3 Mike Tyson

Ok yes, he wasn’t exactly the referee for this match but he was the special enforcer for it and he did make the 3 count that began the Austin era.

Not only this, but he was a part of the major draw factor for WrestleMania 14. The story was brilliant leading up to the match and he played his part well.

He didn’t do a whole lot during the match but the sheer fact he was the deciding factor in it, the punch he delivered to HBK and the pure draw factor he brought to the event was enough to get him on this list.

#2 Stone Cold

Since his retirement in 2003, Stone Cold Steve Austin has appeared sporadically for many special guest referee roles within the WWE.

The sheer number of appearances combined with the amount of memorable moments Austin has given us over the years as a referee, has put him at the number 2 spot on this list.

To name a couple of his greatest performances, there is the battle of the billionaires match in which Austin helped hold Vince McMahon down to shave him bald and not to forget his role in the match between Brock Lesnar and Goldberg. (He came out on a quad bike for crying out loud)

He has always been there when WWE needed him to step up and be the referee for whatever type of match they were putting on.

#1 Shawn Michaels

Shawn Michaels is the number one special guest referee of all time.

His biases have controlled his officiating and he's gotten physically involved in just about every match he's reffed. On the other hand, he's elevated those bouts from an entertainment standpoint.

One the matches that put him head and shoulders above the rest would have to be HHH vs the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 28.

At one point in the match it looked as if Triple H might end Undertaker's career with a barrage of chair shots, Michaels had the dilemma of whether or not stop the match. A man's undefeated streak, and more importantly, his health was at stake. (Not to mention it was a man he deeply respected)

When he super kicked Undertaker and his regret was obvious. He had nearly changed WWE history with that blow, but Undertaker managed to kick out. (One of the greatest near streak enders in history)

The emotions showed during this match were incredible and just this match alone was enough to cement HBK as the greatest referee of all time.