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Vince McMahon is the greatest booker in professional wrestling history, and while he might have his fair share of detractors, the WWE boss has consistently been recognized as a stubborn yet successful businessman.
Vince McMahon has had close relationships with most of his top stars over the years, and he apparently even saw a bit of himself in a WWE legend.
During the latest edition of the Grilling JR podcast on AdFreeShows, Jim Ross opened up about the relationship between Vince McMahon and Shawn Michaels.
JR discussed the infamous Curtain Call incident and how Shawn Michaels was perceived backstage in 1996.
Jim Ross noted that Vince McMahon and Shawn Michaels always shared a solid bond born out of the similarities between the two men. Vince McMahon and Shawn Michaels were both 'defiant and attitudinal' in nature, and the boss developed a natural liking for The Heartbreak Kid.
Even though Vince McMahon and HBK had several major arguments, they always got along due to their identical personalities.
"I'm glad he is still there in the company." - Jim Ross on present HBK's WWE role
In addition, Shawn Michaels was also one of WWE's go-to guys in the mid-90s, and the company heavily relied on the incredibly talented yet problematic superstar. Therefore, keeping Shawn Michaels happy was paramount to WWE's long-term success.
Jim Ross concluded by expressing his pleasure in seeing Michaels still employed by WWE. JR praised Michaels' skillset as a performer and highlighted the 4-time WWE Champion's value as a backstage contributor to Vince McMahon's company.
"Somewhat born out of necessity. But, as I said before, you know, Vince and Shawn have always had that, a strong bond, and it's bonded together with the fact that Vince saw a little bit of himself as far being defiant, attitudinal, that type of thing with Shawn. So, they were connected in that respect. Even though they had great arguments, they had significant arguments. But, I just think Vince just had a, for whatever reason, he just had a special affinity for Shawn Michaels. And it just might have been, Conrad, God forbid, this could be this, the fact that he was arguably the number 1 or number 2 worker in the world at the time. And we'd built so much around Shawn, and rightfully so, God dang, he was great. And, you know, I'm glad he is still there in the company. He could help a lot of people, and I'm sure that he does," Jim Ross said.
Shawn Michaels has come a long way since his days as an arrogant and wreckless superstar, and he currently is one of the most influential figures in NXT's management team.
Please credit Grilling JR and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
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