WWE: 15 Greatest Technical Wrestlers – Number 8

Continuing with our series to find the greatest technical wrestlers in the history of the WWE, today we look at one of the biggest names in the history of professional wrestling. It is a rare combination to see someone who is exceptional in the ring, as well as on the mic. This certain performer is heralded as one of the greatest entertainers in the history of the business, and has made a name for himself by putting on some of the greatest matches in the company’s history. He was a part of the most infamous incident in professional wrestling, and was also the founding member of one of the greatest factions in the industry. He is also one of the most charismatic superstars to have graced the squared circle, and was one of the few performers to have performed on the very first episode of Monday Night RAW! He’s known by many nicknames, such as ‘The Showstopper’, ‘The Boy Toy’ and ‘The Heart Break Kid’. It is none other than the legendary Shawn Michaels.

“In the ring, when it comes to the greatest as far as I’m concerned, Shawn doesn’t have any peers.” – Vince McMahon

Shawn Michaels started off as a tag team specialist, and created an impact in the wrestling circuit along with Marty Jannetty, and made his way to the WWF. It was here that ‘The Rockers’ found a perfect platform to showcase their talent, and their areal moves, combined with flashy attires and cocky attitude was a refreshing change, and they immediately clicked with The Hart Foundation, and went on to feud with them. The team however disbanded in ’91, during the infamous ‘Barber Shop’ segment when Michaels super kicked Jannetty through the window of the set, and turned heel in the process. HBK then won his first singles title, the WWF Intercontinental championship against British Bulldog. At WrestleMania 10, Shawn Michaels took on Razor Ramon for the WWF Intercontinental title in a Ladder match, which was voted the match of the year, and received a 5 star rating!

“To me, Shawn Michaels is the total package, the greatest of all time.” – Chris Jericho

In the later part of ’95, Michaels won the Intercontinental title on a couple of occasions, before he set his sights on the WWF title, which was around the waist of Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart. What followed was arguably the bitterest rivalry in the company’s history, with Bret and Shawn engaging in a real life rivalry! At WrestleMania 12, Shawn defeated Bret to become the WWF champion, and went on to have a long run with the title, but with the buyrates dropping during his reign, he was slated to drop the title back to Bret Hart. In what was yet another controversial moment in WWF history, Michaels cut the infamous ‘Lost my smile’ promo, and vacated the WWF title instead of the planned WrestleMania 13 encounter between Hart and Michaels.

However, HBK returned a few months later, and resumed his bitter feud against his arch nemesis, Bret Hart. Shawn Michaels then competed against The Undertaker in the first ever ‘Hell In A Cell’ match, which received a 5 star rating from Wrestling Observer, one of the very few 5 star matches in WWF/E history! After this, Shawn faced Bret Hart at the Survivor Series, which resulted in the most infamous double cross in wrestling history, dubbed the ‘Montreal Screwjob’. Shawn faced a lot of flak from his peers and fans, and the wrestling fraternity lost its respect for Shawn. Shawn went on to have other good matches against the likes of The Undertaker and Steve Austin, but was forced to retire with a back injury. However, he made his return in 2002, and had one more run as the World Heavyweight champion.

Shawn, in his career, had more 5 star matches than anyone else in the WWF/E history! Shawn Michaels was also involved in more than half a dozen ‘Match of the Year’ picks. It comes as a testament to HBK’s in – ring ability and the truth to his nickname of being ‘The Showstopper’. He put on some classic matches against the likes of Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho, and went on to reform D Generation X with Triple H on a couple of instances. Michaels was also responsible (Storyline wise) for the retirement of his mentor and best friend, Ric Flair. As seen right through his career, Shawn Michaels went out on a high, as he faced The Undertaker in two critically acclaimed matches on two consecutive WrestleManias, and the latter being a retirement match, which Michaels lost, but not before putting on one of the greatest WrestleMania matches of all time! This brought down the curtains to one of the most illustrious careers in professional wrestling history.

Throughout his career, Shawn Michaels faced a lot of controversy. Since then, HBK himself has admitted through his books and interviews, that he wasn’t ‘mature’ or ‘responsible’ during his first run with the WWF in the 90s. Whether you love him or you hate him, there is no denying the fact that Shawn Michaels will go down as one of the greatest professional wrestlers in the history of this business, and was more talented than almost an entire roster of superstars! He also trained the ‘American Dragon’, Bryan Danielson aka Daniel Bryan! Shawn Michaels was then inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in ’11, and even though the fans miss Shawn Michaels, he was a ‘once in a lifetime’ superstar, and the fans will always be grateful for the contributions of Michaels to the industry, and this earns him the number 8 spot in our list.