In 2010 professional wrestling fans witnessed “Heart Break Kid” (HBK) Shawn Michaels’ retirement. Michaels vowed to retire after failing to end The Undertaker’s undefeated Wrestlemania streak at the WWE’s (World Wrestling Entertainment) 26th annual Wrestlemania. After fans started chanting “One more match” during his farewell address, HBK made clear he doesn’t plan to return as an in-ring competitor. Shawn Michaels will be remembered for many great matches, from the Wrestlemania X Ladder match with Razor Ramon and Wrestlemania XII Iron Man match with Bret Hart to the 1995 Royal Rumble and HBK’s return match against Triple H at Summerslam 2002. With such a memorable career, a lot of Shawn Michaels matches could be overlooked. To prevent such a fate, here is a look at a few matches worth remembering-
11-25-1989- WWE Saturday Night Main Event: Best 2-out-of-3 Falls Match: Rockers (Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty) vs. Brain Busters (Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard)
Before HBK was a household name winning the Unified Tag Team Titles with Degeneration X partner Triple H, Michaels enjoyed tag team success as one half of the Rockers. This match from WWE Saturday Night Main Event displays everything which made the Rockers fun to watch. Michaels and Jannetty had a natural chemistry comparable to Total Non-stop Action (TNA) Wrestling’s Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley). The electric energy the Rockers displayed in the ring captured audiences’ attentions and left them on the edges of their seats.
08-27-1995- WWE Summerslam: Ladder Match: Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon
Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon popularized the Ladder match at Wrestlemania X. Without the Wrestlemania X match, professional wrestling might have never witnessed so many great Ladder matches, let alone be introduced to TLC (tables, ladders, and chairs) matches. With so many memorable Ladder matches taking place over the years, sometimes the Michaels/Ramon Ladder rematch from Summerslam 1995 gets lost in the shuffle. However, the rematch was equally as hard hitting and entertaining as the Wrestlemania X encounter.
11-15-2005- WWE Monday Night Raw: Shawn Michaels vs. Rey Mysterio
This bout defines what professional wrestling should be about- athleticism, competition, and respect. The entire November 15th Monday Night Raw broadcast was dedicated to the late Eddie Guerrero, a man who devoted himself to the professional wrestling business. Both HBK and Mysterio displayed their athleticism inside the ring in order to pay tribute to their fallen colleague. The two competitors were able to grab the audience’s attention and make the crowd come alive, the same way Guerrero did during his career.
