Michael Shawn
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Shawn Michaels (born Michael Shawn Hickenbottom on July 22, 1965) is an American retired
professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...
. He is signed to
WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...
, where he is the Senior Vice President of Talent Development, Creative, and oversees the creative aspects of the NXT brand, the promotion's
developmental territory Development of the human body is the process of growth to maturity. The process begins with fertilization, where an egg released from the ovary of a female is penetrated by a sperm cell from a male. The resulting zygote develops through mitos ...
. Regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is known by the nicknames "The Heartbreak Kid" (often abbreviated as HBK), "The Showstopper", and "Mr. WrestleMania". Michaels wrestled consistently for WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, renamed in 2002), from 1988 until his first retirement in 1998. He performed in non-wrestling roles for the next two years, resuming his wrestling career with WWE in 2002 until ceremoniously retiring in 2010. He returned for a one-off final match in 2018. In 2016, he began working as a coach at the
WWE Performance Center WWE Performance Center (WWE PC) is a group of professional wrestling schools owned by American company WWE. They serve as tryout and training facilities for WWE, and also contain sports science and medical facilities as well as live events and ...
, and was a producer on '' NXT'' in 2018, before becoming the Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative for the NXT brand itself. In WWF/WWE, Michaels headlined pay-per-view events between 1989 and 2018, main-eventing the company's flagship annual event, WrestleMania, five times ( 12, 14, 20, 23 and 26). He was the co-founder and original leader of the successful stable,
D-Generation X D-Generation X (DX), is an American professional wrestling Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Stable, stable, and later a tag team, who consisted of various members mostly Generation X wrestlers, most notably Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Ch ...
. Michaels also wrestled in the
American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The promotion was born out of the Minneapolis ...
(AWA), where he founded The Midnight Rockers with
Marty Jannetty Fredrick Martin Jannetty (born February 3, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler who has worked for promotions including the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/E), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), World Champion ...
in 1985. After winning the
AWA World Tag Team Championship The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991. History When the NWA Minneapolis ...
twice, the team continued to the WWF as The Rockers and had a high-profile breakup in January 1992. Within the year, Michaels twice challenged for the
WWF Championship The WWE Championship, also referred to as the Undisputed WWE Championship since April 2024, is a men's professional wrestling World championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American profe ...
and won his first Intercontinental Championship, heralding his arrival as one of the industry's premier singles stars. Michaels is a four-time
world champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
, having held the WWF Championship
three times ''Three Times'' () is a 2005 Taiwanese film directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien. It consists of three separate stories of romance, set in different eras, using the same lead actors, Shu Qi and Chang Chen. In "A Time for Love," set in 1966, a soldier (C ...
and WWE's World Heavyweight Championship
once Once may refer to: Film, television and theatre * ''Once'' (film), a 2007 Irish musical film by John Carney ** ''Once'' (musical), a 2011 stage adaptation of the film * ''Once'' (TV series), a 2017–2019 Argentine telenovela * Canal Once (Mex ...
. He is also a two-time
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
winner (and the first man to win the match as the first entrant), the company's first Grand Slam Champion and fourth Triple Crown Champion, as well as a two-time
WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when An ...
inductee (
2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
as a singles wrestler and
2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
as part of D-Generation X). Michaels won the ''
Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...
'' "
Match of the Year This is a list of both active and inactive ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll betwee ...
" reader vote a record eleven times, and his match against
John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he is the current WWE Championship, Undisputed WWE Champion in his record 14th reign, which is ...
on April 23, 2007, was ranked by WWE as the best match ever aired on the company's flagship television program, '' Raw''. Michaels has been a participant in several first installments of a number of WWE's signature gimmick matches—namely the first
Hell in a Cell Hell in a Cell is a professional wrestling steel cage-based match which originated in 1997 in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It features a large cell structure, a four-sided cuboid made from open-weave steel mesh chain-link f ...
at the Badd Blood: In Your House, the first
Ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself become ...
during a taping of ''
WWF Wrestling Challenge ''WWF Wrestling Challenge'' is a professional wrestling television show that was produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as WWE). It was syndicated weekly and aired from 1986 to 1995. The show became simply known as ''WWF Ch ...
'' (and subsequent first pay-per-view installment at WrestleMania X), both the inaugural (as part of The Rockers tag team) and first televised (at
WrestleMania XII WrestleMania XII was a 1996 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the 12th annual WrestleMania and took place on March 31, 1996, at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim in An ...
) Iron Man matches, and
Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was created by Triple H, and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure which ...
at the 2002
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
.


Early life

Michael Shawn Hickenbottom was born in
Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, fourth-most populous city in Arizona ...
, on July 22, 1965. He has an older sister named Shari and two older brothers named Randy and Scott. He was raised in a military family and briefly spent some of his early years in the English town of
Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...
, but grew up primarily in
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
. As a child, he disliked the name "Michael" and convinced his family and friends to address him by his middle name. Ever since, he has been referred to as Shawn. Additionally, Hickenbottom moved around frequently since his father was in the military. He knew he wanted to become a professional wrestler at the age of 12 and performed a wrestling routine at his high school's talent show, complete with
fake blood Theo Keating, also known as Fake Blood and Touché, is an English DJ, musician and music producer who made his name as one half of the Wiseguys, a British hip hop/big beat group, together with Paul Eve. Some of their best-known songs are " Sta ...
. He was a keen athlete while growing up, and his sporting career began at the age of six when he played
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
. He was a stand-out
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
at Randolph High School on
Randolph Air Force Base Randolph Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Bexar County, Texas, ( east-northeast of Downtown San Antonio). Opened in 1931, Randolph has been a flying training facility for the United States Army Air Corps, the United ...
and eventually became captain of the football team. He attended
Southwest Texas State University Texas State University (TXST) is a public research university with its main campus in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and another campus in Round Rock. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has grown to be one of the largest univer ...
in
San Marcos, Texas San Marcos () is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city is a part of the Greater Austin, Greater Austin Metropolitan Area. San Marcos's limits extend into Caldwell County, Texas, Caldwell and Guadalupe County, T ...
, but dropped out to pursue a career in professional wrestling. His cousin
Matt Bentley Matthew James Bentley (born December 10, 1979), is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his work in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) by the ring name Michael Shane, later changed to "Maverick" Matt Bentley. He was trained ...
is also a wrestler.


Professional wrestling career


National Wrestling Alliance (1984–1985)

Hickenbottom began to train under Mexican professional wrestler
Jose Lothario Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. Given name Mishnaic and Talmudic periods *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galilean *Jose ben Halafta *J ...
. During his training, Hickenbottom adopted the ring name, "Shawn Michaels". After his training with Lothario, he debuted as Shawn Michaels with the
National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling professional wrestling promotion, promotion and governing body owned by Billy Corgan and operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA be ...
's (NWA)
Mid-South Wrestling The Universal Wrestling Federation was a 1986 re-branding of wrestler-turned-owner Bill Watts' Mid-South Wrestling promotion. Watts' goal was to elevate his promotion from a relatively smaller, regional-level business, to a national-level riv ...
territory on October 16, 1984, against Art Crews, losing to Crews via swinging neckbreaker. Michaels's performance in his debut match impressed many veterans, including
Terry Taylor Paul Worden Taylor III (born August 12, 1955) is an American retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Terry Taylor and for his time as an in-ring performer in National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and Wo ...
. Michaels made his televised debut on October 20, 1984, teaming with Jim Hornet in a losing effort against the tag team of
Hercules Hernandez Raymond Constantine Fernandez Jr. (May 7, 1956 – March 6, 2004) was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler better known by his ring name Hercules Hernandez, or simply Hercules. Fernandez began his career in 1979, primarily w ...
and "Dr. Death" Steve Williams. In January 1985, he debuted for
World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA), was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by ...
(WCCW), the NWA territory in
Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
. In April 1985, Michaels went to work for another NWA territory in Kansas City called
Central States Wrestling Heart of America Sports Attractions, Inc., operating as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebr ...
. There, he and tag team partner
Marty Jannetty Fredrick Martin Jannetty (born February 3, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler who has worked for promotions including the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/E), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), World Champion ...
defeated The Batten Twins for the
NWA Central States Tag Team Championship The NWA Central States Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1979 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. The Central States Tag Team ...
, later losing it back to the Battens.


Texas All-Star Wrestling (1985–1986)

After leaving Kansas City, he returned to
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
to wrestle for
Texas All-Star Wrestling Texas All-Star Wrestling (TASW) is a professional wrestling promotion that was established by Bob Murphy in Humble, Texas in 1994. It is the oldest independent promotion in the state of Texas and one of two based in the Greater Houston area al ...
(TASW). During his time with TASW, Michaels replaced
Nick Kiniski Nicholas Kiniski (born August 25, 1961) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his work with WCCW, PNW and AWA and for being one half of the tag team American Force with Paul Diamond in Texas All-Star Wrestling. He ...
in the
American Breed The American Breed is an American bovid hybrid of cattle with a small percentage of American Bison blood. It was developed in the 1950s by a New Mexico rancher looking for beef cattle which could survive on poor fodder in the arid Southwest. I ...
tag team Tag team wrestling is a type of professional wrestling in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. Tag teams may be made up of wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of establis ...
, teaming with
Paul Diamond Thomas Boric (born May 11, 1961) is a Croatian-Canadian retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Paul Diamond. He is best known for being one half of the tag team Badd Company with Pat Tanaka and for his time in the Worl ...
. Michaels and Diamond were awarded the TASW Tag Team Championship by
Chavo Guerrero Sr. Salvador Guerrero Llanes (January 7, 1949 – February 11, 2017), better known as Chavo Guerrero or Chavo Guerrero Sr., and also known during the 21st century as "Chavo Classic", was a Mexican-American professional wrestler. He was best k ...
The team was later renamed American Force. While in TASW, Michaels and Diamond feuded with Japanese Force.


American Wrestling Association (1986–1987)

Michaels made his national-level debut, as Sean Michaels, at the age of 20 in the
American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The promotion was born out of the Minneapolis ...
(AWA), in a victory over Buddhakhan on ESPN. He was once again teamed with Marty Jannetty, billed as The Midnight Rockers. The Midnight Rockers won the
AWA World Tag Team Championship The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991. History When the NWA Minneapolis ...
, defeating
Doug Somers Douglas Duane Somerson (September 22, 1951 – May 16, 2017) was an American professional wrestler known by his ring name "Pretty Boy" Doug Somers. He worked in the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in the mid-1980s as part of a tag team with ...
and
Buddy Rose Paul E. Perschmann (November 27, 1952 – April 28, 2009) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Playboy Buddy Rose. He wrestled primarily for the AWA, WWF, and for promoter Don Owen in Pacific Northwest W ...
.


World Wrestling Federation and return to AWA (1987–1988)

In 1987, The Rockers were signed by a competing promotion: the
World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...
(WWF). They were fired from WWF two weeks later, for a bar incident (a misunderstanding, according to Michaels's autobiography). They then returned to AWA, where they won the AWA tag team titles for a second time, but were re-signed by WWF a year later.


Return to the WWF/E


The Rockers (1988–1992)

The Rockers redebuted at a WWF
live event A house show (also commonly called a live event) is a professional wrestling event produced by a major Professional wrestling promotion, promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in o ...
on July 7, 1988. Due to WWF chairman
Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon ( ; born August 24, 1945) is an American businessman and former professional wrestling promoter. McMahon, along with his later-estranged wife Linda McMahon, Linda, is a co-founder of the modern WWE, the world's largest ...
's desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive ring names, Michaels and Jannetty were renamed, as simply
The Rockers The Rockers were an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty who teamed from 1985 to 1992. The team worked for NWA Central States Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association, Continental Wrestl ...
. The team proved popular with both children and women and was a mid-card stalwart of television and
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program ...
shows for the next two years. During this time, Michaels headlined his first pay-per-view for the WWF when The Rockers were involved in the 4-on-4
Survivor Series match The Survivor Series match is a professional wrestling tag team elimination match held in WWE. The match typically sees two teams pitted against each other and members of the teams are eliminated one-by-one until one entire team is eliminated. Memb ...
main event of
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 23, 1989, which they won. On October 30, 1990, The Rockers unofficially won the
WWF Tag Team Championship WWF may refer to: Computing and games *WWF (file format), a campaign for unprintable PDF documents *Windows Workflow Foundation, a software component of the .NET Framework *''Words with Friends'', a mobile computer game franchise Non-profit orga ...
from
The Hart Foundation The Hart Foundation is the name of several derivative tag teams and stables composed primarily of members and close friends of the Hart wrestling family. The name originated in the World Wrestling Federation in 1985 with the original Hart Foundat ...
(
Bret Hart Bret Sergeant Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling background at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal U ...
and
Jim Neidhart James Henry Neidhart (February 8, 1955 – August 13, 2018) was an American professional wrestler known for his appearances in the 1980s and 1990s in the World Wrestling Federation as Jim "the Anvil" Neidhart, where he was a two-time WWF Tag ...
), as Neidhart, half of the championship team, was in the process of negotiating his release from the company. The match was taped with The Rockers winning the title, but soon after Neidhart came to an agreement with management and was rehired. The championship was returned to the Hart Foundation, while the title change was never broadcast or even acknowledged on television (though The Rockers did have a successful title defense on November 3, 1990, against
Power and Glory Power and Glory was a professional wrestling tag team in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1990 to 1991. The team consisted of Hercules (Power, strength) and Paul "Romeo" Roma (Glory, looks). The team was managed by Slick. History In ...
(
Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...
and
Paul Roma Paul Centopani (born April 29, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler and boxer, better known by his ring name Paul Roma. He is best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling between 1984 ...
) before the title was returned to the Hart Foundation). When news spread, WWF explained that the original result was void due to a collapsed
turnbuckle A turnbuckle, stretching screw or bottlescrew is a device for adjusting the tension or length of ropes, cables, tie rods, and other tensioning systems. It normally consists of two threaded eye bolts, one screwed into each end of a small metal ...
in the ring during the bout. A buckle had indeed broken, but not to a noticeable or dangerous extent during the match. The Rockers continued their partnership, eventually splitting on December 2, 1991, aired January 11, 1992, on Wrestling Challenge, during an incident on
Brutus Beefcake Edward Harrison Leslie (born April 21, 1957) is an American retired professional wrestler, best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) under the ring name Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake. He later worked for World Champ ...
's televised ''Barber Shop'' talk show promotional segment. Michaels
superkick Strikes can be offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional ...
ed Jannetty and threw him through a
glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...
window on the set of Beefcake's talk show. Jannetty returned to the WWF the following year and enjoyed moderate success before leaving the company in 1994, while Michaels became a prominent villain of the early to mid-1990s as "The Boy Toy".


Heartbreak Kid (1992–1995)

At the suggestion of
Curt Hennig Curtis Michael Hennig (March 28, 1958 – February 10, 2003), better known by the ring name Mr. Perfect, was an American professional wrestler. Considered one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time by peers, critics, and fans, he per ...
, Michaels adopted the nickname "The Heartbreak Kid". Along with his new name came a new
gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand out ...
as a vain, cocky
villain A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.126 "baddy (also baddie) noun (pl. -ies) ''informal'' a villain or criminal in a book, film, etc.". the feminine form is villai ...
. He was put together with mirror-carrying
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
,
Sensational Sherri Sherry Lynn Schrull (née Russell; February 8, 1958 – June 15, 2007) was an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by her ring names, Sherri Martel and Sensational Sherri. Martel began her professional wrestling career in the ...
, who according to the storyline had become infatuated with him. Sherri even sang the first version of his new
theme music Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...
, "Sexy Boy". During that period, after Michaels had wrestled his scheduled match at live events, his departure was announced with "Shawn Michaels has left the building", alluding to the phrase "
Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's sexuall ...
has left the building". At
WrestleMania VIII WrestleMania VIII was a 1992 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the eighth annual WrestleMania and took place on April 5, 1992, at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis, ...
on April 5, 1992, Michaels defeated
Tito Santana Merced Solis (born May 10, 1953), better known by the ring name Tito Santana, is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, Professional wrestling school, trainer, and retired school teacher. Solis has stayed a Face (profession ...
in his first pay-per-view singles match after both men had simultaneously eliminated each other from that year's
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
. Michaels subsequently became a contender to the promotion's singles titles and failed to win the
WWF Championship The WWE Championship, also referred to as the Undisputed WWE Championship since April 2024, is a men's professional wrestling World championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American profe ...
from champion
Randy Savage Randy Mario Poffo (November 15, 1952 – May 20, 2011), better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler and professional baseball player, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation ( ...
in his first opportunity to compete for that title at British event UK Rampage, held on April 19 at the
Sheffield Arena Sheffield Arena, known for sponsorship purposes as Utilita Arena Sheffield, is a multi-purpose arena located in Sheffield, England. It is situated near Meadowhall Centre, Meadowhall and lies between Sheffield city centre and Rotherham town centr ...
and broadcast on Sky Movies Plus (the match later aired in the US on the edition of June 15 of '' Prime Time Wrestling''). Michaels was also unable to win the Intercontinental Championship from Bret Hart in the WWF's first
ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself become ...
at a ''
Wrestling Challenge ''WWF Wrestling Challenge'' is a professional wrestling television show that was produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as WWE). It was syndicated weekly and aired from 1986 to 1995. The show became simply known as ''WWF C ...
'' taping on July 21, which was subsequently made available on multiple Coliseum/WWE Home Video releases. However, he won the title from The British Bulldog on '' Saturday Night's Main Event XXXI'', which aired on November 14. He faced Hart for the WWF Championship at
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 25, but lost the match. Originally the secondary main event, Michaels and Hart became the primary main event after
The Ultimate Warrior Warrior (born James Brian Hellwig; June 16, 1959 – April 8, 2014) was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, Bodybuilding, bodybuilder and Motivational speaker, motivational speaker. Best known by his ring name The Ultima ...
was unable to compete and was replaced by Mr. Perfect (Curt Hennig) in the tag team match that involved Randy Savage against the team of
Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Flair's career spanned 50 years. He is ...
and
Razor Ramon Scott Oliver Hall (October 20, 1958 – March 14, 2022) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenures with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under his real name and with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE ...
. During this time, Michaels and Sherri split and he engaged himself in a feud with former tag team partner Marty Jannetty. Michaels lost the Intercontinental Championship to Jannetty on the May 17, 1993, episode of '' Raw'', but regained it on June 6 with the help of his debuting "
bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects an very important person, important person or group of people, such as high-ranking public offic ...
" (and off-air friend)
Diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine ...
. In September 1993, Michaels was suspended for testing positive for
steroid A steroid is an organic compound with four fused compound, fused rings (designated A, B, C, and D) arranged in a specific molecular configuration. Steroids have two principal biological functions: as important components of cell membranes t ...
– a charge he never admitted. On WWF programs, his suspension was explained by his having neglected to defend the title often enough. After turning down
World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of National W ...
(WCW)'s advances, Michaels returned to the WWF and made several appearances in the
United States Wrestling Association The United States Wrestling Association (USWA) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Memphis, Tennessee. The company was founded when the Memphis-based Continental Wrestling Association merged with the Dallas-based World Class Champions ...
(USWA) during a WWF/USWA cross-promotion. He returned on November 24 at
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
, substituting for
Jerry Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "the King" Lawler, is an American retired color commentator and professional wrestler signed to WWE under a Legends contract. Prior to joining the World Wrestling Federati ...
, who was dealing with legal issues, in a match pitting himself and three of Lawler's "Knights" against the Hart brothers, Bret,
Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...
, Keith and
Owen Owen may refer to: People and fictional characters * Owen (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Places United States * Owen, Missouri, a ghost town * Owen, Wisconsin * Owen County, Indiana ...
. In 1994, Michaels entered a
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
with Razor Ramon, who had won the vacant Intercontinental Championship during Michaels's absence. Since Michaels had never been defeated in the ring for the title, he claimed to be the rightful champion and even carried around his old title belt. This feud culminated in a ladder match between the two on March 20 at WrestleMania X. Michaels lost the match, which featured both his and Ramon's championship belts suspended above a ladder in the ring. This match was voted by fans as "
Match of the Year This is a list of both active and inactive ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll betwee ...
" by ''
Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...
''. It also received a five-star rating from ''
Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four Wee ...
'' editor
Dave Meltzer David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist, author, and historian who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter' ...
. Over the next few months, Michaels battled various injuries and launched the ''
Heartbreak Hotel "Heartbreak Hotel" is a song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley. It was released as a single on January 27, 1956, Presley's first on his new record label RCA Victor. It was written by Mae Boren Axton and Tommy Durden, with credit being g ...
'' television talk show segment, mainly shown on ''
Superstars A superstar is a widely acclaimed celebrity. Superstar or superstars may also refer to: People * "Superstar" Krishna (1943–2022), Indian film actor, director and producer in Telugu cinema * "Superstar" Mahesh Babu (born 1975), Indian actor * ...
''. On August 28, Michaels and Diesel won the WWF Tag Team Championship from
The Headshrinkers In professional wrestling, the Samoan SWAT Team was a tag team comprising Juicy Finau and Lance Anoa'i, who work in Major League Wrestling (MLW), where they are former MLW World Tag Team Champions. The original Samoan SWAT Team primarily compri ...
( Samu and Fatu). The next day at
SummerSlam SummerSlam is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by the world's largest professional wrestling promotion, WWE. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's second biggest event of the year behind th ...
, Diesel lost the Intercontinental Championship to Ramon when Michaels accidentally superkicked Diesel. This triggered a split between the two, a storyline that was drawn out until
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 24. Michaels won the
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
on January 22, 1995, which set up a championship grudge match on April 2 at WrestleMania XI against Diesel (who had gone on to win the WWF Championship from
Bob Backlund Robert Louis Backlund (born August 14, 1949) is an American retired amateur wrestling, amateur and Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances in the World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Fede ...
). As part of the storyline, Michaels recruited Sid as his bodyguard for the build-up, lost the match and was attacked by Sid the following night. This would result in him becoming a
fan favorite In professional wrestling, a face (babyface) is a heroic, "good guy", "good-doer", or "fan favorite" wrestler, booked (scripted) by the promotion with the aim of being cheered by fans. They are portrayed as heroes relative to the heel wrestler ...
. After this, Michaels took time off


Formation of the Kliq (1995–1996)

Michaels returned to the ring as a fan favorite in May 1995 and defeated
Jeff Jarrett Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he both wrestles and serves as Director of Business Development. He is also ...
to win his third Intercontinental Championship on July 24 at In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks. This led to a title defense against Razor Ramon on August 27 at
SummerSlam SummerSlam is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by the world's largest professional wrestling promotion, WWE. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's second biggest event of the year behind th ...
in a ladder match, which Michaels won. Around this time, Michaels became the leader of a backstage group known as
The Kliq The Kliq was a backstage group in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) during the mid-1990s, composed of Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Sean Waltman, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H. Michaels, Nash, and Hall wielded a considerable amount of power ...
. Critics perceive the group to have sufficient clout with WWF owner Vince McMahon, becoming dominant wrestling figures in the WWF for several years in the mid-1990s, causing friction with other wrestlers. Michaels disputes the perception, saying that McMahon pushed only deserving wrestlers. Michaels's fan base was later nicknamed "The Kliq" as an inside reference to the real "Kliq". In October 1995, Michaels was the victim of a legit assault outside a bar in
Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...
. Due to not being able to compete, Michaels was forced to forfeit the Intercontinental Championship to his original opponent Dean Douglas on October 22 at In Your House: Great White North, who in turn Douglas lost the championship to Razor Ramon, another member of the Kliq. During a match with
Owen Hart Owen James Hart (May 7, 1965 – May 23, 1999) was a Canadian-American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler who worked for several promotions including Stampede Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...
on a November episode of ''Raw'', Hart performed an enzuigiri that struck the back of Michaels's head. They continued the match, but Michaels collapsed in the ring, supposedly because he had suffered a concussion. The concussion was scripted, which was kept from most fans at the time. A retirement angle was written so that Michaels could take some time off after he came back from an injury too soon.


WWF Champion (1996–1998)

After teasing retirement, Michaels returned to the WWF at the
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
match on January 21, 1996, winning for the second year in a row to receive a
WWF Championship The WWE Championship, also referred to as the Undisputed WWE Championship since April 2024, is a men's professional wrestling World championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American profe ...
match in the main event at
WrestleMania XII WrestleMania XII was a 1996 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the 12th annual WrestleMania and took place on March 31, 1996, at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim in An ...
. Around this time, Jose Lothario became Michaels's on-screen manager. At WrestleMania XII on March 31, Michaels defeated WWF Champion Bret Hart in the overtime of their sixty-minute Iron Man match, which had ended in a scoreless tie. On May 19, Michaels and his fellow Kliq members were involved in the incident known as "
Curtain Call A curtain call (often known as a walkdown or a final Bowing, bow) occurs at the end of a performance when one or more performers return to the stage to be recognized by the audience for the performance. In musical theatre, the performers typi ...
". Diesel and Razor Ramon were about to leave WWF to company rival WCW. After Michaels won a match against Diesel, Ramon and
Hunter Hearst Helmsley Paul Michael Levesque (; born July 27, 1969), also known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive and former professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he serves as its chief content officer. Levesque began his wres ...
came to the ring and joined Michaels and Diesel in a group-hug. As Diesel and Helmsley were seen as villains at the time, in contrast to Michaels and Ramon, this constituted a breach of "
kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe (pronounced ) is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants. The term has evolved to become a code word ...
", as acting out of character, which was rare and controversial at the time. As WCW gained momentum due to the signings of Hall and Nash, Michaels held the championship for most of the year. At
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 17, Michaels lost the WWF Championship to Sycho Sid but recaptured the title on January 19, 1997, at
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
. On a special episode of ''Raw'' dubbed ''Thursday Raw Thursday'', Michaels vacated the WWF Championship. He explained to fans that he was informed by doctors that he had suffered a knee injury. Michaels contemplated thoughts of retirement and stated that he "had to find his smile again", which he had "lost" somewhere down the line. After consulting with Dr. James Andrews, who concluded that he did not need surgery, Michaels underwent four weeks of physical therapy and returned to in-ring action a few months later, briefly teaming with
Stone Cold Steve Austin Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson and later Steven James Williams; December 18, 1964), better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American media personality, actor, producer and retired Professional wrestling, profes ...
to win the WWF Tag Team Championship. In his autobiography, Michaels discusses his real-life feud with Bret Hart, claiming that Hart did interviews on live television claiming that Michaels was faking his whole injury. By the spring of 1997, the real-life backstage conflict between Michaels and Hart was reaching its height. Both men were going out on television and frequently making personal, true to heart remarks about one another. Michaels briefly left the WWF in June of that year after a real backstage fight with Hart, just hours before a ''Raw Is War'' show, which allegedly resulted from Michaels making an on-air remark, known as the "Sunny Days" comment, implying that Hart (who was married at the time) was having an affair with Tammy Sytch, a manager and valet who was signed to the WWF as Sunny. Michaels and Austin were still WWF Tag Team Champions at the time during an ongoing feud with the Hart Foundation and a tournament was made to decide new tag team champions. Michaels eventually returned that summer in July. At
SummerSlam SummerSlam is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by the world's largest professional wrestling promotion, WWE. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's second biggest event of the year behind th ...
on August 3, Michaels officiated the WWF Championship match between WWF Champion
The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by his ring name the Undertaker, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway ...
and Bret Hart. The match ended controversially, with Michaels hitting The Undertaker with a chair (unintentionally, as he was aiming for Hart after he spat in his face). Michaels was then forced to award the championship to his nemesis, Bret Hart. The next night on ''Raw Is War'', signs of a heel turn started to show as Michaels told the WWF fans what happened at SummerSlam was an accident and that he dealt with The Undertaker when the time came. At
WWF One Night Only WWF One Night Only was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE), and aired exclusively in Canada, and the United Kingdom. It took place on September 20, 1997, at the NEC Arena i ...
, held in
Birmingham, England Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands region, in England. It is the largest local authority district in England by population and the second-largest cit ...
, on September 20, Michaels defeated The British Bulldog to capture the WWF European Championship. The fans at the event were so upset at the result of the match they booed Michaels out of the building to the extent that they littered the ring with garbage, cementing his second heel turn. With this win, Michaels became the first Grand Slam Champion. At In Your House: Badd Blood on October 5, Michaels defeated The Undertaker in the first
Hell in a Cell Hell in a Cell is a professional wrestling steel cage-based match which originated in 1997 in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It features a large cell structure, a four-sided cuboid made from open-weave steel mesh chain-link f ...
match, during which Michaels fell off the side of the high structure through a table. In the fall, Michaels joined forces with real-life friend Hunter Hearst Helmsley (later known as Triple H), Helmsley's then real-life girlfriend
Chyna Chyna (born Joan Marie Laurer; December 27, 1969 – April 17, 2016), also known as Joanie Laurer, was an American professional wrestler, fitness model, bodybuilder, actress, adult actress, and television personality. Chyna first rose to pr ...
, and
Rick Rude Richard Erwin Rood (December 7, 1958 – April 20, 1999), better known by his ring name "Ravishing" Rick Rude, was an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler who performed for many Professional wrestling promotion, promotions, incl ...
to form the
stable A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...
D-Generation X D-Generation X (DX), is an American professional wrestling Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Stable, stable, and later a tag team, who consisted of various members mostly Generation X wrestlers, most notably Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Ch ...
(DX). Michaels continued his rivalry with Bret Hart and his reformed
Hart Foundation The Hart Foundation is the name of several derivative tag teams and Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Stable, stables composed primarily of members and close friends of the Hart wrestling family. The name originated in the World Wrestling ...
, which was now a pro-Canada stable. Michaels taunted the group and Canada by engaging in acts such as blowing his nose with and humping the
Canadian Flag The National Flag of Canada (), popularly referred to as The Maple Leaf or l'Unifolié (), consists of a red field with a white square at its centre in the ratio of , in which is featured one stylized, red, 11-pointed maple leaf charged in ...
. Michaels later claimed the flag desecration was Hart's idea. Michaels's feud with the Hart Foundation culminated in a WWF Championship match at
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 9 against Hart. Michaels came out of this match, dubbed by fans the "
Montreal Screwjob The Montreal Screwjob (also called the Montreal Incident) was a notorious professional wrestling incident where the outcome of a major match was changed without one of the wrestlers being informed – in order to "screw over" Bret Hart, who was i ...
", as the WWF Champion. Michaels now held both the WWF and European championships at the same time. Michaels dropped the European Championship to DX member Hunter Hearst Hemsley in a
farcical Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity o ...
match.


First retirement and hiatus (1998–2002)

On January 18, 1998, at the
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
, in a
casket match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. ...
against The Undertaker, Michaels took a back body drop to the outside of the ring and hit his lower back on the
casket Casket or caskets may refer to: * Coffin, a box used for the display and interment of corpses * Casket (decorative box), a decorated container, usually larger than about in width and length, but smaller than a chest ** Chasse (casket), a decora ...
, causing him to herniate two discs and crush one completely. Michaels went on to win the match but the injury rendered him unable to compete on the following month's No Way Out of Texas: In Your House as advertised, and forced him into retirement a night after losing the WWF Championship to Stone Cold Steve Austin on March 29 at
WrestleMania XIV WrestleMania XIV, also promoted as WrestleMania dX raided, was a 1998 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF; WWE as of 2002). It was the 14th annual WrestleMania and took place on March ...
. After being away for nearly four months, Michaels made a surprise return to the WWF as a guest commentator on the July 13 episode of ''Raw Is War''. Michaels continued to make non-wrestling appearances on WWF programming and on November 23 he replaced Sgt. Slaughter as the WWF Commissioner, eventually joining Vince McMahon's group of wrestlers called The Corporation. Throughout late 1998 and early 1999, Michaels made regular television appearances on ''Raw'', in which he scheduled matches, throwing around his authority, and sometimes even deciding the outcome of matches. On the January 4, 1999, episode of ''Raw Is War'', Michaels re-joined DX as a face, but disappeared from WWF television for a few weeks to have back surgery and by the time he returned DX was on the way of dissolving within the next couple of months. On November 23, 1999, Michaels made a special appearance for
Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling-Explosion (FMW-E) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion founded on July 28, 1989, by Atsushi Onita as (FMW). The promotion specializes in hardcore wrestling involving weapons such as barbed wire and fir ...
at the 10th Anniversary Show at the
Yokohama Arena is an indoor arena located in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The capacity of the arena is 17,000 and was opened in 1989. The arena was modeled after US sports venue Madison Square Garden in New York City. It is a five-minute walk from the ...
, serving as the guest referee for the H vs fake Hayabusa (Mr. Gannosuke) main event. He got involved in the match when Gannosuke delivered a low blow on him and he responded later on with ''Sweet Chin Music''. Michaels made occasional appearances as the WWF Commissioner during the spring and summer of 1999, but remained absent from television after August until May 15, 2000, when he returned on ''Raw Is War'' to declare himself the special guest referee for The Rock and Triple H's Iron Man match at
Judgment Day The Last Judgment is a concept found across the Abrahamic religions and the '' Frashokereti'' of Zoroastrianism. Christianity considers the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to entail the final judgment by God of all people who have ever lived, res ...
. One month later, Michaels briefly reappeared on ''Raw Is War'' to hand over the role of Commissioner to
Mick Foley Michael Francis Foley (born June 7, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and author. He is signed to WWE, under a Legends contract while also serving as an ambassador. Foley worked for many wrestling promotions, including the W ...
, and after another appearance in October did not make any in-arena appearances until mid-2002. He appeared briefly on television to make a speech at The World (WWE), WWF New York during Armageddon (2000), Armageddon on December 10, 2000. On April 4, 2000, Michaels returned to wrestling for a one-night appearance defeating
Paul Diamond Thomas Boric (born May 11, 1961) is a Croatian-Canadian retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Paul Diamond. He is best known for being one half of the tag team Badd Company with Pat Tanaka and for his time in the Worl ...
in a bunkhouse brawl at Texas Wrestling Entertainment. Believing that his wrestling career was over, Michaels was interested in training individuals who wanted to become professional wrestlers. He saw potential in using his name and opened the Shawn Michaels Wrestling Academy (later the Texas Wrestling Academy) in 1999, after his lawyer Skip McCormick suggested the idea. Michaels left the academy in 2002, giving co-founder Rudy Boy Gonzalez sole responsibility due to Michaels's new contract with WWE. Michaels was also a sportscaster for San Antonio's local news for a short period during his retirement.


Feud with Triple H (2002–2004)

On the June 3, 2002 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels returned to WWE television after 18 months of absence when Kevin Nash announced him as a new member of the recently reformed The New World Order (professional wrestling), New World Order (nWo). Michaels was the only nWo member to have never worked in WCW. After the nWo had disbanded, Triple H appeared to make amends with Michaels. This was solidified when Michaels pleaded Triple H to return to ''Raw''. Later on, they came down to the ring sporting their DX music and attire. When the pair was about to perform their trademark "Suck It" taunt, Triple H turned on Michaels by performing a Facebuster#Double underhook facebuster, Pedigree on him. Continuing the angle, in his first WWE match since WrestleMania XIV, Michaels defeated Triple H at SummerSlam (2002), SummerSlam on August 25, but was attacked by Triple H with a sledgehammer after the match. At
Survivor Series Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 17, Michaels won the World Heavyweight Championship from Triple H in the first
Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was created by Triple H, and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure which ...
match. On December 15 at Armageddon (2002), Armageddon, he lost the championship to Triple H in a Professional wrestling match types#Two out of Three falls match, Three Stages of Hell match. Michaels then began a rivalry with Chris Jericho, after Jericho claimed that he was the next Shawn Michaels. On the January 13, 2003 episode of ''Raw'', after Jericho won a Battle royal (professional wrestling), battle royal to select his entry number for the Royal Rumble match, choosing number two in order to start the match with Michaels, who had already been named number one. At the Royal Rumble (2003), Royal Rumble on January 19, Jericho, with the help of Jason Reso, Christian, eliminated Michaels. Michaels later interfered in the match, causing Jericho to be eliminated. Michaels defeated Jericho on March 30 at WrestleMania XIX but was low-blowed after hugging Jericho. At Backlash (2003), Backlash on April 27, Michaels lost to the team of Jericho, Triple H and
Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Flair's career spanned 50 years. He is ...
in a 6-man tag team. This led to a match between Michaels and Flair at WWE Bad Blood (2003), Bad Blood on June 15, which Flair won. Following this, Michaels continued feuding with the members of Triple H's faction Evolution. He was unsuccessful in capturing the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam (2003), SummerSlam on August 24 with Triple H retaining in the second Elimination Chamber match. He then lost to Randy Orton at Unforgiven (2003), Unforgiven on September 21. At Armageddon (2003), Armageddon on December 14, Michaels defeated the group's enforcer Batista (wrestler), Batista. On the December 29 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels seemingly defeated Triple H after a Sweet Chin Music for the World Heavyweight Championship in his hometown of
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
, with Eric Bischoff as the special guest referee (Earl Hebner originally refereed the match, only to be knocked out by Triple H in the middle of the match). However, Bischoff reversed the decision due to both men's shoulders being on the mat. Angered by this, Michaels attacked Ric Flair and Bischoff. He was subsequently fired by Bischoff but rehired by Stone Cold Steve Austin. As a part of an ongoing feud with Triple H, the two competed alongside Chris Benoit in the main event on March 14, 2004, at WrestleMania XX for the World Heavyweight Championship, which Benoit won. The night before this, Michaels inducted Tito Santana in the WWE Hall of Fame. A triple threat WrestleMania rematch for the title took place on April 18 at Backlash (2004), Backlash, where Benoit successfully retained it after forcing Michaels to submit to a Sharpshooter. Due to the "Montreal Screwjob" incident, the Edmonton crowd booed Michaels, with chants of "You screwed Bret!" being heard during his match at Backlash. At WWE Bad Blood (2004), Bad Blood on June 13, Michaels lost to Triple H in the longest Hell in a Cell match in history. Four months later, he lost a World Heavyweight Championship match against Triple H, after Adam Copeland, Edge interfered on October 19 at Taboo Tuesday (2004), Taboo Tuesday, when the fans voted for him ahead of Edge and Chris Benoit to face Triple H one more time. Following this, Michaels was out of action for a few months with a Glossary of professional wrestling terms#legit, legit torn Meniscus (anatomy), meniscus.


D-Generation X reunion (2005–2007)

At the Royal Rumble (2005), Royal Rumble on January 30, 2005, after losing to Edge, Michaels competed in the Royal Rumble match and eliminated Kurt Angle. In seeking revenge, Angle re-entered the ring and eliminated Michaels, and thus placed him in an Professional wrestling holds#Ankle lock, ankle lock submission hold, outside the ring. Michaels issued a challenge to Angle for a match at WrestleMania 21, which Angle accepted when he appeared on ''Raw'' to attack Michaels. The following week on ''Raw'', Marty Jannetty and Michaels had a one time reunion as The Rockers and defeated La Résistance (professional wrestling), La Résistance (Rob Conway, Robért Conway and Sylvain Grenier). Three days later on ''WWE SmackDown, SmackDown!'', Angle defeated Jannetty, after Angle made Jannetty submit to the ankle lock. To send a "message" to Michaels, Angle also humiliated Michaels's former manager, Sensational Sherri, when he applied the ankle lock hold on her. At WrestleMania on April 3, Angle defeated Michaels by submission, again with an ankle lock. The next night on ''Raw'', Mark Copani, Muhammad Hassan and Shawn Daivari, Daivari came out to confront and assault Michaels. On the April 11 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels approached Professional wrestling authority figures#Raw brand authorities, General Manager Eric Bischoff, in which he demanded a Professional wrestling match types#Handicap match, handicap match with Hassan and Daivari. Bischoff refused to schedule such a match and instead told Michaels to find a partner. Michaels then made a plea for Hulk Hogan to come back and team with him. On the April 18 episode of ''Raw'', Hassan again led an attack on Michaels until Hogan appeared to save Michaels and accept his offer. At Backlash (2005), Backlash on May 1, Hogan and Michaels defeated Hassan and Daivari. Later, in a WrestleMania rematch, Michaels defeated Kurt Angle (who was drafted to Raw in the 2005 WWE draft lottery, draft lottery) on June 26 at Vengeance (2005), Vengeance. On the July 4 episode of ''Raw'', after defeating Carly Colón, Carlito and Kurt Angle, Michaels hit Hogan with his ''Sweet Chin Music'', knocking Hogan to the ground and turning heel for the first time since 1998. The following week on ''Raw'', Michaels appeared on ''Piper's Pit'' where he superkicked Roddy Piper and then challenged Hogan to a match at SummerSlam (2005), SummerSlam, which Hogan accepted the following week. Hogan defeated Michaels at SummerSlam on August 21, and after the match Michaels extended his hand to him, saying "I needed to know, and I found out" and he and Hogan shook hands. Michaels left the ring to allow Hogan to celebrate with the crowd, turning face once again. He became the first person to cleanly defeat Chris Masters on September 18 at Unforgiven (2005), Unforgiven with ''Sweet Chin Music''. On the October 3 ''WWE Raw Homecoming, WWE Homecoming'' episode of ''Raw'', he wrestled old rival Kurt Angle to a 2–2 draw in a Iron Man match, 30-Minute Iron Man match. Afterwards, he challenged Angle to sudden-death overtime, but Angle refused and walked out. He was part of Team Raw at Survivor Series (2005), Survivor Series on November 27, but lost the match to Team SmackDown!. On the December 26 episode of ''Raw'', Vince McMahon lauded Michaels for his part in the "
Montreal Screwjob The Montreal Screwjob (also called the Montreal Incident) was a notorious professional wrestling incident where the outcome of a major match was changed without one of the wrestlers being informed – in order to "screw over" Bret Hart, who was i ...
". Michaels said he was only being loyal to his company, he had moved on, and McMahon should move on as well. McMahon then began setting unusual stipulations for Michaels' matches and interfering on behalf of Michaels' opponents. On January 29, 2006, at the Royal Rumble (2006), Royal Rumble, McMahon made his way to the ring, and as Michaels stared at McMahon, Shane McMahon made a surprise appearance to eliminate Michaels. On the February 13 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon unsuccessfully forced Michaels to sign retirement papers. The following week, Michaels won a handicap match against the Spirit Squad (Kenny Dykstra, Kenny, Johnny Jeter, Johnny, Nick Mitchell, Mitch, Nick Nemeth, Nicky and Michael Brendli, Mikey), after which Michaels's former partner, Marty Jannetty, saved him from the assault by the Spirit Squad. After the two reunited, McMahon offered Jannetty a contract if he "kissed his ass." The following week, Jannetty refused McMahon's offer and instead took Chris Masters's "WWE Raw#Recurring segments, Masterlock challenge." Michaels tried to help Jannetty, which ultimately resulted in Shane attacking Michaels and forcing him to kiss his father's behind. On March 18 at ''Saturday Night's Main Event XXXII'', Shane defeated Michaels in a professional wrestling match types#Hardcore-based variations, Street Fight after he applied a sharpshooter on Michaels, leading to McMahon ordering for the bell to be rung though Michaels did not submit, which was an allusion to the "Montreal Screwjob". Despite interference from the Spirit Squad and Shane, Michaels defeated McMahon on April 2 at WrestleMania 22 in a professional wrestling match types#No Disqualification match/No Holds Barred match, No Holds Barred match. At Backlash (2006), Backlash on April 30, Team McMahon, The McMahons (Vince and Shane) defeated Michaels and "God in Christianity, God" with help from the Spirit Squad in a no disqualification tag team match. On the May 22 episode of ''Raw'', the Spirit Squad was scripted to injure Michaels's knee. This angle was written so Michaels could have surgery on his knee, which had been legitimately injured for some time. In 2006, a series of events took place which suggested a reunion of Michaels and Triple H as DX. They began at WrestleMania 22, where both Michaels and Triple H performed the crotch chop during their matches. On ''Raw'', the two continued to deliver chops, as Michaels feuded with Vince McMahon and Triple H went to challenge
John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he is the current WWE Championship, Undisputed WWE Champion in his record 14th reign, which is ...
for the WWE Championship, repeatedly butting heads with Vince McMahon in the process. On the June 12 episode of ''Raw'', DX officially reunited. During Triple H's Professional wrestling match types#Gauntlet match, gauntlet match, which had him compete against the Spirit Squad. Michaels came in to help Triple H, and the two did the DX "crotch chops." On June 25 at Vengeance (2006), Vengeance, DX defeated the Spirit Squad in a 5–on–2 professional wrestling match types#Handicap match, handicap match. They also defeated the Spirit Squad on July 15 at ''Saturday Night's Main Event XXXIII'' in a 5-on-2 elimination match and defeated The McMahons on August 20 at SummerSlam (2006), SummerSlam. At Unforgiven (2006), Unforgiven on September 17, DX defeated the McMahons and ECW Championship, ECW World Champion Paul Wight, The Big Show in a Hell in a Cell match, ending the feud. At Cyber Sunday (2006), Cyber Sunday on November 5, DX lost to Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton) after fan-selected referee Eric Bischoff allowed the illegal use of a steel chair to give Rated-RKO the ill-gotten win and the plaudit of being the first tag team to defeat DX in a tag team match since their reformation in June 2006. On November 26 at Survivor Series (2006), Survivor Series, Team DX emerged victorious against Team Rated-RKO in a clean sweep victory. At New Year's Revolution (2007), New Year's Revolution on January 7, 2007, Triple H suffered a Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Legit, legit torn right quadriceps femoris muscle, quadriceps during their match with Rated-RKO. Rated-RKO claimed victory over DX, citing Triple H's injury, as the "end" of DX. On the January 15 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels lived up to his word of "dealing" with Rated-RKO, from his comments the previous week before, when he took out Randy Orton with a Professional wrestling attacks#One man con-chair-to, con-chair-to after a handicap match against Edge and Orton. At the Royal Rumble (2007), Royal Rumble on January 28, Michaels was the last man eliminated in the Royal Rumble match by the winner of the match, The Undertaker.


Various feuds and championship pursuits (2007–2009)

On the January 29 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels captured the World Tag Team Championship (WWE, 1971–2010), World Tag Team Championship with WWE Champion
John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he is the current WWE Championship, Undisputed WWE Champion in his record 14th reign, which is ...
after defeating Rated-RKO. At WrestleMania 23 on April 1, Cena retained the WWE Championship against Michaels after making him submit to the Professional wrestling holds#STF, STFU. The next night on ''Raw'', Michaels and Cena competed in two back-to-back ten team battle royals, winning the first and losing the World Tag Team Championship in the second to Hardy Boyz, The Hardys (Matt Hardy, Matt and Jeff Hardy, Jeff) when Michaels threw Cena over the top rope. Michaels faced off with Cena, Edge and Randy Orton in a Professional wrestling match types#Basic non-elimination matches, fatal four-way match on April 29 at Backlash (2007), Backlash for the WWE Championship, where Cena retained the title after Michaels performed Sweet Chin Music on Cena, causing him to fall on Orton for the pinfall. Michaels then entered a feud with Randy Orton when Orton claimed that he could beat Michaels. The week before their scheduled match on May 20 at Judgment Day (2007), Judgment Day, after Michaels won a match against then-World Heavyweight Championship (WWE, 2002–2013), World Heavyweight Champion Edge, Orton attacked him by Professional wrestling attacks#Punt, punting Michaels in the head. Orton assaulted Michaels again prior to their match at Judgment Day, interrupting Michaels's interview segment. Michaels collapsed during their match, causing Orton to win by referee stoppage. Orton continued the beating and performed an Cutter (professional wrestling), RKO to a fallen Michaels, who was removed out of the ring in a stretcher. During the feud, Michaels suffered a storyline concussion. This injury was used to keep Michaels out of action, as he required surgery for his knee. Michaels made his return on the October 8 episode of ''Raw'', performing Sweet Chin Music to newly crowned WWE Champion Randy Orton during his title ceremony at the end of the show and then celebrating over the knocked-out champion as Vince McMahon watched. On October 28 at Cyber Sunday (2007), Cyber Sunday, Michaels was voted by the fans to face Orton for the WWE Championship, though he won via disqualification when Orton hit Michaels with a Professional wrestling attacks#Low blow, low blow, which resulted in Orton retaining the championship. Michaels got another opportunity at the WWE Championship, when he was granted his rematch against Orton on November 18 at Survivor Series (2007), Survivor Series. In their match, Michaels was banned from using Sweet Chin Music upon request by Orton, referring to as Michaels superkicking Orton week after week. Michaels lost the match, when Orton performed an RKO for the win, which ended their feud. Michaels defeated and ended Ric Flair's career in a Professional wrestling match types#Retirement match, Career Threatening match on March 30, 2008, at WrestleMania XXIV. Afterwards, Dave Batista, Batista confronted Michaels about his actions at WrestleMania, calling him selfish and egotistical. On April 27 at Backlash (2008), Backlash, with Chris Jericho as the Professional wrestling match types#Special referee, guest referee, Michaels defeated Batista. Jericho then confronted Michaels, in which he admitted to faking a knee injury in order to defeat Batista. Michaels defeated Jericho on May 18 at Judgment Day (2008), Judgment Day. At One Night Stand (2008), One Night Stand on June 1, Michaels lost to Batista in a Professional wrestling match types#Container-based variations, stretcher match. On the June 9 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels was attacked by Chris Jericho during his talk show segment, ''WWE Raw#Recurring segments, The Highlight Reel'', being thrown directly through a television screen. The following week, it was revealed that, within the context of the storyline, Michaels had suffered a detached retina. On July 20 at The Great American Bash (2008), The Great American Bash, Jericho defeated Michaels by referee stoppage after assaulting Michaels's eyes. At SummerSlam (2008), SummerSlam on August 17, Michaels announced his retirement from professional wrestling. That night, Jericho punched Michaels's wife in the face. On the August 25 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels renounced his retirement and challenged Jericho to an unsanctioned match at Unforgiven (2008), Unforgiven on September 7, which Jericho accepted. The next week, they had a contract signing for the match and were involved in a brawl, causing a legit small triceps tear for Michaels. He was medically cleared to compete at Unforgiven, and beat Jericho so severely that the referee called the match, making Michaels the winner. Later that night, Jericho replaced CM Punk in the World Heavyweight Championship scramble match, and won the title. On October 5 at No Mercy (2008), No Mercy, Michaels was defeated by Jericho in a ladder match for the World Heavyweight Championship. In December 2008, having lost his family's savings due to the global recession, Michaels grudgingly accepted a one-year general employment contract from John Layfield, John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL). After failing to help JBL win the World Heavyweight Championship from John Cena on January 25, 2009, at the Royal Rumble (2009), Royal Rumble, and being derided for it, Michaels agreed to face JBL in "All or Nothing" match at No Way Out (2009), No Way Out on February 15, which Michaels won thus letting him out of his contract early while still receiving full payment. On the March 2 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels became the first person to defeat Vladimir Kozlov, and so earned a match with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25 on April 5, which he lost thus extending The Undertaker's The Streak (wrestling), WrestleMania winning streak to 17–0. Their match was highly acclaimed by critics and audiences alike and is now considered by many to be one of the greatest WrestleMania matches of all time. After WrestleMania, Michaels took a four-month hiatus from WWE.


Final matches and second retirement (2009–2010)

Michaels returned to WWE programming in a series of segments that aired on the August 10, 2009, episode of ''Raw'', where he had, Kayfabe, in storyline, left the WWE. Triple H met with Michaels at an office cafeteria in Texas where he was working as a chef; throughout the segments, Triple H tried to convince Michaels to return to WWE and reform DX. After several incidents during the segments, Michaels agreed to team with Triple H to face The Legacy (professional wrestling), The Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, Jr., Ted DiBiase) at SummerSlam (2009), SummerSlam on August 23, where DX defeated Legacy. At TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs (2009), TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs on December 13, DX defeated Jeri-Show (Chris Jericho and Big Show) to win the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship, Unified WWE Tag Team Championship in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match (TLC). On the January 4, 2010, episode of ''Raw'', Michaels buried the hatchet with long-time rival
Bret Hart Bret Sergeant Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling background at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal U ...
, as they shook hands and hugged in the ring. In contrast to the storylines featured on the show, this was in fact a legitimate reconciliation which laid to rest animosities surrounding the
Montreal Screwjob The Montreal Screwjob (also called the Montreal Incident) was a notorious professional wrestling incident where the outcome of a major match was changed without one of the wrestlers being informed – in order to "screw over" Bret Hart, who was i ...
. While some cast doubts on its sincerity, both men have confirmed that it was indeed genuine. DX lost the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship in a triple threat match to the team of The Miz and Big Show on the February 8 episode of ''Raw''; the match also included The Straight Edge Society (CM Punk and Luke Gallows). On February 21 at Elimination Chamber (2010), Elimination Chamber, Michaels cost The Undertaker the World Heavyweight Championship in the main event. At WrestleMania XXVI on March 28, Michaels The Streak (wrestling), lost to The Undertaker and, as a result, he was forced to retire due to the match stipulation, the same way Michaels ended Ric Flair's career. The following night, on the March 29 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels gave an emotional farewell speech, departing with the familiar sentence, "Shawn Michaels Elvis has left the building, has left the building." In an interview with Bill Simmons of ESPN.com shortly after his retirement, Michaels stated that his decision to retire came a month before WrestleMania 25, when a backstage employee asked about his son Cameron, and, in response to Shawn telling the employee that he'd just turned nine, the employee said that he was "halfway gone"; meaning that he was halfway to his eighteenth birthday, and after that, he'd be "gone". The statement affected Michaels deeply; he did not want to be absent when his son left home, so he decided that year would be his last year as an active wrestler.


WWE Hall of Fame and sporadic appearances (2010–2018)

On the December 13 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels won the Slammy Award for Moment of the Year for his match against The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI and accepted it via satellite. Three days later, he announced a long-term deal with WWE, where he would serve in an ambassadorial role. Michaels made his in-person television return at the December 11 ''WWE Tribute to the Troops, Tribute to the Troops'' taping, where he and Triple H had a one-night only DX reunion.Michaels appeared on the January 10, 2011, episode of ''Raw'', where he was announced as a
WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when An ...
WWE Hall of Fame (2011), class of 2011 inductee. After being ridiculed by Alberto Del Rio later that night, Michaels hit Del Rio with ''Sweet Chin Music''. On the March 28 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels addressed Triple H and The Undertaker about their match at WrestleMania XXVII. Michaels was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 2 by Triple H. They were also joined by fellow The Kliq, Kliq members Kevin Nash (who had returned to WWE for the Royal Rumble (2011), Royal Rumble) and Sean Waltman. He returned on the June 27 episode of ''Raw'', where he was confronted by CM Punk, and superkicked David Otunga and Curtis Axel, Michael McGillicutty. Later that night, when Diamond Dallas Page's special appearance was interrupted by Drew Galloway, Drew McIntyre, he superkicked McIntyre. In June 2011, Jim Ross, Michaels and Hart announced that the three were working on a DVD chronicling the careers of Hart and Michaels that the WWE was planning to release in October 2011. The subject of the DVD was their on-screen rivalry and real-life conflicts, with a particular focus on the Montreal Screwjob. In his tweet, Hart described working on the DVD as a "cathartic" experience, and Ross asserted that both Hart and Michaels had been very honest and emotional in their interviews. The DVD, ''Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart: WWE's Greatest Rivalries'', was released in November 2011. On the February 13, 2012, episode of ''Raw SuperShow'', Michaels confronted Triple H about accepting The Undertaker's challenge for a Hell in a Cell, Hell in a Cell match on April 1 at WrestleMania XXVIII, and announced he would be the special guest referee for it. Michaels appeared on the August 6 episode of ''Raw'' where he was confronted by Brock Lesnar, who (
kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe (pronounced ) is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants. The term has evolved to become a code word ...
) broke Michaels's arm after putting it in a ''Kimura Lock'' the following week. On the April 1, 2013, episode of ''Raw'', Michaels returned to offer to corner Triple H in his match with Brock Lesnar on April 7 at WrestleMania 29. During that match, Michaels superkicked an interfering Paul Heyman, helping Triple H win and keep his job. At Hell in a Cell (2013), Hell in a Cell on October 27, Michaels served as the special guest referee for the vacant WWE Championship Hell in a Cell match between Bryan Danielson, Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton, performing Sweet Chin Music on Bryan so Orton could win. The next night on ''Raw'', Michaels explained he was upset with Bryan for attacking Triple H during the match and degraded him for not showing him respect, turning Heel (professional wrestling), heel for the first time since 2005. Bryan applied the ''"Yes!" Lock'' on Michaels to end the segment. On April 3, 2016, at WrestleMania 32, Michaels, as a face, made an appearance during the event in his in-ring attire, confronting The League of Nations (professional wrestling), The League of Nations alongside
Mick Foley Michael Francis Foley (born June 7, 1965) is an American retired professional wrestler and author. He is signed to WWE, under a Legends contract while also serving as an ambassador. Foley worked for many wrestling promotions, including the W ...
and
Stone Cold Steve Austin Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson and later Steven James Williams; December 18, 1964), better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American media personality, actor, producer and retired Professional wrestling, profes ...
, where Michaels delivered Sweet Chin Music to Alberto Del Rio and Wade Barrett, King Barrett before celebrating with Foley, Austin and The New Day (wrestling), The New Day. In late 2016, Michaels became a trainer at the
WWE Performance Center WWE Performance Center (WWE PC) is a group of professional wrestling schools owned by American company WWE. They serve as tryout and training facilities for WWE, and also contain sports science and medical facilities as well as live events and ...
. According to ''Pro Wrestling Torch'' in 2017, Michaels along with
Terry Taylor Paul Worden Taylor III (born August 12, 1955) is an American retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Terry Taylor and for his time as an in-ring performer in National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling, and Wo ...
teach the finishing class at the Performance Center, the last of four levels of classes. He appeared on the January 9, 2017, episode of ''Raw'' to promote The Resurrection of Gavin Stone, his new film. He was then confronted by Rusev (wrestler), Rusev, Lana (wrestling), Lana and Jinder Mahal, before Enzo Amore and Big Cass came to Michaels's side, leading to a match between Big Cass and Mahal, which Cass won after Michaels superkicked Rusev at ringside, distracting Mahal. On the March 13 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels gave Roman Reigns advice about
The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by his ring name the Undertaker, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway ...
for their match at WrestleMania 33, before Braun Strowman attacked Reigns on the entrance ramp. He was one of the many WWE legends who appeared on the January 22, 2018, episode of Raw 25 Years. At Super Show-Down (2018), Super Show-Down on October 6, Michaels assisted Triple H in defeating The Undertaker, after which, he was attacked by The Undertaker and Kane (wrestler), Kane. On the following episode of ''Raw'', Michaels appeared with Triple H, announcing that he was coming out of retirement for one final match and reforming
D-Generation X D-Generation X (DX), is an American professional wrestling Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Stable, stable, and later a tag team, who consisted of various members mostly Generation X wrestlers, most notably Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Ch ...
. On November 2 at Crown Jewel (2018), Crown Jewel, D-Generation X defeated The Brothers of Destruction. The match was poorly received by fans and critics alike, winning the List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards, Wrestling Observer Newsletter's "Worst Match of the Year" award, although PWTorch's Wade Keller considered that "Michaels shows glimpses and didn't embarrass himself".


NXT and corporate roles (2018–present)

In November 2018, Michaels announced he was officially working as a writer and producer on NXT (WWE brand), WWE's NXT brand and show, under former D-Generation X cohort Paul Levesque. In April 2019, Michaels was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame for a second time, this time as a member of D-Generation X. He appeared at Survivor Series (2020), Survivor Series on November 22, 2020, during The Undertaker's retirement ceremony. In September 2021, Levesque stepped away from the brand after experiencing a "cardiac incident". Michaels, in his role as Vice President of Talent Development, took over responsibility for the running of the NXT shows. In September 2022, his job title was confirmed as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative, responsible for both creative and development at NXT, and for the expansion of NXT UK into NXT Europe in 2023. On January 23, 2023, at WWE Raw is XXX, Raw is XXX, Michaels again reunited with D-Generation X (without Billy Gunn, as he was no longer under contract with WWE) until they and Kurt Angle were confronted by Imperium (professional wrestling), Imperium (Gunther (wrestler), Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser, and Giovanni Vinci).


Legacy

Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Michaels received praise for several matches, including 15 Match of the Year awards between Pro Wrestling Illustrated and Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Also, his match at WrestleMania 24 against Ric Flair was named Match of the Decade by the Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Dave Meltzer gave him two 5 stars matches (the Ladder match against Razor Ramon at WrestleMania X and the first Hell in a Cell against The Undertaker at Bad Blood 1997). After several acclaimed matches at WrestleMania, Michaels has been known as Mr. WrestleMania. Sumit Rehal of Independent UK in his top 10 WrestleMania matches listed Michaels 3 times (vs Razor Ramon at WrestleMania X, vs Bret Hart at WrestleMania XII and vs The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV). In 2016, Dave Richard of CBS Sports ranked his match against Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV as the best main event in WrestleMania history. His rivalry with Bret Hart has been named one of the best rivalries in WWE history. His near hourlong match with
John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he is the current WWE Championship, Undisputed WWE Champion in his record 14th reign, which is ...
on the April 23, 2007, edition of WWE's longest weekly episodic show ''Raw'' is widely regarded as the greatest match in the ''Raw's'' history. Michaels is cited as an inspiration for many wrestlers such as Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole and numerous other wrestlers.


Personal life

Hickenbottom's first marriage, to Theresa Wood, soon ended in an amicably settled divorce. He married Rebecca Curci, a former WCW Nitro Girls, Nitro Girl known as Whisper, at the Graceland Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas on March 31, 1999. Only the couple and an Elvis impersonator were present. They have a son named Cameron Kade (born January 15, 2000) and a daughter named Cheyenne (born August 19, 2004). In 1996, Hickenbottom posed for a non-nude layout in ''Playgirl''. Only after he posed did he discover ''Playgirl'' has a mostly homosexual readership, for which some of his fellow wrestlers teased him. Hickenbottom is Cross-dominance, ambidextrous, using his left hand for writing and his right hand for drawing. As a wrestler, he typically kicked with his right leg when performing his finishing move, but used either arm for his signature elbow drop. He had trouble differentiating between right and left, which affected his football games as a child. In 1987, Hickenbottom developed a pattern of "heavy" substance abuse, which eventually alienated some of his closest friends, and may have explained his reputation for being difficult to work with during the 1990s. He Suicidal ideation, contemplated suicide in the late 1980s, and suggested that psychological intervention was "probably sorely needed" by the late 1990s. His wife Rebecca observed, "There was something in him that he despised, and he was self-destructing." He abandoned his drink-and-drugs lifestyle in 2002 out of fear that he would negatively influence his then 2-year-old son. Hickenbottom became a Born again, born-again Christian on April 24, 2002. He was raised a Catholic Church, Catholic, but became a non-denominational Christian because of his wife's beliefs. His later ring attire often incorporated Christian cross, cross symbols and he made a praying gesture on his knees during ring entrances. He was in the audience for a televised service of John Hagee's Cornerstone Church in his hometown of San Antonio, where he is also a Bible teacher. In 2008, he appeared on a Trinity Broadcasting Network program with fellow wrestler Sting (wrestler), Sting. Hickenbottom is also a long time fan of the San Antonio Spurs, he's attended home games since the late 1970s and had season tickets for the 1998-1999 lockout shortened National Basketball Association season as the Spurs won their first NBA Championship in franchise history during that time.


Other media


Television

Michaels was the host of the outdoor television show, ''Shawn Michaels' MacMillan River Adventures,'' in which he and his longtime friend, Keith Mark, owner and operator of the original MacMillan River Adventures camp in Yukon, Canada, hunted big-game animals around the world. This series aired on CarbonTV.


HBK Line

During their 2015-16 Pittsburgh Penguins season, 2015–16 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League named a Line (ice hockey), line, consisting of Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino and Phil Kessel, the "HBK Line" due to the fact that the trio's first initials, of their last names, recall Michaels's "Heartbreak Kid" moniker. Pens' game-day staff would regularly play Michaels's theme "Sexy Boy" over the PPG Paints Arena, Consol Energy Center PA system after goals or excellent shifts by line members. After weeks of having fun with Penguins fans on Twitter, the team officially invited Michaels for their Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs, Finals Game 5 matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning (whose fanbase contains a sizable number of pro wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan and Titus O'Neil, due to Tampa long being a home base for many wrestlers), upon which Michaels accepted. Michaels met with Penguins' owner Mario Lemieux and sat with former Pittsburgh Steelers's defensive lineman Brett Keisel during the game. Keisel also gave Michaels a tour of the city including at the Steelers headquarters and having lunch at Primanti Brothers in the city's Strip District, Pittsburgh, Strip District. The Penguins lost the game in overtime 4–3 but went on to defeat the Lightning in the series and advance to the 2016 Stanley Cup Finals, Stanley Cup Finals, eventually defeating the San Jose Sharks for the Stanley Cup. Outside of his numerous appearances with WWE, it was not Michaels first visit to Pittsburgh. In 2013, he appeared at the opening of the first Field & Stream (retailer), Field & Stream store in suburban Cranberry Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania, Cranberry Township. While the Penguins successfully defended their Stanley Cup championship 2017 Stanley Cup Finals, the following year, the HBK Line was broken up when Kessel was moved to the 2nd line with Evgeni Malkin and Bonino left the team in free agency.


Book

On February 10, 2015, Hickenbottom published an autobiography entitled ''Wrestling for My Life: The Legend, the Reality, and the Faith of a WWE Superstar''. It was co-written by David Thomas. *The Unauthorized History of DX. Triple H; Shawn Michaels; Aaron Williams (2009). WWE Books.


Filmography


Video games


Championships and accomplishments

*
American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The promotion was born out of the Minneapolis ...
**
AWA World Tag Team Championship The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991. History When the NWA Minneapolis ...
(AWA World Tag Team Championship#Title history, 2 times) – with
Marty Jannetty Fredrick Martin Jannetty (born February 3, 1960) is an American retired professional wrestler who has worked for promotions including the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/E), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), World Champion ...
* ''The Baltimore Sun'' ** Feud of the Year (2008) ** Match of the Year (2007) ** Match of the Year (2008) ** Match of the Year (2009) ** Match of the Year (2010) ** Wrestler of the Year (2008) * Cauliflower Alley Club ** Art Abrams Lifetime Achievement/Lou Thesz Award (2018) * CBS Sports ** Worst Angle of the Year (2018) *
Central States Wrestling Heart of America Sports Attractions, Inc., operating as the Midwest Wrestling Association, Central States Wrestling and the World Wrestling Alliance, was an American professional wrestling promotion that ran shows mainly in Kansas, Missouri, Nebr ...
**
NWA Central States Tag Team Championship The NWA Central States Tag Team Championship was the primary tag team championship for the Heart of America Sports Attractions / Central States Wrestling promotion from 1979 until the promotion ceased to exist in 1988. The Central States Tag Team ...
(NWA Central States Tag Team Championship#Title history, 1 time) – with Marty Jannetty * Continental Wrestling Association ** AWA Southern Tag Team Championship (AWA Southern Tag Team Championship#Title history, 2 times) – with Marty Jannetty * ''
Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publishing Group. The maga ...
'' ** Feud of the Decade (2000–2009) vs. Chris Jericho ** List of Pro Wrestling Illustrated awards#Feud of the Year, Feud of the Year (2008) vs. Chris Jericho ** Match of the Decade (2000–2009) vs.
Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Flair's career spanned 50 years. He is ...
at WrestleMania XXIV
**List of Pro Wrestling Illustrated awards, Match of the Decade (2010–2019) vs.
The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by his ring name the Undertaker, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway ...
at WrestleMania XXVI **
Match of the Year This is a list of both active and inactive ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' awards created by professional wrestling and mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist Dave Meltzer. The first fourteen awards were created in 1980 as an informal poll betwee ...
(1993) vs. Marty Jannetty on ''Monday Night Raw'' on May 17 ** Match of the Year (1994) vs. Scott Hall (wrestler), Razor Ramon in a
ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself become ...
at WrestleMania X
** Match of the Year (1995) vs.
Diesel Diesel may refer to: * Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression * Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines * Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine ...
at WrestleMania XI
** Match of the Year (1996) vs.
Bret Hart Bret Sergeant Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling background at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal U ...
in an Iron Man match at
WrestleMania XII WrestleMania XII was a 1996 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the 12th annual WrestleMania and took place on March 31, 1996, at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim in An ...
** Match of the Year (2004) vs. Chris Benoit and Triple H at WrestleMania XX ** Match of the Year (2005) vs. Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 21 ** Match of the Year (2006) vs.
Vince McMahon Vincent Kennedy McMahon ( ; born August 24, 1945) is an American businessman and former professional wrestling promoter. McMahon, along with his later-estranged wife Linda McMahon, Linda, is a co-founder of the modern WWE, the world's largest ...
in a Professional wrestling match types#No Holds Barred match, No Holds Barred match at WrestleMania 22
** Match of the Year (2007) vs. John Cena on ''Raw'' on April 23 ** Match of the Year (2008) vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania XXIV ** Match of the Year (2009) vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25 ** Match of the Year (2010) vs. The Undertaker in a career vs. streak match at WrestleMania XXVI ** Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Decade (2000–2009) ** List of Pro Wrestling Illustrated awards#Inspirational Wrestler of the Year, Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (2010) ** List of Pro Wrestling Illustrated awards#Most Popular Wrestler of the Year, Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (1995, 1996) ** Ranked No. 1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated#PWI 500, PWI 500'' in 1996 ** Ranked No. 10 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the ''PWI Years'' in 2003 ** Ranked No. 33 and No. 55 of the top 100 tag teams of the ''PWI Years'' with Marty Jannetty and Diesel, respectively, in 2003 * Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame ** Class of 2017 *Sports Illustrated **Ranked No. 8 of the 20 Greatest WWE Wrestlers Of All Time *
Texas All-Star Wrestling Texas All-Star Wrestling (TASW) is a professional wrestling promotion that was established by Bob Murphy in Humble, Texas in 1994. It is the oldest independent promotion in the state of Texas and one of two based in the Greater Houston area al ...
** Texas All-Star USA Tag Team Championship, TASW Texas Tag Team Championship (Texas All-Star USA Tag Team Championship#Title history, 2 times) – with
Paul Diamond Thomas Boric (born May 11, 1961) is a Croatian-Canadian retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Paul Diamond. He is best known for being one half of the tag team Badd Company with Pat Tanaka and for his time in the Worl ...
**TASW Six-Man Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with
Paul Diamond Thomas Boric (born May 11, 1961) is a Croatian-Canadian retired professional wrestler better known by his ring name Paul Diamond. He is best known for being one half of the tag team Badd Company with Pat Tanaka and for his time in the Worl ...
& DJ Peterson * Texas Wrestling Alliance ** TWA Heavyweight Championship (1 time) * WWE, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment / WWE **
WWF Championship The WWE Championship, also referred to as the Undisputed WWE Championship since April 2024, is a men's professional wrestling World championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American profe ...
(List of WWE Champions, 3 times) ** World Heavyweight Championship (List of World Heavyweight Champions (WWE, 2002–2013), 1 time) ** WWE Intercontinental Championship, WWF Intercontinental Championship (List of WWE Intercontinental Champions, 3 times) ** WWF European Championship (List of WWE European Champions, 1 time) ** World Tag Team Championship (WWE), WWE Tag Team Championship (List of World Tag Team Champions (WWE), 1 time) – with Triple H ** World Tag Team Championship (WWE, 1971–2010), WWF/World Tag Team Championship (List of World Tag Team Champions (WWE, 1971–2010), 5 times) – with Diesel (2),
Stone Cold Steve Austin Steve Austin (born Steven James Anderson and later Steven James Williams; December 18, 1964), better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American media personality, actor, producer and retired Professional wrestling, profes ...
(1), John Cena (1), Triple H (1) **
Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named after, and centered on, the Royal Rumble match, a modified Battle royal (professional wre ...
(Royal Rumble (1995), 1995, Royal Rumble (1996), 1996) ** Grand Slam (professional wrestling)#List of WWE Grand Slam winners, First Grand Slam Champion ** Triple Crown (professional wrestling)#List of WWE Men's Triple Crown winners, Fourth Triple Crown Champion ** Slammy Award (15 times) *** Best Finisher (Slammy Award#1997 Slammy Awards, 1997) *** Best Slammin' Jammin' Entrance (Slammy Award#1996 Slammy Awards, 1996) *** Best Tag Team (Slammy Award#1994 Slammy Awards, 1994) – with Diesel *** Best Threads (1996) *** Double-Cross of the Year (Slammy Award#2013 Slammy Awards, 2013) – For turning on Bryan Danielson, Daniel Bryan and costing him the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell (2013), Hell in a Cell. *** Leader of the New Generation (1996) *** Master of Mat Mechanics (1996) *** Match of the Year (1994, 1996, 1997, Slammy Award#2008 Slammy Awards, 2008, Slammy Award#2009 Slammy Awards, 2009) – vs. Razor Ramon in a ladder match at WrestleMania X; vs. Razor Ramon in a ladder match at
SummerSlam SummerSlam is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by the world's largest professional wrestling promotion, WWE. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's second biggest event of the year behind th ...
; vs Bret Hart at WrestleMania XII; vs The Undertaker at Badd Blood: In Your House; vs Ric Flair at WrestleMania XXIV; vs The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25
*** Moment of the Year (Slammy Award#2010 Slammy Awards, 2010) – vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI *** Squared Circle Shocker (1996) – Won for collapsing;
Owen Hart Owen James Hart (May 7, 1965 – May 23, 1999) was a Canadian-American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler who worked for several promotions including Stampede Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...
accepts the award for making Michaels collapse
*** Worst Tag Team (1994) – with Diesel **
WWE Hall of Fame The WWE Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when An ...
(2 times) ***WWE Hall of Fame (2011), Class of 2011 – individually ***WWE Hall of Fame (2019), Class of 2019 – as a member of
D-Generation X D-Generation X (DX), is an American professional wrestling Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Stable, stable, and later a tag team, who consisted of various members mostly Generation X wrestlers, most notably Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Ch ...
* ''
Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four Wee ...
'' ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Best Babyface, Best Babyface (1996) ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Feud of the Year, Feud of the Year (2004) vs. Chris Benoit and Triple H ** Feud of the Year (2008) vs. Chris Jericho ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Match of the Year, Match of the Year (1994) vs. Razor Ramon in a ladder match at WrestleMania X ** Match of the Year (2008) vs. Chris Jericho in a ladder match at No Mercy (2008), No Mercy ** Match of the Year (2009) vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25 ** Match of the Year (2010) vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Worst Match of the Year, Worst Match of the Year (2018) with Triple H vs. The Undertaker and Kane at Crown Jewel (2018), Crown Jewel **List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Best Pro Wrestling DVD/Streaming Documentary, Best Pro Wrestling DVD (2011) Greatest Rivalries: Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Most Charismatic, Most Charismatic (1995, 1996) ** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Tag Team of the Year, Tag Team of the Year (1989) with Marty Jannetty as
The Rockers The Rockers were an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty who teamed from 1985 to 1992. The team worked for NWA Central States Wrestling, the American Wrestling Association, Continental Wrestl ...
** List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Worst Feud of the Year, Worst Feud of the Year (2006) with Triple H vs. Shane McMahon, Shane and Vince McMahon ** Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame#Inductees, Class of 2003)


References


Sources

* *


Further reading

*


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Shawn 1965 births Living people 20th-century male professional wrestlers 20th-century American professional wrestlers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century evangelicals 21st-century male professional wrestlers 21st-century American professional wrestlers American Evangelical writers American football linebackers American male non-fiction writers American male professional wrestlers American male television actors American male television writers American television writers American people of English descent AWA World Tag Team Champions D-Generation X members The Kliq members New World Order (professional wrestling) members Professional wrestlers from Arizona Professional wrestling authority figures Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum American professional wrestling trainers Professional wrestling writers Royal Rumble match winners Sportspeople from Chandler, Arizona Texas State University alumni World Heavyweight Champions (WWE) World Tag Team Champions (WWE, 1971–2010) World Tag Team Champions (WWE) WWE Champions WWE executives WWE Grand Slam champions WWE Hall of Fame inductees WWF European Champions WWF/WWE Intercontinental Champions