Source: The Post and Courier
Bad attitude. Prima donna. Manipulative. Drug problems.
But he was the “Showstopper” and one of WWE’s top names, so Shawn Michaels was given a pass.
Nearly a decade has passed since those days, and Michaels finds himself in the same role, minus the negative baggage.
Sure, his hair’s a lot thinner, and he’s sporting the wrinkles that come with the territory of a man who’s nearing his 42nd birthday. But Michaels has provided a spark to a company that badly needed one, and is knocking on the door of the world title at the biggest wrestling event of the year.
“The Heartbreak Kid” will challenge John Cena for the WWE heavyweight title at Wrestlemania 23 – WWE’s equivalent of the Super Bowl – April 1 at Ford Field in Detroit.
Although WWE owner Vince McMahon sees the 29-year-old Cena as the future of the company, Michaels brings a wealth of history to the show. Michaels, who started working with WWE in 1987, is one of the company’s longest-tenured performers and one of the greatest to have ever stepped inside a WWE ring.
Michaels also has completed an amazing comeback since undergoing disc fusion surgery after getting seriously injured in a 1998 Royal Rumble casket match against The Undertaker. He temporarily retired but returned in 2002 and has since regained his status as one of the sport’s all-time greatest performers.
Ironically WWE business is booming at a time that coincides with the absence of Triple H, Michaels’ DX stablemate, who had been penciled in as Cena’s Mania challenger before suffering a severe quadriceps tear for the second time in six years last month.
While Triple H will miss his first Wrestlemania since debuting with the company, WWE has seized the opportunity and turned the setback into an advantage, forcing them to go with a much fresher and more intriguing matchup between Cena and Michaels. Michaels has been turning back the clock to another era, and literally forced the company’s hand when deciding on a challenger for Cena.
A renewed push surrounding the company’s biggest titles, along with seemingly less emphasis on silly and overdone gimmicks and bad-taste controversy, also has tended to serve WWE well in recent weeks. The build to Mania is always strong, but this year the company seems to be moving with more focus and direction, and the numbers attest to that.
A recent edition of Raw on the USA Network drew 5.8 million viewers, its largest audience since the June 27, 2005, edition and its highest rating in the 12-34 age group since 2003. More than 5 million fans tuned in to the Feb. 2 episode of Smackdown, earning that show its highest rating since moving to The CW Network in September and its highest overall rating in more than one year.
Dawn Ostroff, president of entertainment at CW, praised Smackdown in a recent article on deseretnews.com.
“I have to say the WWE, Vince and Linda (McMahon), have been incredible partners. They really have been. I have to say they are excellent show producers. They know their characters better than anybody. They understand what their audience is looking for, and who their audience is, better than anything. They have been doing this for a long time, and their business is more than just this show. It is truly a whole culture, a phenomenon.”
The Undertaker puts his unparalleled 16-year winning streak at Wrestlemania on the line when he meets Batista in the co-headliner for the WWE world title. It will mark the first time two babyface vs. babyface matches will headline a Wrestlemania event. One plan being discussed is to have Taker’s streak come to an end with Batista turning heel, while another faction backs Mr. Kennedy (Ken Anderson) as the successor to Batista’s crown.
–TNA gets the rare opportunity to show its stuff on Monday night when Spike TV airs a 9-11 p.m. “This Is TNA” special in a time slot normally occupied by Monday Night Raw. This week’s Raw is being pre-empted due to the Westminster dog show. The TNA special will be replayed on Thursday from 7-9 p.m. followed by a new edition of TNA’s Impact show. Raw will air on Thursday from 8-10 p.m. on USA Network.
–Hulk Hogan, who had been scheduled to meet Great Khali at this year’s Wrestlemania, may not be making it to the big show after all.
Hogan reportedly is in hot water with management after taking a personal call from WWE office worker Ann Gordon and having her read aloud a confidential list of potential candidates for this year’s Hall of Fame – while on a radio interview with Tampa-based shock jock Bubba The Love Sponge.
Hogan’s appearance would have marked the 20-year anniversary of his epic showdown at the Pontiac Silverdome against the late Andre The Giant.
–Hogan, still smarting over being shown up by Shawn Michaels at the 2005 Summer Slam and a shoot interview that accompanied it, ripped Michaels in a recent interview, saying that HBK is considered to be a good worker simply because he “flops around and flips around.”
–Dusty Rhodes has moved from the Smackdown to the ECW creative team at the request of ECW lead writer Dave Lagana.
–Kurt Angle said in a radio interview last week that he’s been clean from pain pills for two years now and claimed he made more money for WWE than any wrestler over the past six years.
