Career

Early career

Although born in Scottsdale, Hickenbottom grew up in San Antonio. Trained by legendary Mexican pro wrestler Jose Lothario, he debuted in 1984 in Texas with Texas Allstar Wrestling promotion, where Michaels & Paul Diamond were awarded the promotion's tag-team championship by Chavo Guerrero, Sr. He also wrestled for Central States Championship Wrestling (a regional independent promotion that was associated with the [then-] industry-leading National Wrestling Alliance). There he and Marty Jannetty defeated The Batten Twins for the Central States Tag Team Title, later losing it back to the Battens. He made his national-level debut in 1986 in the now-defunct AWA; once again teaming with Marty Jannetty, the pair were billed as "The Midnight Rockers" (so named because AWA owner/promoter Verne Gagne wanted a copy-cat version of the NWA's highly popular "Rock & Roll Express" tag team). They won the AWA Tag Team Title twice, having some bloody and memorable matches against "Playboy" Buddy Rose & Doug Somers. Gagne briefly loaned-out the duo to Jerry "The King" Lawler's independent Memphis promotion, Southern Championship Wrestling (later re-named the CWA, and then USWA), as heels (i.e., villains). They even faced The Rock & Roll Express. In a raid of AWA talent, The Rockers were signed by a competing promotion: the World Wrestling Federation. However, they were fired two weeks later for "partying too hard" (later admitted by Michaels himself during an interview in WWE's "Before They Were Superstars 2" DVD). They returned to the AWA, but were re-signed by the WWF a year later. Because of Vince McMahon's desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive monikers (his company trademarks these stage names, so it won't have to share the subsequent WWF merchandising revenues with [most] performers or their past promoters), they were simply known as "The Rockers." They became arguably the greatest WWF/E tag team to never officially win the World Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championship.

The Heartbreak Kid

On a Saturday Night's Main Event broadcast (on the NBC network), The Rockers did win the WWF Tag Team Titles, defeating "The Hart Foundation" (Bret "the Hitman" Hart & Jim "the Anvil" Neidhart). Neidhart had been fired and was still performing solely to meet his contractual obligation to lose Tag Team Title in the ring (to preserve storyline continuity). During the match, the top rope broke and caused confusion, in the end with the Rockers winning. The Rockers defended the title a week after that; meanwhile, Neidhart was re-signed. WWF boss Vince McMahon decided that the title change never happened and sent a story to Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine saying the top rope's breaking caused an unfair advantage. The title reign was annulled and forgotten; the match was edited out of the SNME broadcast.

Citing frustration with their lack of championship success and a wish to break out on his own, Michaels and Jannetty split on an episode of WWF Wrestling Challenge, shown on January 12, 1992 (but taped on December 2, 1991) during a famous incident on Brutus Beefcake's "Barber Shop" segment, when Michaels superkicked Jannetty and threw him through a plate-glass window. However, behind the scenes of the incident, Shawn had already discussed this with Marty and Vince, and both men gave him their blessing to venture out on his own, thus leading to the segment.

Shawn turned heel and became a singles wrestler, taking the nickname, "The Heartbreak Kid" (often referring to himself as "HBK"). In his new gimmick as a vain, cocky wrestler, he took on a manager, Sherri Martel, who was infatuated with him, and even sang the first version of his theme music, "Sexy Boy." Martel was the catalyst for a then-rare "heel vs. heel" feud with "The Model" Rick Martel (unrelated to Sherri), which led to a match between the two at the 1992 SummerSlam PPV

Michaels enjoyed considerable success as a singles wrestler, winning his first WWF title, the WWF Intercontinental Championship from The British Bulldog during the final episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, on October 27, 1992. Shortly thereafter, he faced Bret Hart for the WWF Championship in the main event of the 1992 Survivor Series. This would also lead into a memorable feud between the two, though this feud also escalated into the planes or reality between the two men.

He also feuded with his former partner Jannetty, who reappeared in the WWF in late 1992. In the storyline, Jannetty accidentally injured Sherri when he hit her with a large mirror, intended for Michaels, who pulled Martel in front of him. Martel abandoned Michaels, and the two former Rockers faced each other in a match at the 1993 Royal Rumble. Sherri eventually left the WWF for WCW, in which Michaels debuted a new version of his theme music, with vocals performed by himself (this song was produced by Jimmy Hart, and Michaels still uses his entrance theme to this day).

Michaels held the Intercontinental Championship for most of the following year, losing it briefly to Jannetty on an episode of Monday Night RAW on May 17, 1993, but regaining it on June 6, with the help of his new bodyguard, Diesel. In September 1993, Michaels briefly left the WWF. On WWF TV, it was explained that WWF president Jack Tunney had suspended him and stripped him of the title. While he was off TV, he participated in a "Survivor Series"-type match in the United States Wrestling Association during a WWF/USWA cross-promotion. He returned to WWF airwaves by the 1993 Survivor Series, substituting for Jerry Lawler in a match pitting himself and three of Lawler's "knights" against Bret Hart, Owen Hart, and two of their brothers.

He soon entered a feud with Razor Ramon, who had won the Intercontinental Title during Michaels' absence. Since Michaels had never been defeated for the title, he claimed to be the rightful champion, and carried around his old title belt. This feud culminated in a ladder match between the two at WrestleMania X, on March 20, 1994 in Madison Square Garden. Michaels lost the match, which featured both his and Ramon's belts suspended above a ladder in the ring. This match won "Match of the Year" awards from Pro Wrestling Illustrated and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, and also earned Michaels a reputation of being the "Innovator of the Ladder Match".

On an episode of Monday Night RAW, taped on March 21, 1994, Michaels debuted a segment called "The Heartbreak Hotel", which was mainly shown on WWF Superstars throughout the year. The segment, which featured Michaels obnoxiously interviewing other wrestlers and managers, allowed him to showcase his microphone skills and appear on television, even when he was injured and unable to wrestle. The "Heartbreak Hotel" set was comprised of a heart-shaped bed and a flashing neon sign.

He was still accompanied by Diesel, who, though he remained a heel, had become popular among fans in his own right. On August 28, 1994, Michaels and Diesel captured the WWF World Tag Team Championship from The Headshrinkers. During their brief tenure as a tag team, they used a variation of the Headshrinkers' finishing move, where Michaels would finish off their opponent by climbing on Diesel's shoulders and splashing their opponent. The next day, Diesel lost the Intercontinental Title to Ramon (who had lost the title to Diesel earlier in the year) at SummerSlam when Michaels accidentally superkicked his bodyguard. In October 1994, Michaels suffered a hand injury, which would put him on the shelf as an active wrestler until January.

Michaels and Diesel broke up their team on November 23, 1994, at the Survivor Series during their five-on-five elimination match. Diesel had done most of the work in eliminating four members of the opposing team when Michaels insisted upon entering the match to superkick Razor Ramon. Michaels accidentally kicked Diesel for a third time leading Diesel to begin attacking his whole team. Their tag team was dissolved and forfeited the titles as they no longer wished to associate with one another, along with the fact that Diesel defeated newly crowned WWF champion Bob Backlund in a squash match at a house show days later.

A Boyhood Dream Comes True

Michaels became the perceived leader of a backstage group known as The Clique, which obtained sufficient clout with WWF owner Vince McMahon to become the dominant wrestling figures in the promotion for several years in the mid-1990s. For storyline purposes, Shawn's fanbase was nicknamed "The Kliq" as an inside reference to the real "Clique." Shawn won his first WWF Championship in March 1996 at WrestleMania XII, defeating Bret Hart in a 60 minute Iron Man Match, after failing to win it at last year's WrestleMania against Diesel. His first feud after winning the title was against Hart's brother-in-law, the British Bulldog, after the Bulldog accused him of trying to have an affair with his wife. Afterwards, he faced off against Vader, who had recently jumped from WCW to the WWF, throughout the summer of 1996. Michaels' title reign ended at the 1996 Survivor Series in November, where he was beaten by Psycho Sid, his former bodyguard, at Madison Square Garden.

At the 1997 Royal Rumble, Michaels recaptured the WWF Title from Sid in front of his hometown fans in San Antonio. He forfeited his title in February, claiming to have "lost his smile" to a series of injuries. Michaels was rumored to be unwilling to lose to Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 in a rematch of the previous year's match. Despite claims of injury, Michaels was soon back on his feet, briefly teaming with Stone Cold Steve Austin to win the WWF Tag Team titles, In the summer of 1997, he formed an alliance with real-life friend Triple H and his then-girlfriend Chyna to form D-Generation X, one of the most controversial wrestling stables of all time. In September at One Night Only, a British-only PPV event, Michaels defeated the British Bulldog to win the European Title, becoming the WWF's first ever Grand Slam Champion.

At Summerslam 1997, Michaels refereed the WWF title match between WWF Champion The Undertaker and Bret Hart. The match ended controversially, with Michaels nailing Undertaker with a chair and forced to award the title to his nemesis, Hart. This kicked off a feud with The Undertaker, highlighted by the first ever Hell in a Cell match at Badd Blood in October, where Michaels fell from the side of the 15 foot high cage.

In November 1997, Michaels beat Hart in a controversial match in Montreal. Hart, who then held the WWF Championship, had reportedly been assured that he would win the match via a disqualification. However, McMahon, concerned that Hart was leaving the WWF and might take the belt with him (in spite of Hart assuring him that he would lose the title before leaving), arranged for the bell to be rung when Michaels applied the Sharpshooter to Hart, making it look like his opponent tapped out (gave up). Michaels was given the victory in the match and therefore was given the championship as well. This incident has since become known as the Montreal Screwjob. Several years later, on an episode of WWE Confidential, Michaels admitted he knew about McMahon's plan beforehand and claims to have apologized to Bret Hart later on, a claim which Hart says is inaccurate.

Back injury and semi-retirement

In 1998, a back injury that Michaels received in the Casket Match against The Undertaker forced Michaels into retirement after losing the WWF Championship to Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV. Shortly after WrestleMania, Michaels would return to the WWF, but not as a wrestler; instead, he replaced Sgt. Slaughter as the WWF Commissioner. Throughout 1998 and 1999, Michaels would switch between heel and babyface briefly joining Vince McMahon's Corporation faction and even costing The Rock the WWF Championship. In early 2000, Michaels handed over the role of commissioner to Mick Foley. Michaels continued to do work for the WWF often appearing at fan conventions such as WWF Fan Axess, and even refereeing the Iron Man match between The Rock and Triple H at Judgement Day in May 2000.

On March 31, 1999, Hickenbottom married Rebecca Curci, formerly a WCW Nitro Girl with the stage name Whisper, with whom he would eventually have a son, Cameron born on January 6, 2000 and a daughter, Cheyanne born on August 19, 2004. He also became a born-again Christian in 2001 (in large part, he states, due to Rebecca's influence) and does charity work for his church. (If one looks closely at some of Michaels' WWE merchandise, one can see crosses in some of the items.) His messages are known to contain religious, Christian like messages: eg: All things are possible and Prayer Warrior.

World Wrestling Entertainment

In 2002, Michaels came back to wrestling, brought in by Kevin Nash as the new member of the nWo. The storyline did not last very long. After the nWo was disbanded, Triple H asked Michaels to be his manager—the two are best friends in real life—but Michaels turned him down. Later on, however, they came down to the ring, with their D-Generation X music and attire, to the cheers of the crowd. When they were about to do their trademark "suck it" taunt, Triple H nailed Michaels with his finishing move, the Pedigree, knocking him out cold. Also, he attacked Michaels backstage, sending Michaels to the hospital. Michaels returned to the ring to wrestle a match against Triple H at SummerSlam 2002, laying the foundation for a feud that would last for years. Michaels won the SummerSlam match with a jacknife pin but was attacked by Triple H after the match with a sledgehammer to the back of Michaels.

They faced each other in brutal singles matches, street fights, a ladder match, a steel cage match, a Last Man Standing match, twice in an Elimination Chamber (where Michaels won the World Heavyweight Championship from Triple H at Survivor Series 2002), and in a Hell in a Cell match (see below). Michaels's return was successful, and he has remained active ever since. At first, he was a full-time performer who wrestled on a part-time basis, but in 2003, he started wrestling full-time again.

He went on to be in the main event of WrestleMania XX where he came up short in a match against Triple H and Chris Benoit. Later on in 2004 Michaels faced Triple H in Hell in a Cell, but eventually lost after several Pedigrees. He also lost a World Heavyweight Championship match against his long-time rival Triple H at Taboo Tuesday when the fans voted for him to face Triple H one more time. Michaels went into this match with a torn meniscus in his left leg.

After his feuds with Triple H ended, Michaels began feuding with wrestlers such as Chris Jericho, Christian and Edge after Edge speared Michaels at Taboo Tuesday, costing him the World Title. At the 2005 Royal Rumble, Michaels lost a singles match to Edge, with Edge cheating to win the match, and later he was then taken out of the Royal Rumble by Kurt Angle, who he had eliminated earlier in the match. Angle then went on to leave Michaels in a bloody mess, after being hit in the head with steel steps and tapping out to the ankle lock starting a feud between the two that would eventually lead to their first match against each other at WrestleMania 21.

Michaels went on to lose the much-anticipated "interpromotional" match at WrestleMania 21 on April 3, 2005, when he submitted to Kurt Angle's ankle lock submisson.

The next night on RAW, Michaels was attacked by Muhammad Hassan and Daivari. This angered him, so the next week he faced Daivari; however, Daivari got the victory after interference from Hassan when Hassan kicked Michaels between the legs. Shawn then went to RAW GM Eric Bischoff and demanded a handicap match against the two at Backlash on May 1. Bischoff told him he couldn't do it, that Shawn would have to find a partner. So Shawn came back out, got on his knees, and asked WWE Hall of Famer and fellow wrestling legend Hulk Hogan to be his partner. The following week, Michaels wrestled Hassan in a one on one match that ended in disqualification when Daivari interfered. The two brutally attacked Michaels afterwards, even Hassan hanging Michaels with his towel, which brought Hogan out to even the odds. At Backlash that year, Michaels and Hogan faced Hassan and Daivari in a tag team match that Michaels and Hogan won quite easily when Michaels superkicked Daivari and Hogan made the pin.

The next night on RAW, Michaels was entered into an eight man tournament to decide the number one contender to Batista's World Championship. He faced Shelton Benjamin and connected with his trademark superkick when Shelton was in mid-air springboarding off the top rope, for the win and advanced in the tournament, but in the second round he was defeated by Edge when the latter used a briefcase to knock Michaels out when Michaels attempted a sunset flip cover. Michaels returned to Raw on June 13 and challenged Raw's newest draft pick from SmackDown!, Kurt Angle to a WrestleMania 21 rematch at WWE Vengeance, which he won when Angle jumped off the top rope and landed into a superkick. On the June 27, 2005 edition of Raw, Michaels, John Cena, and Hulk Hogan won a six man tag team match against Chris Jericho, Tyson Tomko, and Christian when Hogan pinned Tomko after the Leg Drop.

On July 4, 2005 on Raw, Michaels and Hogan fought Kurt Angle and WWF Intercontinental Champion Carlito in a tag team match. Michaels and Hogan won once again, when Hogan hit Carlito with the big boot and the Leg Drop, and were trading poses to the delight of the crowd. However, the biggest shock of all came when Michaels deliberately nailed Hulk Hogan with his patented Sweet Chin Music, thus knocking him down to the ground. As the crowd watched in stunned silence, Michaels just looked down at the helpless Hogan and walked away thus turning heel for the first time since 2002.

The following week, Roddy Piper returned to Raw, and won the rights to interview Shawn Michaels on The Piper's Pit (Chris Jericho and Carlito, whom have their own interview segments debated between each other, till Piper arrived and announced that he will be interviewing Michaels).

During the interview segment, Michaels was asked why did he betray Hogan the way he did, and although Michaels' arguments were related to Hogan and the subject at matter, he still didn't answer the question (He actually brought up the events that occurred 20 years earlier). Piper then demanded a real answer, and even went as far to calling Michaels a "coward", and with that Michaels gave his answer- through Sweet Chin Music. Michaels would then initiate a challenge to Hogan at SummerSlam in which Hogan accepted on July 18, in which was billed as "The Legend Vs The Icon".

In the weeks leading to their heated battle at SummerSlam, Michaels began mocking or cutting promos that were related to Hogan. He first cut a promo for their upcoming match in which he ended by telling Hogan "What'cha gonna do when The Heartbreak Kid, Shawn Michaels, won't lay down for you?" This was obviously a play on Hogan's catchphrase, but not known to most WWE Fans (in which the majority of them don't really understand the political side of the wrestling business) this mockery of Hogan was a reference his reputation as the beneficiary of blatant Jobs, most notably the Fingerpoke of Doom.

A week later, Shawn Michaels did another parody of Hogan, this time in a form of Larry King Live with a Larry King impersonator serving as the interviewer of "Hogan", in which was obviously a made up Michaels. While the skit was supposed to be a mockery of Hogan, leading to their matchup at SummerSlam, this skit actually aired a mere 24 hours after Hulk Hogan himself actually appeared on the Real Larry King Live show and was interviewed (he was in fact promoting his new Reality TV Show Hogan Knows Best).

Michaels remained in "Shoot" mode, while making fun of Hogan in which he over exaggerated his use of the word "Brother" (Which is a word Hogan frequently uses in his promos) and mocked his signature poses and familiar voice. In addition to that, Michaels also made fun of Hogan's age (in which he said "By the time I walk into the ring at SummerSlam, I'll be 102 years old" and "When Hogan wakes up he's not dead, he's living on bonus time which mocks Hogan's habit of claiming to be retired, yet he seems to never leave the spotlight, or wrestling all together- despite his old age) Hogan's backstage persona (when asked if he was a "good or a bad guy", "Hogan" responded with "When in Front of the camera, I'm A Great Guy- but when the camera goes off brother, it's a different story", referring to his backstage persona) and also his injuries (in which he responded by saying "Wrestling's in my blood...and also in my knee and hip", which is a reference to Hogan's long string of injuries during his wrestling career). Michaels also displayed Hogan as a con-artist before ending the skit by delivering Sweet Chin Music to the Larry King impersonator and then saying "Hogan, you got your reality show "Hogan Knows Best". At SummerSlam, what'cha gonna do when reality kicks you in the face?!" and thus delivered Sweet Chin Music to the Cameraman, ending the promo in a unique manner that many fans didn't expect Michaels to do.

On the next week's Raw, Michaels and Hogan had a "face to face" confrontation, hosted by Jerry Lawler. Michaels provoked Hogan and continued to interrupt him when Lawler asked questions. Finally, Hogan asked Michaels "Whatcha gonna do when Hulkamania runs wild on you?" , and Lawler turned and asked Michaels, "Well, what are you gonna do?" This resulted in Lawler receiving Sweet Chin Music, and Hulk throwing Shawn out of the ring after the big boot.

On the next edition of RAW from Montreal, Michaels taunted the Canadian crowd, and made snide remarks about Bret Hart saying, "Hitman, I screwed you once and I'll screw you again." Right after he said this, Bret's music hit and the crowd went crazy. Michaels then laughed and said that Hart would never come back; he went on to say that he would screw Hulk Hogan at SummerSlam. At the end of the night, after Hogan was about to win his match against Kurt Angle, Michaels came in and applied the Sharpshooter on Hogan to end RAW.

This match would turn out to be not only an in ring bout, but one backstage as well. The decision about who would win the match came after a long bout of politicking. Vince McMahon chose to back Hogan, as he needed him to show up at WWE homecoming. Hogan was willing to work a second match, but only in the circumstances that he once again win, Michaels choose not to pursue that option (this can be referenced in Michaels' "Larry King interview" when he said "What'cha gonna do Michaels when we hook up for the first time, the only time, the last time in WWE History?")

One thing that Hogan and Michaels had in common prior to the event is that at SummerSlam, the two of them had never lost in a one-on-one match scenario at SummerSlam. The match between Hogan and Michaels would turn out to be the main event of the night, and the two collided in a battle of Legend vs. Icon. The match went back and forth, with two referees getting knocked out of the match, and Michaels using a steel chair in an attempt to gain an advantage. Even after hitting his Sweet Chin Music, Hogan still kicked out and took it to Michaels, finally hitting him with his legdrop (as he would not win any other way) and scoring the victory. 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, in which turned Michaels into a face once more.

Michaels began a feud with "The Masterpiece" Chris Masters on RAW the night following SummerSlam. Michaels would later take part in the Masterlock Challenge (to see if Michaels' could break Chris Master's Master Lock (full nelson)) while unsuccessful in breaking the Master Lock, Michaels did set a new record as he became the longest-lasting competitor to take the Master Lock Challenge so far. The pair faced each other in a match at WWE Unforgiven where Michaels' would win via pinfall.

At WWE Homecoming, HBK wrestled Kurt Angle to a no contest in a 30-min Iron Man match. This lead to vast dispute over the rightful #1 contender for the WWE title. After a victory over Carlito on the October 17th edition of RAW, Michaels' became a possible choice for a place in the main event of Taboo Tuesday. Michaels' would win the fans choice and become a part of the Triple Threat Match with John Cena, and Kurt Angle. Cena would win and retain his belt.

On the RAW following Taboo Tuesday, Eric Bischoff announced that Michaels' will be part of Team RAW in the role of team captain for the 5-on-5 RAW vs SmackDown! Elimination match at Survivor Series.

Books

Michaels has written a biography, which is titled "Heartbreak and Triumph".

Wrestling facts

Michaels performing a diving elbow drop on Triple H.

Nicknames

• HBK
• The Heartbreak Kid
• The Showstopper
• The Headliner
• The Main Event
• The Icon
• Mr. WrestleMania

Previous managers

• Sensational Sherri
• Jose Lothario
• Luna Vachon
• Sycho Sid
• Jenny McCarthy
• "Ravishing" Rick Rude
• Triple H
• Chyna
• Roddy Piper
• Kevin "Diesel" Nash

Quotes

• "I'm the showstopper, the headliner, the main event, the icon!"
• "When I go down, I'm takin' everybody with me, and I'm going out in a blaze of glory!"
• "The Heartbreak Kid lays down for absolutely nobody!"
• "The Heartbreak Kid can keep it up all night!"
• "Kicking it with the kliq."
• "I am simply the greatest Sports Entertainer in the world!"
• "D-Generation X rules the wrestling world!"
• "I am going to give you a show that you have never ever seen before. Why?... because I can."
• "D-Generation X! You make the rules, we break em!"
• "I did not sleep with that young intern. As a matter of fact, I was up all night!" (This was a mockery of Bill Clinton's scandal with Monica Lewinsky)
• "Whatcha Gonna Do Brother...When Reality Kicks You In The Face" (A Mockery to Hulk Hogan).
• "Whatcha gonna do when the Heartbreak Kid won't lay down for you" (Another mockery to Hogan)

Finishing and signature moves

• Sweet Chin Music (Superkick)
• Teardrop suplex (Leg hook Saito suplex) (early 1990s)
• Piledriver (early 1990s)
• Diving elbow drop
• Pescado (Running crossbody)
• Running forearm
• Inverted atomic drop
• Superfly (Splash)
• Moonsault

Championships and accomplishments

• American Wrestling Association

• 2-time AWA World Tag Team Champion (with Marty Jannetty)
• 2-time AWA Southern Tag Team Champion (with Marty Jannetty)

• National Wrestling Alliance

• 1-time NWA Central States Television Champion
• 1-time NWA Central States Tag Team Champion (with Marty Jannetty)

• Texas All-Stars

• 2-time Texas All-Stars Texas Tag Team Champion (with Paul Diamond)
• 1-time Texas All-Stars 6-Man Tag Team Champion

• Texas Wrestling Alliance

• 1-time TWA Heavyweight Champion

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated

• PWI ranked him # 01 of the best 10 wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2005
• PWI ranked him # 10 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003
• PWI ranked him # 33 in the best tag teams of the PWI Years with Marty Jannetty
• PWI ranked him # 55 in the best tag teams of the PWI Years with Diesel
• PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year Award (1995)
• PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year Award (1996)
• PWI Match of the Year Award, vs. Marty Jannetty (1993)
• PWI Match of the Year Award, vs. Razor Ramon (1994)
• PWI Match of the Year Award, vs. Diesel (1995)
• PWI Match of the Year Award, vs. Bret Hart (1996)

• World Wrestling Entertainment

• 3-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion
• 1-time World Heavyweight Champion
• 3-time WWF Intercontinental Champion
• 1-time WWF European Champion
• 3-time WWF World Tag Team Champion (2-time with Diesel, 1-time with Stone Cold Steve Austin)
• Royal Rumble winner (1995) (first #1 entrant to win)
• Royal Rumble winner (1996)
• First Grand Slam Champion
• First person to win an Iron Man Match
• First person to win a Hell in a Cell match
• First person to win an Elimination Chamber match

Entrance Lyrics

• Parentheses are used to denote the female chorus. The rest was performed by Michaels himself, or by Sherri Martel (in which case "He's" was substituted for "I'm", and so forth). The song, "Sexy Boy", was originally written for Michaels by Jimmy Hart, a manager who wrote many entrance themes. Hart thanked Michaels personally for continuing to use the song as his entrance music when he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2005.

First Verse

Oh,Oh,Shawn

I think I'm cute

I know I'm sexy

I got the looks that drives a girl wild

I got the moves... that really move 'em.

I send chills... up and down their spines

(Chorus)

I'm just a sexy boy! (Se-xy boy!)

I'm not your boy toy! (Boy toy!) X2

Second Verse

I make 'em hot

I make 'em shiver

Their knees get weak...

Whenever I'm around

They see me walk...

They hear me talk...

I make 'em feel

like they're on cloud nine

Repeat Chorus

[Spoken] Eat your heart out, girls! Hands off the merchandise!

Trivia

• Chris Jericho admitted that he emulated Michaels, early in his career
• Michaels' chaps and tights come in many different colors such as red, black, and white which are made by "The Legend," Kevin Allen.
• Michaels filmed a "shoot interview" with RF Video in 2000 to talk about his career from a "behind the scenes" perspective.
• Michaels began using his "Sweet Chin Music" superkick in the early-90s after years of studying the maneuver from the master of the superkick, Chris Adams.
• Michaels' cousin, Matt Bentley, is also a wrestler.
• Michaels is the only wrestler in WWE history to simultaneously hold the WWF European Championship and the WWF Championship.
• Michaels competed in the first ever Ladder Match in WWE history, losing to Bret Hart with the WWF Intercontinental Championship on the line on July 21, 1992, during a WWF Wrestling Challenge taping.
• Michaels is the only wrestler in WWF history to have forfeited all three of the main titles: the WWF Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the World Tag Team Championship. No other wrestler has ever forfeited more than one.
• In addition, of his eleven title reigns, he has actually only lost five of them in a match, only four of which were real contests. He has forfeited one WWF Championship and one Intercontinental Championship, was stripped of one Intercontinental Championship, forfeited or was stripped of all of his Tag Team Championships, and lost his European Championship by just laying down for friend and teammate Triple H (Michaels was the WWF Champion at the time and hence "gave" the lesser European title to Triple H).

Title Reigns

External links

• WWE profile
• Shawn Michaels Online (Shawn Michaels Fansite

Career

World Championship Wrestling

Paul Wight became involved in professional wrestling when Danny Bonaduce introduced him to Hulk Hogan at a charity basketball event in early 1995. Wight trained at Larry Sharpe's Monster Factory for seven months and then signed with World Championship Wrestling. He polished his skills at the WCW Power Plant, where at one point he possessed the ability to perform a moonsault.

Wight debuted in WCW at the 1995 Bash At The Beach. He introduced himself as The Giant, claiming to be the son of the late André the Giant, and blaming Hogan for the death of his "father." He joined the Dungeon of Doom, who were at war with Hulk Hogan and his allies, and immediately began a heated feud with Hogan. At Fall Brawl 1995, Wight attacked Hogan while he was fighting the leader of the Dungeon of Doom, "Taskmaster" Kevin Sullivan, in a cage match. After Wight destroyed Hogan's Harley-Davidson Motorbike using a monster truck, Hogan challenged him to a "Monster Truck Battle" at Halloween Havoc, which was to be held, fittingly enough, in Detroit.

On October 29, 1995, the Battle took place atop Cobo Hall, with each man driving a monster truck and trying to force the other truck out of a circle, as in a Sumo Wrestling Contest. Hogan won the match when Wight descended from his vehicle and appeared to fall from the roof. Later that night, Wight came to the ring with The Taskmaster and challenged Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in what would be his WCW in-ring debut. Wight was awarded a victory by disqualification after interference from Jimmy Hart, Hogan's manager. Hart then revealed that the contract Hogan had signed (which he had written) had a clause stating that the title would change hands on a disqualification, and, as Hart had intentionally caused a disqualification, Wight was the new World Heavyweight Champion. The title was held up one week later as a result of the controversial decision.

Wight tried to reclaim the title at World War 3 but was foiled by Hogan, and "Macho Man" Randy Savage won the vacant title. He teamed with Ric Flair to defeat Hogan and Savage at the 1995 Clash of the Champions, but was decisively beaten by Hogan in a cage match at SuperBrawl.

The Giant as a member of the nWo.

After a short feud with The Loch Ness Monster, Wight eventually became a face, winning the World Heavyweight Championship a second time by defeating Ric Flair. After Hulk Hogan turned heel by forming the New World Order, he defeated Wight for the Championship at Hog Wild 1996 following interference from Scott Hall and Kevin Nash. Wight would join the nWo eighteen days later, citing Ted DiBiase's money as his primary motivation. He feuded with Lex Luger and the Four Horsemen.

After being thrown out of the nWo on December 30, 1996 after asking Hogan for a World Heavyweight Championship title shot, Wight fought against the nWo along with Sting, Scott Hall and Lex Luger, winning the WCW World Tag Team Championships twice. In 1997 he began a feud with nWo member Kevin Nash, who constantly dodged Wight, failing to appear for their scheduled match at StarrCade 1997. In 1998 at Souled Out the two finally met in the ring, but Nash accidentally broke Wight's neck when he botched a Jackknife Powerbomb. When Nash left the nWo and formed his own stable, the Wolfpac, Wight rejoined the nWo to oppose Nash and his allies. Nash would eventually end Wight's WCW career when he defeated him following interference from Scott Hall and Eric Bischoff. He left WCW in 1999 for the WWF.

World Wrestling Federation

Wight signed a multi-year contract with the WWF in early 1999. He debuted as a member of Vince McMahon's heel stable, The Corporation, at the February 1999 St. Valentine's Day Massacre event. During the McMahon versus Stone Cold Steve Austin cage match, Wight came from under the ring and attacked Austin. However, he cost McMahon the match when he threw Austin into the side of the cage and the cage broke, spilling Austin outside to the floor and granting him the victory. This meant that Austin would face The Rock at WrestleMania XV for the WWF Championship.

Wight performed as "Big Nasty" Paul White for a few weeks (a jab at "Big Sexy" Kevin Nash) and was eventually renamed The Big Show and acted as McMahon's bodyguard. McMahon wanted to ensure that Corporation member The Rock would retain his title at WrestleMania, so he faced Mankind at WrestleMania for the right to referee the main event. Wight incapacitated Mankind, but disqualified himself in the process, meaning that neither man would be referee. After a furious McMahon slapped Wight, he punched McMahon and was arrested, turning face. Wight concluded his feud with Foley in a Boiler Room Brawl before joining Mankind, Test and Ken Shamrock in a stable known as "The Union" who fought against the Corporation, then later the Corporate Ministry. Wight and Undertaker later formed an unlikely alliance against X-Pac and Kane, with Wight turning heel in the process. Wight and The Undertaker twice won the WWF Tag Team Championships.

When The Undertaker was sidelined with injuries, Wight set his sights on the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, turning face once more. He participated in the Six Pack Challenge for the belt at Unforgiven 1999, but failed to win. After Steve Austin was run-over at the 1999 Survivor Series, Wight was given his place in the triple threat match for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, where he defeated Triple H and The Rock to become champion.

At the same time, Wight feuded with The Big Boss Man. After it was announced that Wight's father was terminally ill with cancer, the Boss Man had one of his crooked police colleagues (falsely) inform Wight that his father had died. He then mocked Wight's tearful reaction. Several weeks later, when it was announced Wight's father had actually died (in reality, Wight's father had passed away years before), the Boss Man first interrupted the ten bell toll, then later invaded the funeral and used a chain to couple the coffin to the hearse, towing the coffin away with a grief stricken Wight clinging on to it. He also visited Wight's mother and forced her to reveal that Wight's father was a different man, leading Boss Man to refer to him as a "bastard" on every possible occasion (this would later become one of Wight's nicknames, with a piece of WWF merchandise even bearing the slogan "Big Nasty Bastard"). At Armageddon 1999, the Boss Man faced Wight for the title, but even the presence of his protege Prince Albert did not offset Wight's considerable size advantage, and Wight defeated him to retain the title.

On the January 3, 2000, episode of RAW Triple H defeated Wight for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, using a title shot that he had won from Vince McMahon at Armageddon. Trying to regain the title, Wight participated in the 2000 Royal Rumble, and was the runner up, losing to The Rock. Wight was convinced that he had won, and eventually produced a video tape that showed The Rock's feet striking the ground first. He was given a match with The Rock at No Way Out, with the WrestleMania title shot on the line. Wight defeated The Rock when Shane McMahon interfered, knocking The Rock out with a chair shot. The Rock was desperate to reclaim his title shot, and eventually agreed to a match with Wight on the March 13 episode of RAW - if he won, the WrestleMania title match would become a triple threat match, and if he lost, he would retire from the WWF. Shane McMahon, now actively supporting Wight's bid to become champion, appointed himself guest referee. However, The Rock triumphed when Vince McMahon assaulted Shane and donned the referee shirt, personally making the three count following a Rock Bottom.

On the March 20 episode of RAW, Triple H agreed to defend the title against The Rock and Wight on the condition that the match would not take place at WrestleMania. Triple H managed to pin Wight, but Linda McMahon forced him to defend the title at WrestleMania in a fatal four way elimination match, with Mick Foley as the fourth man. Wight was the first man eliminated from the match at WrestleMania 2000 after the other three competitors worked together against him.

After WrestleMania, Wight began to turn face once more. He would wrestle his matches while mimicking other wrestlers, lampooning Rikishi as Showkishi, The Berzerker as Shonan The Barbarian and Val Venis as The Big Showbowski. He faced Kurt Angle at Backlash 2000, and came to the ring dressed like his friend and role model Hulk Hogan. "The Showster" defeated Angle with ease.

Wight began feuding with his former manager Shane McMahon after Shane was shown mocking Wight as slow, stupid and highly suggestible. At Judgment Day 2000 on May 21, Shane defeated Wight in a falls count anywhere match folowing interference from Big Boss Man, Bull Buchanan, Test and Albert. Wight returned two months later, apparently intending to gain revenge on Shane, but instead sided with him and formed a short-lived stable known as "The Conspiracy" with Shane, Chris Benoit, Edge, Kurt Angle and Christian. After Undertaker threw Wight through a table, he disappeared for some time (he was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling to lose weight). WWF management was so unhappy with his inability to lose weight and sharpen his skills that he was removed from two of their video games: WWF SmackDown! 2: Know Your Role for the Sony PlayStation and WWF No Mercy for the Nintendo 64, where his character was replaced with Steven Richards. In both games, certain aspects of the Big Show were still usable through the use of a GameShark: his face could be hacked in No Mercy, while his entire unfinished character (along with Ken Shamrock) was playable in SmackDown! 2.

Wight returned at the 2001 Royal Rumble, but was eliminated by The Rock. He then began competing for the Hardcore Championship, which he lost to Kane in a triple threat match which also included Raven at WrestleMania X-Seven.

Throughout the Invasion later that year Wight remained loyal to the WWF. He faced Shane McMahon, the onscreen owner of WCW, in a last man standing match at Backlash 2001, and was defeated following interference from Test. He was part of the victorious Team WWF at Survivor Series 2001, though he was eliminated early in the proceedings.

World Wrestling Entertainment

At the March 25, 2002 Roster Split, Wight was drafted to RAW by Ric Flair. He turned heel by betraying Steve Austin in the course of a match and rejoining the newest incarnation of the New World Order, but the stable disbanded after Kevin Nash was injured. Wight achieved little success on RAW after this, not wrestling at WrestleMania X8, and at one point even losing to the much smaller Jeff Hardy.

SmackDown!

Wight was eventually traded to SmackDown! in exchange for Ivory, Maven, D-Von Dudley and Val Venis. Wight immediately challenged WWE Champion Brock Lesnar, who he defeated at Survivor Series 2002 following interference from Lesnar's manager Paul Heyman, thus becoming a two time World Champion. He lost the title to Kurt Angle a month later.

In January 2003, Wight lost a Royal Rumble qualifying match to Lesnar. He then began feuding with The Undertaker, leading to Wight and his partner A-Train losing to The Undertaker and Nathan Jones at WrestleMania XIX. He then began a feud with Eddie Guerrero, who he defeated for the WWE United States Championship. Wight became an associate of Brock Lesnar, but abandoned Lesnar immediately before WrestleMania XX. At WrestleMania XX, Wight dropped the United States Championship to John Cena.

On the April 15, 2004 episode of SmackDown!, Wight promised to quit if he failed to defeat Eddie Guerrero that night. He lost to Guerrero, and, believing that Torrie Wilson had laughed at him for losing, upended her car and threatened to throw her off a ledge. Kurt Angle ascended to the ledge to try and talk some reason into Wight, but Wight chokeslammed him from the ledge, concussing Angle and breaking his leg. He was fired as a result.

In mid-2004, Wight was reinstated by new General Manager Theodore R. Long, and at No Mercy 2004, Wight, once more a face, fought Kurt Angle. In the weeks before the match, Wight claimed to have "lost his dignity" when Angle tranquilized him in the middle of the ring using a dart gun and shaved his head (Wight retained his bald head until October 2005).

In 2005, Wight began pursuing the WWE Championship once more, challenging John Bradshaw Layfield to a barbed wire steel cage match at No Way Out 2005. After Wight chokeslammed Layfield through the ring, Layfield managed to crawl to the outside, winning the match and retaining his title.

On April 3, 2005, at WrestleMania 21, Wight faced Sumo Wrestling Grand Champion Akebono in a worked sumo match that was added to the show to attract a strong pay-per-view audience in Japan, where Akebono is considered a sporting legend. In the weeks preceding the match, Wight pushed over a jeep driven to the ring by Luther Reigns to show that he was capable of moving the marginally heavier Akebono. Wight jobbed to Akebono in a match poorly received by many fans.

In May 2005 Wight suffered "injured ribs" on the right-hand side of his torso and was temporarily sidelined after Carlito Caribbean Cool's bodyguard Matt Morgan used the F-5 to drive him through the announcers' table (Carlito was displeased by Wight's refusal to become his bodyguard). On June 16, Wight and Morgan fought in a singles match. Following a distraction by Carlito, Morgan was able to knock Wight out of the ring. He then attempted to drive Wight through the announcers' table once again after Carlito hit Wight with a steel chair, but Wight managed this time to reverse the F-5 and shove Morgan into Carlito, then chokeslam Morgan through the table, gaining a measure of revenge. Wight's feud with Morgan continued on June 23 when Muhammad Hassan was drafted from RAW to SmackDown! and immediately booked by Theodore Long to face Wight as a punishment for his arrogance. Before the match, Morgan came to ringside, ostensibly to serve as a guest commentator. When the referee was knocked unconscious by an errant blow, Morgan attempted to hit Wight with a steel chair, but failed. As Wight dispatched Morgan, Hassan struck him in the head with Morgan's chair, enabling him to secure a victory.

RAW

On June 27, 2005, Wight was traded back to Raw in the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery, preventing him from participating in a scheduled six-man elimination match for the SmackDown! Championship. He successfully pinned Gene Snitsky in a tag team match which degenerated into a singles match when both men's respective partners brawled backstage. After squashing his scheduled opponents for several weeks, Wight approached Chris Masters on July 18, volunteering to try and break Masters' Master Lock, after Masters boasted that no-one, no matter how big, could break free from the hold. Masters refused to accept Wight's challenge and retreated up the ramp and away from the ring. In the following weeks, Wight faced Masters in many tag team matches before the angle was dropped without explanation and Wight returned to his rivalry with Snitsky.

On August 15 Wight defeated The Heart Throbs in a handicap match, easily overpowering his smaller opponents throughout the brief match. The following week, he continued his rivalry with Gene Snitksy by foiling Snitsky's harassment of backstage interviewer Maria. On August 29, Snitsky hit Wight with the ring bell immediately after Wight had won a match. As a result, Wight and Snitsky were placed in a match at Unforgiven 2005 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on September 18 in which Wight defeated Snitsky. On September 26, Wight defeated Snitsky in a street fight.

On October 17, Wight defeated Edge and was thus entered in an online poll, with the winner of the poll facing John Cena and Kurt Angle in a triple threat match for the WWE Championship at Taboo Tuesday 2005 on November 1. The poll was won by Shawn Michaels, and Wight teamed with Kane (who had also been entered in the poll) to defeat Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch for the World Tag Team Championships.

In the weeks preceding the 2005 Survivor Series, Wight became involved in the rivalry between the RAW and SmackDown! brands. He and Kane invaded the November 11 episode of SmackDown! and, along with Edge, attacked Batista (inadvertently injuring him in the process). On the November 14 episode of RAW, a tribute to Eddie Guerrero (who had died the previous day), Wight and Kane defeated SmackDown! wrestlers and reigning WWE Tag Team Champions MNM in an inter-brand, non-title match. On November 18, Wight and Kane invaded SmackDown! for a second time, this time "injuring" Batista by delivering a double chokeslam onto the windshield of a car. This injury might be used to remove Batista from his Survivor Series match due to a torn latissimus dorsi. At the Survivor Series, Wight, Kane, Carlito, Chris Masters and team captain Shawn Michaels, will represent RAW in a match with Team SmackDown!; JBL, Rey Mysterio, Bobby Lashley, Randy Orton and Batista.

Acting career

• Wight had a fight scene against Hulk Hogan in a Thunder in Paradise episode where he was credited as "The Giant Paul Wight". His character was initially seen to be winning the fight, surviving all of Hogan's attacks, but was eventually rendered unconcious by a stone which was thrown at his head.
• Wight played a giant Santa Claus in the movie Jingle All the Way.
• Wight appeared in The Waterboy Adam Sandler's wrestling icon, Captain Insano.
• Wight appeared in a segment on Saturday Night Live with Vince McMahon, Mick Foley and Triple H. The Rock was hosting the show, and McMahon ordered the wrestlers not to interfere. McMahon then noticed that Wight was hiding something behind his back, which turned out to be a steel chair.
• In October 2004, Wight made a cameo appearance as an Orion slave trader in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Borderland."

Personal life

Like his famous predecessor, André the Giant, Wight has acromegaly or "gigantism." By the age of twelve, Wight was 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) tall, weighed 220 lb (100 kg) and had chest hair. He grew to be 7'1" (216 cm) in height, and currently weighs 507 lbs (230 kg). However, he underwent successful surgery in the early 1990s on his pituitary gland, which halted the progress of this condition. He has numerous tattoos, including a tiger on his right bicep and his wife's name on the back of his neck.

While in college, Wight was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. While in WCW, he was arrested and detained for allegedly exposing himself to a hotel clerk in Memphis, Tennessee. He was later released due to a lack of evidence.

Wight is married, and his wife, Bess, is of average height. He also has a daughter, Sierra, from a previous marriage. He is also well-known behind the scenes and in the media for his easygoing, affable nature and his sharp sense of humor. In 2005, Wight leased a bus and hired a bus driver because of the practical problems his size presents to air travel and car rental.

While appearing on the Howard Stern Show, Wight told the story of how he had been cleared of all charges after a professional wrestling fan initiated a lawsuit against him for assault. Wight had been in a hotel lobby when the fan approached him and began verbally abusing him, then shoving him. Wight defended himself by punching the fan, shattering his jaw.

Trivia

• Wight won his first WCW World Heavyweight Championship in 1995 at the age of twenty three, becoming the youngest man to become World Heavyweight Champion in either the WWF or WCW.
• Wight won the WWE Championship at Survivor Series twice, defeating then-champion Triple H and The Rock in 1999 and Brock Lesnar in 2002.
• Wight has never won at WrestleMania, losing each of his six matches.
• Hard-Rock band Brand New Sin recently recorded a new version of his entance theme song.

In wrestling

Previous managers

• Jim Strauser
• The Taskmaster
• Jimmy Hart
• Shane McMahon
• Paul Heyman
• Joy Giovanni

Finishing and signature moves

• Showstopper (chokeslam)
• Final Cut (inverted facelock elbow drop)
• Hog Log (elevated leg drop to throat)
• Alley oop
• Sidewalk slam
• Open handed slap

Championships and accomplishments

• World Championship Wrestling

• 2-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion
• 2-time WCW World Tag Team Champion (1-time with Scott Hall, 1-time with Sting)

• World Wrestling Entertainment / Federation

• 2-time WWF World Heavyweight Champion / WWE Champion
• 1-time WWE United States Champion
• 3-time WWF Hardcore Champion
• 3-time WWF World Tag Team Champion / WWE World Tag Team Champion (2-time with The Undertaker, 1-time with Kane)

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated

• PWI ranked him #137 of the best singles wrestlers of the PWI Years in 2003.
• PWI Rookie of the Year Award (1996)
• PWI Wrestler of the Year Award (1996) - The first rookie to be named Wrestler of the Year.

Title lineage

References

• The Big Show Interview: Armageddon, being big, and why bald is beautiful
• The Big Show revels in ring success
• The show must go on...
• Wight at The Smoking Gun

External links

• WWE Profile
• Wight's official Website