10 Best Wrestling Matches That Went Over 45 Minutes

10. Bret Hart Vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII) - 01:01:52

WrestleMania XII's main event has its critics, some of whom suggest that the 60-minute Iron Man format - for all the pre-match hype - actually dampened what could and should have otherwise been a for-the-ages classic.

And granted: stretches of this bout are a little on the dull side, with both men looking to apply rest-holds instead of going for the kill (which, in terms of kayfabe strategy, makes perfect sense - it's just that we're accustomed to seeing HBK move at a slightly more frenetic pace).

Try looking at it from the opposing point of view, though. Bret and Shawn, in the first time a pair of relatively small men were entrusted to close out WWE's annual show-piece, told the story of two ring-savvy technicians determined not just to win, but to out-maneuver their opposite number.

Whatever its foibles, there is much in this match to take pride in - both from a historical perspective and as an hour-long pure wrestling spectacle, the like of which it is possible we will never see again on wrestling's grandest stage.