10 Best Builds To WWE WrestleMania Main Events

9. Bret Hart Vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania XII)

The night after WrestleMania XI, Sycho Sid powerbombed Shawn Michaels straight into a babyface turn, and so began the one year quest to make The Heartbreak Kid the new top good guy in the WWF. In October of 1995, a real-life attack on Michaels only served to help his rise of popularity and, along with an Intercontinental Title run, it was obvious that he was on course for big things in 1996. Indeed, Vince McMahon was enamoured with HBK and the plan was for him to become a 'made man' in the main event of WrestleMania XII. Bret Hart regained his WWF title from Diesel at the 1995 Survivor Series, and once Michaels won the Royal Rumble, the two were set to battle at the Showcase of the Immortals. WWF went with a sports-like build, showing the men deep in training for their upcoming one hour Iron Man match. Highlight videos showed the veteran Hart jogging on the icy Canadian roads, swimming and being stretched by his famous father, while the younger HBK was running up and down flights of stairs, superkicking jobbers and doing various acrobatics to get ready for the biggest match of his career. The WWF hadn't done a one hour match on pay-per-view between two stars, so it was a big gamble for this to main event WrestleMania. In the build to the match, the story was clear, grizzled veteran against flashy younger star. The decision was made to have no falls in the full hour and concentrate on the battle for who could score the first win. Shawn eventually got the duke in overtime. It was refreshing to see that, in an era of cartoon characters, the supposed biggest match of the year was given a serious build.