10 Great WWE Raw Matches From The Original Brand Split
2. Kurt Angle Vs. Shawn Michaels - October 3, 2005
In 2005, a dream feud became reality when Raw's Shawn Michaels and Smackdown's Kurt Angle finally appeared to be heading for a showdown. The two men battled at WrestleMania XXI in one of the best matches in WWE history, and Angle came away with the surprising submission win.
That June, Angle was drafted to Raw, giving Michaels the opportunity for the rematch he never thought he'd get. That match, which took place at Vengeance, saw Michaels even the score, pinning Angle with Sweet Chin Music. Both men got a standing ovation afterwards.
A rubber match was needed to see which man was truly the best, and it came on Raw's Homecoming episode, which marked the show's return to the USA Network. In a thirty-minute Iron Man match, Michaels and Angle laid it all on the line... at least, at first. Angle scored the first pin with an Angle Slam from the top rope, but Michaels came back with a roll-up for a pinfall of his own. An Ankle Lock and a Sweet Chin Music evened the score at two falls apiece, then time expired, ending the amazing contest.
Surely, the bout would go into overtime, right? Well, it would have, if Michaels had his way. Angle, feeling he had wrestled enough, refused to continue and headed to the back, leaving HBK (and the fans) wanting more.