Because Shawn Michaels has had such a successful career in the 2000s, we take this fact for granted, but at the turn of the century, it was pretty much decided that Shawn had wrestled his last match ever at Wrestlemania 14 in 1998. The back injury he suffered at the Royal Rumble was said to be career-ending. The night after Vengeance, where Triple H was convinced by Shawn to come to Monday Night Raw as opposed to Smackdown, there was a one-night-only reunion of D-Generation X. They came out to the music, did the crotch chops, and Triple H began his Michael Buffer shtick on the microphone. After telling the crowd, Lets get ready to suck it! Trips then booted Shawn in the gut and hit him with a pedigree, turning heel in the process. The turn came out of nowhere, and a question was raised: if Triple H just turned on Shawn Michaels, what exactly was this leading to? That question was magnified the very next week, when Shawn was attacked and thrown into a car windshield. It happened while Triple H was in the ring giving a promo, so he seemingly had an alibi. A couple weeks later, when Shawn appeared on the screen, they showed security camera footage of the assailant, and one of the more memorable exchanges in WWE history occurred. It was YOU, Hunter. Youre damn right it was me, Shawn. At the end of the promo, Shawn said that his injuries would heal by oh saySummerslam? And Shawn made the challenge to his former best friend. Could this really be happening? Could Shawn Michaels be wrestling one more match? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lppcBF2_Hco As it turned out, not only did Shawn wrestle one more match, but he and Triple H put on one of the best matches of the year, a 30-plus-minute brawl where Shawn was jumping off ladders through tables. He had been gone for more than four years, but it looked like Shawn didnt miss a step. We would end up getting nearly eight more years of Shawn Michaels matches, adding to a career that was already destined for the Hall of Fame. It seems crazy to think about now, but the fact that one of the greatest wrestlers of all time was returning after an extended hiatus was enough to make this one of the hottest summer storylines in WWE ever.
