Shawn Michaels will lead any list ranking the greatest WrestleMania competitors of all-time, but in terms of being one of the event's biggest draws, he isn't quite up there. That said, Michaels' impact on the grand stage of WrestleMania may never be matched, having contested in classics from his first match at WrestleMania 2 to his last at WrestleMania 26. Similar to Bret Hart, most of his early WrestleMania appearances were on the undercard; however, at WrestleManias 11, 12 and 14, he was involved in main event level matches for the WWE Championship in matches with Diesel, Hart and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Had he stayed retirement after his match against The Texas Rattlesnake, he probably would have cracked the list regardless, but he continued to be an essential attraction at The Show of Shows upon his return at WrestleMania 19. Although he came up short in each match, Michaels headlined WrestleManias 20, 23 and 26, all of which cracked the list for the top 11 most successful WrestleManias in history.
Since 2008, Graham has been a diehard pro wrestling fan and, in 2010, he combined his passions for WWE and writing when he joined Bleacher Report. Equipped with a master's in journalism, Graham has contributed to WhatCulture, FanSided's Daily DDT, Sports Betting Dime, and GateHouse Media. Along the way, he has conducted interviews with wrestling superstars like Chris Jericho, Edge, Goldberg, Christian, Diamond Dallas Page, Jim Ross, Adam Cole, Tessa Blanchard, Ryback, and Nick Aldis among others.
