10 Wrestlers Who Couldn't Hide Their Anger At Doing A Job

2. Shawn Michaels - WWE SummerSlam 2005

Charlotte Flair
WWE

This one is open to interpretation.

Shawn Michaels did not enter a state of bereavement at the prospect of losing a predetermined, fictional performance, unlike many of the others that comprise this list. At SummerSlam 2005, playing heel for the night, he walked out a man determined to put on a show - even if the words "Rip the absolute piss out of a corny geriatric narcissist carny" were written on the marquee.

He had been Hogan'd. Although Michaels was originally set to lose a trilogy 1-2, that didn't work for the Hulkster, brother. He'd much have preferred to simply win 1-0, because his is massive and it ain't made out of plastic.

Michaels was irritated by this, but he channelled his frustrations effectively. He reverted to the obnoxious loudmouth of old and made Hogan look a right idiot. He exposed how dated and silly Hogan's stuff looked by bumping like a da in a play fight with his toddler.

The mask did slip during the entrance, however, when Michaels performed a "shovelling" gesture during Hogan's entrance. Was Michaels foreshadowing the stunt he was about to pull?

Perhaps not; he did it the second that the biggest USA flag you've ever seen unfurled behind Hogan, which would indicate that Shawn was pissed at Hogan flexing his star power.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!