10 Wrestling Moments That Should Have Been Huge (But Weren't)

8. Too Good To Be True

WrestleMania 12 Bret Hart Shawn Michaels Iron Many Match Finish
WWE.com

It's been 20 years since Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels contested arguably the most infamous match in wrestling history, but 21 since their professional fragility trampled over what could and should have been the greatest.

Exactly as the do about Randy Orton with frustrating consistency, wrestlers themselves seem to worship the WrestleMania 12 Iron Man match. Stood alone, that's not terribly surprising - Bret and Shawn are legitimately two of the best (if not the best) to ever grace the canvas, and timing, poise and athletic prowess to go at it for an hour certainly deserves grand praise.

But simply as a fan, the 60-minute shutout is a dull disappointment. There's a few potatoes thrown for those that track the insecure undercurrent between the performers, but a lack of compromise on falls scored and big spots in general seriously hurt entertainment levels that occasionally flatline. Between 1995 and 1997, the pair should have had one of wrestling's all-time classics. That they never did is the saddest coda to their fractious relationship.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett