Sure, Shawn Michaels happens to be Triple H's best friend, but it's a start. It's a great start at that; Shawn Michaels made a surprise return to the WWE and in ring action in mid-2002, after five years away from the squared circle. Upon his return, he buddied up with his old D-Generation X partner, Triple H. But almost as soon as it started, Hunter had turned on his former best friend, and started a prolific rivalry and on-screen feud that would last for years. The first test of their rivalry came at Summerslam in 2002 where Michaels won a vicious, unsanctioned street fight between the two that tested his surgically-repaired back and left him being carried away on a stretcher at the end of it. More was to come though, as General Manager Eric Bischoff commissioned the very first Elimination Chamber match at November pay-per-view Survivor Series, for Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship. After a bloody battle inside the 16-ton structure also involving Chris Jericho, Kane, Rob Van Dam, and Booker T, Michaels once again pinned Triple H in the middle of the ring, only this time to win the top title on the Raw brand. Still regarded as one of the (many) incredible moments of HBK's career, it capped off a triumphant return to the business after previously thinking that his career was over.
