Prime Years: 1995 - 98 & 2002 - 2010 Why He Should Be Studied: Like his idol Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels is another who is frequently labelled 'the greatest of all-time'. Also like Naitch, HBK is very deserving of that moniker and few would argue against it, especially if that accolade is given based on in-ring performances. Has Shawn Michaels ever had a 'bad' match? Like, a real stinker that made you change the channel or hit fast-forward on a DVD? Sure, his outing with Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam 1993 wasn't great, and he was involved in some real silliness as part of DX in 2006, but Michaels was usually never anything less than watchable. When he was 'on', Michaels was peerless. There are so many things that make Michaels such a great performer, but the main things to study Michaels for are timing and selling. The Heartbreak Kid was always in the right place at the right time, knew how to pace a match and could sell his ass of better than just about anyone. How many guys had their best matches with Michaels? A wrestler's favourite, it's all of the little things that Michaels does, plus the way he makes it all seem so effortless, that makes him so great, and a perfect case study for aspiring grapplers. Every member of the current WWE roster could learn something by studying Shawn Michaels matches.
