25 Greatest Matches In WWE SummerSlam History

4. Triple H Versus Shawn Michaels, SummerSlam 2002

Rock Bottom Brock Lesnar SummerSlam 2002
WWE.com

Shawn Michaels's return to Raw in 2002 was an inauspicious way to end a four-year hiatus, but when Triple H attacked him, a showdown between the former best friends was inevitable. The non-sanctioned match was made for SummerSlam, but many questioned if HBK could still perform, and whether or not the bout would be more of an angle than a true battle.

Those fears were immediately silenced, as Michaels looked every bit as good as he did six years earlier. He took the fight to Triple H, hitting a plancha to the outside, but The Game retaliated, using backbreakers on HBK's Achilles heel. Michaels used weaponry to mount an assault, hitting a top rope splash through a table on the outside, then nailing HHH with an elbow drop off a ladder. 

When HBK went for Sweet Chin Music, Triple H ducked the kick and set his opponent up for a Pedigree, but Michaels scooped Hunter's legs, flipped onto him, and scored the pin. Post-match, HHH attacked Michaels with a sledgehammer, but that couldn't dull the buzz of the legendary encounter that had just taken place.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried. *Best Crowd of the Year, 2013