There are few perfect goodbyes in professional wrestling, not least because wrestlers tend to say hello again all-too-soon after even the fondest farewell.
Shawn Michaels managed eight admirable years - double the amount of time he'd spent on the shelf following his first retirement - after this enjoyable epic against one of his career rivals. Arguably the greatest to ever grace the canvas crafted another work of fine art before his slow walk up the long WrestleMania ramp (instead of the long one off a short pier most of his colleagues wanted him to take during his previous run).
'HBK' and 'The Deadman' were tasked with following a near-perfect match with a near-near-perfect headliner the following year - it paid glorious tribute to both that they managed the feat.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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
