Ranking Who Was Really The Man In Wrestling Every Year 1990-2020

13. 2008 - Shawn Michaels

Austin Jericho
WWE

2008 was another year in which there was no true standout doyen.

Cena and Místico were still strong draws. Keiji Muto's dual reigns with the AJPW Triple Crown and IWGP Championship read more impressively in sequence than anything else, though he was clearly still a top star with gripping flashes of the old legend lurking within, ready to be unleashed when the big occasion demanded it.

Chris Jericho had his best year in an age - his work was rewarded with the World Heavyweight Title - but in a year of stagnant or stable box office across the breadth of the industry, the sheer artistic success of Shawn Michaels earns him a golden handshake.

Michaels retired Ric Flair in a storytelling masterclass at WrestleMania - a wonderfully textured match in which Flair's old heel schtick was cheered resoundingly, because we all knew it was the last time we'd see it in a WWE ring, but came off as desperate, deepening the pathos. His sprawling saga with Chris Jericho - arrived at, deftly, by way of a very good Batista programme - was a modern WWE triumph plotted with elegance and worked with convincing snugness beyond the showmanship flexing of 2003.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!