Shawn Michaels' 10 Best Matches Ever

Putting Michaels against Angle was a license to type asterisks. Two men whose in-ring brilliance set high-marks in their respective eras (not to say that Michaels necessarily represented "the past" in this match) were being put together with the idea of making a definitive WrestleMania match. Some "dream matches" just don't equal the anticipation, but this one managed to exceed it.

It's a credit to each man's natural skills that they only rehearsed one spot (a sunset flip counter) beforehand. The rest came down to each man's unparalleled ability, and a near-half hour blank slate with which to work. Michaels was months shy of his fortieth birthday, and still every bit the performer he was in his late-twenties.

There are many matches that remind me of Michaels/Angle, with the tons of false finishes and a dramatic closing stretch, but they're mostly pale impersonators. Michaels' selling, particularly in the recesses of the Ankle Lock, does more in this match to demonstrate his justified legendary status than any other spot or bump.