Shawn Michaels' 10 Greatest WWE Moments

After that classic at 'Mania 25, it was the tallest of orders for either man to top it. Shawn would spend months leading up to WrestleMania XXVI chasing The Deadman for one more round. Things began with an in-the-moment suggestion backstage at the Slammy Awards, with HBK accepting the most obvious Match Of The Year winner ever by challenging his conqueror to another meeting.

The desperation to beat the streak overwhelmed him like nobody before, leading him to eliminate tag partner Triple H at the 2010 Royal Rumble, and eventually cost 'Taker his World Heavyweight Championship in the best Elimination Chamber spot ever. It was amazingly handled and acted out by Michaels, giving everything he had in his acting locker to sell how much the loss at 'Mania 25 ate away at him.

Like with Angle, the story bled into the match. The No DQ stipulation was barely touched upon; it was more about who could outwrestle who. Like in '98, Shawn went out on top, main-eventing WrestleMania, and definitely didn't tarnish that swansong whatsoever, as Crown Jewel 2018 has since been declared a work of fantasy fiction, according to expert historians.