Triple H's 14 Greatest WWE Title Defenses Ever

7. World Heavyweight Championship Match: Triple H Vs. Shawn Michaels (Raw, December 29 2003)

The December 29, 2003 episode of Raw was moving along as it was, a show neither outstandingly good nor horrendously bad, when World Heavyweight champion Triple H took to the squared circle for a title defense against San Antonio, Texas' own, Shawn Michaels. The two had competed against each other countless times during the course of the previous year and a half, including a five-star classic at SummerSlam 2002, but their recent matches had lacked the spark one would would expect from two performers of their caliber. Some were overbooked, others overly long and in some cases, they were just flat-out boring. Needless to say, on December 29th on a random episode of Raw, fans were not expecting the classic that wound up unfolding before them. The drama of the bout was built on the back of referee bumps, each one creating a situation in which Michaels was poised to capture gold but could not due to the displacement of the official. The spots that the two constructed, the reactions they generated and the screwy finish that came from both men's shoulders being flat on the mat helped make for a brilliant championship bout that left the title picture in limbo, both men asserting themselves as top stars on Raw and neither gaining the firm upper hand. The match would lead to a contrived Last Man Standing match at the 2004 Royal Rumble, proving that The Game and The Heartbreak Kid were best left to what they did best, which was wrestling and not bouts loaded with gimmickry.