Who REALLY Carried WWE Every Year (1985-2026)

1995 was a strong year for Shawn Michaels, but he was just edged out by Diesel despite winning the Royal Rumble and working bangers vs. Nash, Razor Ramon, Jeff Jarrett and more. In truth, '95 ticked HBK off so much that he vowed he'd never be overlooked again. Cue 1996 and true greatness.

Shawn came into his own as a babyface. He won the Rumble for a second consecutive year, lived his boyhood dream at 'Mania XII by toppling Bret Hart in a 60-minute 'Iron Man' encounter, then had excellent matches against the likes of Diesel, British Bulldog, stiff newcomer Vader (despite the fact he hated working with Leon), Mankind and Sycho Sid.

Perhaps inevitably given the pressure he was putting on himself to be the best worker in the industry every single night, being champ took its toll. However, Michaels was majestic in '96. Physically, he was in the best shape of his entire career up until that point, and he capitalised on the fact that fellow (ultra-reliable) workhorse Bret was taking some time off from the WWF to do other things.

That meant nobody could come close to matching what Shawn could do inside the ring. Financially, the federation was still bruised and battered after some incredibly lean years post-Hogan boom, but those who didn't care about that and only wanted to see great matches knew Michaels would deliver the goods.

Carrying the belt for most of the year left him shattered, but Shawn can be proud of what he achieved when the chips were down and WCW was getting hotter via the nWo angle on the other channel.