WWE - Shawn Michaels: 5 Awesome Matches And 5 That Sucked

3. Shawn Michaels vs. Mankind - In Your House: Mind Games, September 22nd 1996

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PG-l6Wxo6As A match that Mick Foley would, for a very long time, consider to be the best he ever wrestled, also happens to be one of the best matches that Shawn Michaels has ever put on. It's also fair to say that it was something of an unexpected result: the two men's styles were hardly complimentary, but like the matches preceding this, it allowed Shawn to play the "face in peril" whilst also showing that he could go at it a lot rougher than people may have expected. With his WWF Title on the line, Michaels got off to a bad start as Mankind immediately began slugging it out with the Heartbreak Kid, sending Shawn to the outside and using the ringside environment to his advantage, very much "his" territory. That plan backfired though when Michaels crushed Mankind under the floor matting, before going high-risk with a crossbody to the outside. The commentary team noted the aggressive side of Michaels, who kept pressure on Mankind - who then retreated for a "pep talk" from the dastardly Paul Bearer on the outside again. If there was one other impressive sidenote to the match, it's that Foley's character work was impeccable, staying in the deranged state perfectly throughout. Shawn would soon give up control of the match though as Mankind overpowered him, even resorting to tactics such as biting Michaels as he writhed on the mat. The pace of the match drastically slowed down at this point, raising the drama stakes as he did so; Mankind's power came across as he was able to boot Shawn over the top rope easily. Still using what they could without being disqualified, arguably one of the highlights of the match saw Shawn wrap Mankind's head in between the top and second ropes, choking him out - as Mankind replied in kind by shoving his hand down HBK's throat for the mandible claw. The crowd went wild, but it wouldn't be until the weapons came in to play that the match really got in to full gear. With chairs in the ring and the referee distracted, Mankind looked set to fly from the top rope with a chair - only for Michaels to land a Van Daminator-style Sweet Chin Music. It should have ended the match, but the contest was brought to an abrupt close when Vader interfered. Whilst there was no clean result that the match perhaps really deserved, it was without a doubt an incredible contest that proved a lot about Shawn Michaels. His performance in the match and his ability to adapt to a much more aggressive style would obviously suit him well and proved that, whilst he was smaller than many of the previous WWF Champions at the time, he still had the ability to take out a much bigger man and beat him at his own game. A rare classic that anyone should watch to see a great performance from two legends of the sport.