Shawn Michaels' Farewell

'The Heartbreak Kid' Shawn Michaels isn't necessarily a winner, he's a scrappy underdog that always surprises you with how much fight he has. Defiant with a slap in the face 'til the bitter end. It was a fitting end to that character.
- A message board poster's comment on the end of this past Sunday's WrestleMania main event

I've just finished watching last night's episode of Monday Night Raw and I've got watery eyes after watching Shawn Michaels address everyone with a farewell speech.

When I first started watching professional wrestling, the main stars on the shows were the massive, larger than life characters like Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant but then - as I turned into my teens - the emphasis shifted to the smaller and more talented stars.

When Bret 'Hitman' Hart won the World title from Ric Flair in the latter part of 1992, things changed for the good.

The fans got better matches in the main events.

Shawn Michaels was the best wrestler back then. I would watch his bouts and he would do these crazy bumps after being hit and it was always fun to watch.

Eventually, Michaels became the top guy in the business when he himself won the WWF championship.

He became the main event.

Forgetting the four year absence after injuring his back, Michaels has put on great matches against a variety of different wrestlers throughout his career and it's a shame that it's all over.

They say 'all good things must come to an end' and it's even more evident when you think back to all those classic promos, fights and angles Shawn Michaels was a part of since he first debuted in the mid-80s.

Despite all these things being available to me on the stacks video and DVD boxes I have here in this room, there will be something I can take away from his career that I feel very lucky to have been able to do.

I met Shawn Michaels when I was fourteen-years old in the hours before he was to face Randy Savage in the Cardiff International Arena.

Eleven years after that, I met him again.

Not a lot of people can say they met one of their childhood heroes. I am fortunate enough to say I have. Twice.