Shawn Michaels could have returned by 1999

[HatchetMan84]

I know during my time here I have vehemently denied this each time someone posts about it or asks about if Shawn Michaels could have returned before he did in 2002, but after having some suspicions the last few months, thinking about it, reading some articles from 1998-2001, it finally dawned on me yesterday after reading this new interview with Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin on Steve's podcast, where they talked about WrestleMania 14.

I'd first like to point out that in no way do I believe that Shawn's injury was not as legit as they made it out to be. It was a legit career threatening injury, but the truth was it was never "career-ending" nor did Michaels ever "risk life" by stepping in the ring again. I will say that I feel strongly that HBK's drug use and lifestyle is what kept him out as well as his ego, as he had legit head with The Rock and by his own admission was not comfortable being 2nd fiddle to Stone Cold. Had he accepted a part-time role at this point in time, Vince would have gladly let him back.

Listening to that interview from just a few days ago, the biggest issue HBK had, by his own admission, was not his back pain, but rather he knew how big the angle was with Mike Tyson and all that and how hot the business had gotten, and he knew he wasn't going to be a part of it. Now he knew that he would require surgery, and was going to miss some time, but the biggest thing that bothered him was he wasn't on top of the mountain anymore.

Shawn is for sure a changed man, no one can deny it, but I think it is very candid that HBK never mentions how he had to come to grips with him never being able to wrestle again. His biggest complaint was that they put a shirt on top of his head after the match was over. It seems like i'm splitting hairs here, but lots of guys in the business go on about their injuries and how bad the are, but HBK here barely mentions it. He does say they had that guy Francois (who worked with Mick Foley's back) working him every day, but he doesn't really go on about it. What he does go on about his the "things he was on" and how bad that gotten. So here is my thoughts from compiling lots of research over the past few months and doing lots of reading:

January 1998 - Suffers back injury to L4/LF vertebrae, injury is potentially career- threatening. Michaels vigorously does physical therapy and chiropractic sessions to get him to WM14.

March 1998 - Wrestles on blown back, passes the torch to Stone Cold. This is well known.

July 1998 - HBK returns to WWF as a color commentator. he is still big and buff. reports have him trying new therapy methods, desperately trying to avoid surgery. He is made WWF Commissioner later that fall, that articles from this time period say is done to get him fresh in the Fan's minds again, and to also gauge where he is at in terms of getting back in the ring.

January 1999 - Physical therapy has failed and Michaels resorts to surgery to end the pain. It is successful. Shawn officially announces his retirement from wrestling

April 2000 - Shawn Michaels wrestles one match against Paul Diamond in TWA. Not a 5 star classic but a good basic match. Michaels says on his official column on TWA that it is inevitable he will wrestle again for WWE, to "never say never". Michaels says officially this match was to see where he was at and to see if it was possible to resume active wrestling.

2000 - Shawn Michaels is featured in WWF magazine, calling him the comeback kid, and he gives a long interview about why he is coming back, how it will be different this time around. Michaels mentions he hopes to wrestle two to three more years if his body holds up. Michaels is very heavy into drugs and painkillers at this point in his life.

2001 - Shawn is supposed to be part of WrestleMania X7, where he was to return to the ring, but for unknown reasons, most likely his drug problems, he was sent home from TV. All articles I've found say that had this not happened, HBK would have been back in the WWF as a wrestler, he was physically in shape but not well due to drugs. Not long after this, Shawn Michaels and Triple H have the famous fall-out, and Shawn is basically "fired" from the WWE. The rest after this point is history.

Just imagine the WWF with HBK, the Rock, Stone Cold, and Triple H when they were all in their primes....gives me chills

 

[louchratis]

We still got 9 more years of a clean and sober HBK. The road was a big reason why he became such a junkie in the first place so it was imperative that he clean himself up first. Otherwise, the same crap would have continued. Shawn's back was bad but it was only part of the reason why he retired. His personal life was his biggest "injury" and that had to change. Thankfully it did and he never became a cautionary tale. Would it have been great to have him a bit earlier? Sure. Would he have been in a good enough place mentally to be able to wrestle Taker at WM 25 and 26? Probably not.

 

[HatchetMan84]

We still got 9 more years of a clean and sober HBK. The road was a big reason why he became such a junkie in the first place so it was imperative that he clean himself up first. Otherwise, the same crap would have continued. Shawn's back was bad but it was only part of the reason why he retired. His personal life was his biggest "injury" and that had to change. Thankfully it did and he never became a cautionary tale. Would it have been great to have him a bit earlier? Sure. Would he have been in a good enough place mentally to be able to wrestle Taker at WM 25 and 26? Probably not.

I agree with you on all points. I do also feel that even though Shawn could have physically wrestled by 2000, he was still badly on drugs and he quite likely would have been either a brian pillman like tragedy or maybe end up like dynamite kid, wrestling with crippling pain because it was all he had in his life...

 

[Owen 3:16 says I just stole your Slammy!!]

I think if he did come back in 1999, it would of been bad on couple points. He was still on drugs, he would of been jealous of Austin and Rock as the head liners. He would of bitch and complain that he is not the top guy anymore. If Vince gave into Shawn like he did a lot of times, it could of stop other guys pushes. Also, like HatchetMan84 said, if he came back too early, he could of badly injured himself or a tragic death.

I'm glade he did wait couple of years. When he came back, his head was clear. He didn't have a big ego like he did in the '90s. He provided us with great feuds and moments.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

It was always known that Shawn's back injury was not "career ending" as was painted. Simply that combined with his total ass of an attitude made it not worth the time to keep him or for WCW to make an overture.

Even when he was onscreen in 99 he was off his face a lot of the time, again by most who were there's testimony. It was only "after" he "got religion" and reformed enough to get his head on straight.

He was not the only one who sat out and thus I won't condemn him, Road Warrior Animal, Mr. Perfect and Rick Rude all sat out on fat Lloyds of London insurance policies when they could have worked, the difference is the biz missed the other 3 at the time, Shawn of the day...no they didn't miss him, if many were honest they were glad to be rid of him...

 

[HatchetMan84]

It was always known that Shawn's back injury was not "career ending" as was painted. Simply that combined with his total ass of an attitude made it not worth the time to keep him or for WCW to make an overture.

Even when he was onscreen in 99 he was off his face a lot of the time, again by most who were there's testimony. It was only "after" he "got religion" and reformed enough to get his head on straight.

He was not the only one who sat out and thus I won't condemn him, Road Warrior Animal, Mr. Perfect and Rick Rude all sat out on fat Lloyds of London insurance policies when they could have worked, the difference is the biz missed the other 3 at the time, Shawn of the day...no they didn't miss him, if many were honest they were glad to be rid of him...

IIRC, Shawn did not have a Lloyd of London's policy, but I get the point you are making. Tell me something, how did those guys come back even though Lloyds of London were paying them. I know Mr. Perfect found a loophole, not sure about the others. But Rude never wrestled again though as far as I know, even though he was training for a in-ring comeback when he died.

I think Shawn never did one because of the fact that he was making 750,000 a year guaranteed money. News at the time said that HBK signed that deal around 1997, and it ran out sometime in 2001. Without knowing the whole story, I bet Vince was irked most of the time that Michaels was getting almost a million a year just to show up on TV once or twice during his time away from WWF. True fact, Michaels was on match payments until his match against Jericho at WM19. It was this match that convinced HBK he could return full time and he shortly there after signed a regular talent contract...

 

[theHeadliner]

When Shawn came back to ref that Iron Man Match between HHH and whoever (I stopped watching when Shawn and Bret left and resumed after Shawn came back), he looked pretty outta shape, flat, his arms had no definition, and he looked flappy in those short biker shorts he wore the night Vince fined him. I wouldn't say he was still in great physical shape during his time off. Even in 2002 when he joined the nWo he said there was never any intention for him to wrestle, but he was reborn and who knows what thoughts and ideas changed for him. I can buy him wrestling in 2000, give the surgery at least a year to recover. In his books the Doctors told him he shouldn't have wrestled at WM14 and could never again, and that surgery would definitely end his chances to return. But in wrestling, its all a work so who knows.

 

[Owen 3:16 says I just stole your Slammy!!]

IIRC, Shawn did not have a Lloyd of London's policy, but I get the point you are making. Tell me something, how did those guys come back even though Lloyds of London were paying them. I know Mr. Perfect found a loophole, not sure about the others. But Rude never wrestled again though as far as I know, even though he was training for a in-ring comeback when he died.

I think Shawn never did one because of the fact that he was making 750,000 a year guaranteed money. News at the time said that HBK signed that deal around 1997, and it ran out sometime in 2001. Without knowing the whole story, I bet Vince was irked most of the time that Michaels was getting almost a million a year just to show up on TV once or twice during his time away from WWF. True fact, Michaels was on match payments until his match against Jericho at WM19. It was this match that convinced HBK he could return full time and he shortly there after signed a regular talent contract...

I heard that Animal also found a loop hole in it too. When L.O.D came back, They had to have Hawk wrestle most of the match. If Animal was in the ring too much, it would of affected his Lloyd of London.

 

[theHeadliner]

Shawn said when he "recovered" and quit drugs he had no withdrawals or side effects. That's so hard to believe, and I'm not trying to be a jerk or to be judged but I'm a regular user of Soma and painkillers of all types, and not even close to the amount of what Michaels was taking, and I get horrible withdrawals. It truly must have been a miracle of God for him to not have any detox symptoms.

If Michaels came back when Steve and Rock were headlining, I bet he could have jockeyed for that spot as well legitimately and headlined with them or himself with someone else. Wrestling was so big if any of those guys was on the show fans would tune in or order or attend. Numbers wouldn't have been an issue, especially if Michaels made a heroic comeback, people would have wanted him in the Main event.

 

[Tripleb2k1]

a return made in 1999 would be bad...still not clean and sober yet plus thats the year he had surgery on his broken back

 

[HatchetMan84]

a return made in 1999 would be bad...still not clean and sober yet plus thats the year he had surgery on his broken back

I think I could have came up with a better title. I wasn't trying to suggest he could have wrestled by 1999, but I do believe that around 2000 wouldn't have been out of the question. I'm referring to his sporadic on and off again appearances from 1998 until 2002. it used to drive me crazy because him and Bret were my favorite growing up.

Somewhere I read something where Bruce Prichard said that shortly after WM14 was over, Vince told Shawn he loved him and appreciated everything he had done to get them to that moment. Shawn being the dick that he was back then, huffed and puffed and left his dressing room and kicked the door open, walking into where they were having a press conference. Shane McMahon looked at him angrily like "WTF are you doing", and Shawn left the arena wearing a dress shirt over his wrestling gear, this scene is caught in "The Rise of Stone Cold" video, that I still have on VHS. Years later, when HBK won the gold at the elimination chamber, he reportedly remembered this moment, thanked Vince, and apologized to him for WM14.

Bruce said lots of stuff like after HBK's injury, Vince really did care for him and told him that he would always have a home in WWE. They kept trying stuff for him while they waited for him to recover, but Shawn would always screw it up and they would take him off TV again. I believe Jim Cornette said that Vince did not want to fire Shawn in 2001, but rather his hands were tied as literally Taker and Triple H told him he had to do something. Shawn was supposed to be a part of the WCW/WWF Storyline, I guess that was their most recent attempt at bringing him back, and enough was enough...

 

[Tripleb2k1]

that all depends on how quickly a broken back would heal as when he returned in 2002, the following WM19, in the dvd extras he was still in discomfort as a doctor had to give him an ice pack for his back

 

[Pedigree1]

I have also heard that Shawns back injury was not as serious as everyone makes it seem to be. Shawn for all intent and purposes could have returned in early 2000 But Shawn had a really shitty attitude and was a complete jackass. No way in hell would shawn have been hired back then. It wasn't so much the injury,it was in fact his attitude..

Look at his WM14 press conference. Being the prick he was basically dissed Vince and everyone with his arrogance. I am glad he is a totally different person,the good HBK. He has atoned for what he has done,and is a complete and different man for it. God bless HBK. But back then,yah not so much..

 

[Kliq69]

I guess my first thought after reading all the posts is that I can't believe how many people talk about Shawn's injury as if it were some minor surgery. This wasn't a blown ACL or even "just" a herniated disk. Not only did he suffer two herniated disks, one of the vertebrae was partially crushed when his back was rammed into the corner of the casket. It is just pure luck or ,as Shawn would call it, divine intervention that kept him from being paralyzed that night.

After his surgery, he would have been cleared to wrestle approximately 14-16 months later. However, in order to deal with the pain from his back, along with the general ailments effecting wrestlers, Shawn had turned to prescription pain killers in order to cope. Now we can all sit here and say that he could have performed in the ring on pills as Shawn had some of his best matches of his career while high.

However this doesn't account for one major event in Shawn's life. His son was born almost a year to the day that he had his back surgery. While it is well known that he credits his marriage to Rebecca as the turning point in his life, (which I won't attempt to discount as a good, faithful woman can bring about a change) personally I think the birth of his son was as much of a catalyst for his personal transformation as his marriage was. It is my belief (as he has not mentioned it in any interview I have seen) that his wanting to quit drugs/drinking was his primary reason for not going back on the road full time. I think he purposely sabotaged his "returns" because he was afraid of the road and what he knew it would do to him.

His match in TWA (his own company) was in April 2000. That's 16 months after the surgery, which fits into the typical recovery time for that type of surgery. Could he have performed at a high level in WWE at that time, probably. Would it have allowed him to fully recover both physically and mentally to the point where he could have wrestled into the next decade? I would think not.

With all the dead wrestlers due to drug/alcohol problems and all the other wrestlers who have so many documented problems with their families, can we really complain that he took a little more time to get himself in the right place both physically and mentally before returning? Would any of those dream matches have been worth seeing Shawn with a broken home, laying in the ground, or being a mirror image on Scott Hall?

I was honestly satisfied after his "unsanctioned" match against HHH in 2002, my second favorite wrestler (Flair will always be #1) putting on a show four years after I had accepted the fact that I would probably never see him wrestle again. The fact that I got to enjoy nine more years of matches and still get to see/hear news that he's happy, a part of a loving family, and most importantly was able to leave on his terms without being a broken shell of a man is just the icing on the cake.

While I have no issues with how long Flair has stayed active in the ring (he could wrestle tomorrow and I'd be the first guy lining up for tickets) and won't condemn him for his failures regarding his family, I'm really glad that Shawn didn't follow his hero's example in this regard. Would anyone honestly prefer him to have gone down that road?

 

[Rasslin_fan]

Shawn said when he "recovered" and quit drugs he had no withdrawals or side effects. That's so hard to believe, and I'm not trying to be a jerk or to be judged but I'm a regular user of Soma and painkillers of all types, and not even close to the amount of what Michaels was taking, and I get horrible withdrawals. It truly must have been a miracle of God for him to not have any detox symptoms.

If Michaels came back when Steve and Rock were headlining, I bet he could have jockeyed for that spot as well legitimately and headlined with them or himself with someone else. Wrestling was so big if any of those guys was on the show fans would tune in or order or attend. Numbers wouldn't have been an issue, especially if Michaels made a heroic comeback, people would have wanted him in the Main event.

Numbers would have been an issue if the Icons Stone Cold Steve Austin & household name, The Rock weren't there to catapult them. If not, then we already know what numbers HBK would have done for the WWE. Just look at 1996.

Anyway, yes HBK could have returned sooner, but his attitude ruined it all, and no one was going to waste their time babysitting a grown baby.

 

[Makaveli31]

Taking the injury out of equation only Shawn knows how serious the injury truly was. I'm not a doctor and neither is anyone here but the fact is that Shawn had surgery to repair his back. I don't think anyone here can honestly say that they know what were Shawn's physical capabilities in 1999 or 2000. No one knows except for him and his doctor.

Next question is interesting. That being where would HBK fit in the "Attitude Era" an era he spearheaded with DX. There is no doubt that if healthy Shawn would have lobbied hard for Austin's spot. He did it in 1995 with Diesel, he did it in 1996 with Bret and he did it in '97. I think there was real animosity at WM 14 between HBK Vince and Austin since EVERYONE knew including Shawn that HBK's run as THE MAN was at it's end. Austin was red hot, Foley and Rock was coming on strong as the #1 heels, Taker and Kane were feuding, HHH was the new leader of DX....where would Shawn fit?

His longtime rival Bret had gone to WCW along with his friends Hall and Nash....I don't see where Michaels would fit into the "Attitude Era"? I think he cam back at a great time. Jericho was in the WWE, Angle established as a household name and HHH was a bonafide star in his own right.

 

[James]

I'm glad he didn't return in 99 because I feel as if Shawn would've died to be honest. His ego, his addiction, his surgery; it was all too much and everything worked out the way it was. I remember HHH making Shawn leave because he was so screwed up from the pills and stuff. Shawn loved the business more than anything, but he needed to get some help.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

The loophole that a lot of guys used was that they only wrestled for a short time, while the policy was still active, but during that time they could "double dip", get paid by WWE AND Lloyds. For most of them it revolved around what their role was out of the ring. It's how Curt Hennig and Rick Rude were able to be a manager, actively attacking wrestlers for well over a year, claim on a policy as his official role was "manager". Animal couldn't do this, but he made sure that his part in the match was almost as small as the DD. Once the policy ran it's course, then they went back to full length matches, you can see it in Perfect's 93 return, much of his in-ring work was kept very brief.

If Shawn didn't have a policy then he was simply crazy, everyone had a policy back then to cover them - even Bret. That Lloyds had the problems it did in the 90's meant they were very hot on not paying out if there was any opportunity so some guys like Ricky Steamboat didn't risk playing the system.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

During that time I remember hoping that Shawn would come back. Everytime he was back as a commish or commentator or a referee I remember thinking maybe this will be what brings him back. Had he returned in 2000 after he was apperently all clear with his back it seemed as though something with The Rock could have been in the works. It was at the May ppv I believe where Trips and Rock had their iron man match with Shawn serving as the special guest ref. Now we know that it played out with Taker ultimatly costing Rock, but I would have to think had Shawn been back by then, that he would have been the one to cost Rock the match and set something up for SummerSlam. From a returing standpoint this would have been the best time for Shawn to come back as Austin was out with his neck issues. This would have created an opening in the main event picture that Shawn could have filled. Now at the time I had no idea of Shawn's drug issues. I did not know that the reason Shawn came and went as much as he did between 98-02 was because he was sent home for this very reason. Knowing that know, it is for the best that Vince did not allow him to return to competition. While it would have been great to see Shawn by 2000 and fueding with Rock, that is not worth risking his great run from 02-10, but more improtantly it is not worth risking his overall health and family life that he now has.

 

[berlinbrawler]

The back injury was legit and career threatening and far from a minor issue. Alas the surgery went well and that was that. If that had been the "only" problem he could have been back sooner.

However no bones are made around the fact that his biggest problems were his drug issues. Vince McMahon has stated so in interviews, as have Triple H and Shawn himself. He even wrote so in his book. Whether or not at some point petty issues of no longer being the main guy factored in, the most important thing for him was to get clean and sober before even considering getting back into that lifestyle. And by the time he did come back it was very obvious that he was in a much better place mentally.

Incidentally from that point on he showed no further ambitions of hogging the spotlight and being the number one guy no matter what. You could tell that here is a guy with nothing left to prove, comfortable with who he is and just enjoying the ride. A prime example of a seasoned veteran getting out of the way for the next generation while still making valuable contributions to the show. A perfect tale of redemption if you ask me.

 

[HBsam31]

There seem to be a lot of these threads, and yes I think he could have returned earlier, but the way things turned out are the best way they could have. If he returned earlier I fear he would have been another wrestling tradgedy. Also would he have been in the condition to have those great matches with Taker at Mania 25 and 26? I think part of it was he wouldn't have been in the top spot, but the other part was he wanted to clean up and spend time with his new son. No one really knows except for him. I am just glad he took the time off that he did, and was able to give us amost a whole other careers worth of great matches upon his return.

 

[theHeadliner]

Numbers would have been an issue if the Icons Stone Cold Steve Austin & household name, The Rock weren't there to catapult them. If not, then we already know what numbers HBK would have done for the WWE. Just look at 1996.

Anyway, yes HBK could have returned sooner, but his attitude ruined it all, and no one was going to waste their time babysitting a grown baby.

If Shawn Michaels came back in 2000, there's no way his drawing numbers would have been anywhere as dismal as the company's numbers in 1996. If he was headlining against Austin, Rock, or any other big name at that time his numbers would have been just fine and no reason for the office to worry.

 

[theHeadliner]

I still think when he returned to referee that Iron Man Match he didn't look physically fit. His arms weren't buff and defined, his lower body and legs looked somewhat saggy in those biker shorts, and he was pale. He would have had to do some work to get back into working physique. Also when he joined the nWo in 2002 he had no intention of wrestling and Vince didn't pressure him to.

In his 1999/2000 shoot whenever it was, he said he told Vince his doctors said he was done, but Vince argued that he could still wrestle limited matches and wanted him too, but Shawn said "Is that how you want me to be remembered?" Vince ultimately said no. This was before the surgery, but if this was his mindset that he didn't want to work, these last 2 scenarios show Shawn likely not coming back until he did.

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

Shawn Michaels coming back in 1999 at that stage would've probably put him in danger of ending up like Brian Pillman, no joke. I'm just happy that the guy was able to get straight whatever he needed to, come back at the level he did, and put on that many more awesome shows.

I honestly think at one point the whole "I lost my smile" line was a pile of garbage, and I still think at that time, it probably was. Later on though, it became pretty evident that he was in no mental or physical condition to come back. When he did finally return, it was a night and day difference. So I'm just happy for what we did get, and I'll take the two Michaels Vs. Undertaker matches over Michaels Vs. The Rock.

 

[Dyscord]

Could shawn have come back earlier? Possibly. He was probably ready physically. But mentally, he had a lot of growing up to do. Perhaps even he knew that. His marriage and the birth of his son probably gave him the mental stability to not fall back into old habits.

And thank god. Honestly, I do not know of anyone who has had a second wind like HBK. He came back and was arguably more successful than his first go round. We got wonderful feuds with HHH, Taker, Jericho, JBL, etc. He truly lived up to his names of "Mr WrestleMania" and "The Showstopper"