#6 Shawn Michaels costs Diesel the Intercontinental Championship
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After the now historic ‘barbershop window’ incident that saw Shawn Michaels turn on his Rockers teammate Marty Jannetty, Shawn continued to build a reputation for himself as an untrustworthy heel that could use people to his advantage and cast them aside as soon as he got what he wanted. And while Shawn wasn’t the first to take on such a gimmick, something about his performance throughout the rest of the 1990s saw him become the archetypal arrogant bad guy that many wrestlers have since copied.
In late 1993, Shawn Michaels introduced the WWF audience to Kevin Nash for the very first time. Under the ring name Diesel, Nash portrayed himself as Shawn’s muscle-bound bodyguard, interfering in matches and generally saving HBK from himself. The dynamics of this pairing have also been replicated many times throughout the years, with many modern day superstars using a bodyguard as a way of gaining more heel heat for themselves.
The two would later go on to form a tag-team called ‘Two Dudes with Attitude’. They would enjoy championship success as a team, and both members would go on to hold the Intercontinental Championship at different points during 1994.
As the year progressed, however, it soon became clear that the WWF was starting to develop bigger plans for Nash. With the Lex Luger experiment all but done for, the company needed another main event star to join Bret Hart and Yokozuna. Diesel was the ideal choice given his size and typical ‘cool guy’ appearance.
Diesel’s rise to the top was done with patience, first having him go on a tear at the Royal Rumble and then winning the IC Title in a compelling feud with Razor Ramon. The WWF now needed to separate Shawn and Nash to allow both men to pursue singles careers.
During the IC Championship match at Summerslam, Shawn, who was at the corner of Diesel throughout the bout, ended up super kicking his best friend and costing him the belt. This marked the start of a period of animosity between the two and helped propelled Diesel to brand new heights.
Looking back, it was somewhat surprising to see Diesel enter the main event title picture before Shawn, which spoke to Vince’s desire to still see ‘bigger’ guys headlining his company, something fans are very accustomed to today.
