5 WWE Superstars who have had real-life heat with Shawn Michaels

Which five WWE Superstars have had real-life heat with Shawn Michels?
Which five WWE Superstars have had real-life heat with Shawn Michels?

During his three-long-decade wrestling career, Shawn Michaels delivered a countless number of excellent matches and promos. He's a multi-time world champion and is regarded as one of the most gifted performers in the history of WWE. Many Superstars, who have worked with Michaels, have said wonderful things about him. However, some don't share the same feeling.

It's no secret that Michaels wasn't on his best behavior during his first stint with WWE, but he came as a better version of himself after his return to WWE in 2002 and tried to reconcile with the people he had issues with. While he was successful in building a friendly relationship with most of them, there are a few people who still hold a grudge against him.

In this feature, let's uncover a few people who have had real-life heat with Shawn Michaels and if they still dislike him. So, let's get started.


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#5 Scott Steiner

Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner

Scott Steiner has spent most of his wrestling career at WCW and TNA. Steiner has also worked for WWE twice, but both of his runs with the sports-entertainment giant have been labeled as unsuccessful. Interestingly, Steiner has held Shawn Michaels partially responsible for his failed stint.

Speaking in an interview, Steiner named Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and Ric Flair among the people who tried to hold him down in WWE for no reason. Steiner also mentioned that though he and Michaels never crossed paths inside a squared circle, HBK somehow got upset with him and showed signs of resentment towards him.

They had to go out there and pretend like they respect the guy. The only guys that do are Triple H and Shawn Michaels. They're three peas in a pod – three guys who couldn't fight their way out of a paper bag. They're three of the biggest [******] that have ever been in the sport. And they're all friends – imagine that

Whether these claims are true or not, Steiner has not backed down from the accusations he made about three of the highly respected Superstars in the history of the wrestling business.

#4 Gregory Helms

Gregory Helms
Gregory Helms

Gregory Helms signed with WWE after Eric Bishoff's WCW ran out of business. Making his debut under the name The Hurricane, Helms became one of the most popular Superstars in WWE.

He won multiple secondary titles, and at a point, even became the top Superstar in WWE's Cruiserweight Division. However, Helms was released by the company in 2010.

According to Helms, Shawn Michaels allegedly played a key role in his release as he influenced the higher-ups in WWE to release him from the company.

Helms also claimed HBK is possibly the reason why he did not get the best booking during his last few years with WWE.

In the past, Helms has blasted Shawn Michaels for not trying to put over up-and-coming talents, instead, caring about just his image. Helms has also stated, while many people believe Michaels has become a better man ever since he took the religious path in 2002, but, he doesn't see that many differences in him.

Taking all of these factors into account, it's safe to say that Helms is just another Superstar who dislikes Shawn Michaels and holds him responsible for spoiling their career, even though he has no proof whatsoever.

#3 Shane Douglas

Shane Douglas
Shane Douglas

Shane Douglas was one of the well-known faces in the wrestling business during the '90s. He mostly wrestled for WCW and ECW. He once got the opportunity to work for WWE, but his run with the company didn't last long. During his year-long stint, Douglas worked with multiple big Superstars including, Razor Ramon, British Bulldog, Sycho Sid, and many others. He was once slated to face Shawn Michaels too, but that never happened as the two men never got on the same page.

Douglas first came across Shawn Michaels when the latter was holding the Intercontinental Championship, and he was next in line to face him for the gold. The two men were supposed to battle for it at In Your House PPV. However, a few days before the show, Michaels pulled out from the match claiming he was hurt.

While HBK eventually dropped the title to Douglas by relinquishing it to him, surprisingly, he was never actually injured.

According to the Douglas, Shawn Michaels was healthy and showed no signs of injury or whatsoever, but he pretended to be hurt. This was done to avoid losing the title to Douglas through a pinfall as HBK didn't think it was the right finish.

Almost within hours, I get the call that the finish has been changed and that Shawn has had a relapse of his concussion and can't perform. ... That's Shawn.

Douglas also revealed that Shawn Michaels is one of the greatest in-ring performers, but he isn't a fan of his personality.

#2 The Undertaker

The Undertaker
The Undertaker

Back when The Undertaker was in his early days in WWE, he admired Shawn Michaels for his incredible work in the ring. However, behind-the-scenes, the story was totally different as the two Superstars didn't look at each other eye-to-eye.

According to the reports, The Undertaker didn't like Shawn Michaels for his outspoken personality and didn't care about him in the least way possible. While the two Superstars shared great chemistry in the ring, Undertaker liked to keep his distance from the HBK in real life.

Where Shawn Michaels and I are today and where we were at back then on a personal level, it’s taken a complete 360. If Shawn Michaels back then was on fire, I probably wouldn’t p*** on him to put him out

However, the animosity between Undertaker and Michaels came to an end when the latter made his return to WWE in 2002. According to the HBK, the first man he went to apologize for his actions from the past was The Undertaker, who forgave him and made peace with him.

Years later, Shawn Michaels is now one of the people, The Undertaker is close in real life.

#1 The Rock

The Rock
The Rock

The Rock and Shawn Michaels were two of the biggest faces during the Attitude Era, but they never crossed paths inside a squared circle due to their legitimate beef. Surprisingly, The Rock didn't like HBK long before signing with WWE.

The reason was that Shawn Michaels who once tried to disrespect The Rock's grandmother, Lia Maivia, through some rude comments during a wrestling show in Hawaii that she promoted.

While the former football player wanted to lay his hands on Michaels for his uncalled actions towards his grandmother, he managed to maintain his cool.

Fast Forward to a few years later, while The Rock was slowly rising to the top in WWE, Shawn Michaels reportedly tried to weaken his push. According to Dave Meltzer, The Rock and Triple H were once vying for the same spot in WWE. Being Triple H's friend, HBK thought it'd be wise if The Rock somehow dropped out of the race.

While HBK tried to change the higherups' minds about him, The Rock was too good to let go. As a result, The Great One ended up getting that spot and went on to become one of the most electrifying men in sports entertainment.

The Rock was once asked in an interview if he regrets not working with Shawn Michaels, The Great One said he was never interested in working with him.

Both men seem to have buried the hatchet a few years ago.

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Edited by Alan John
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