WWE's Montreal Screwjob: Where are they now?

Bret "Hitman" Hart following what became known as the Montreal Screwjob
Bret "Hitman" Hart following what became known as the Montreal Screwjob

#5. WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels

If there was one thing about WWE that really propelled the Montreal Screwjob into happening, it's this: Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels hated each other. Hated. They've since reconciled and both have gone on record as saying their own individual egos caused real-life tension and animosity between them.

By the time of the 1997 Survivor Series, Michaels was already a two-time WWE Champion. He had defeated Bret for that very title in a classic Ironman match at WrestleMania XII, but when it came time to return the favor the next year, Michaels claimed a knee injury and a "lost smile," relinquishing the belt instead.

All of this real-life animosity turned into real-life violence when they had a real-life fight before a house show in Stamford, CT.

Michaels would retire from wrestling due to a severe back injury after WrestleMania XIV, but would return in 2002.

In between those years, he would kick addiction, become a born-again Christian, get married, and start his own wrestling academy -- a school that would even begin the training of a young Bryan Danielson. In 2010, he eventually retired for a second time following a WrestleMania XXVI match with the Undertaker -- a match widely regarded as one of the best of all time.

Nowadays, when Michaels isn't spending time with his family, he's helping to train the next generation of wrestlers at the WWE Performance Center and producing television for NXT. He had a one-night only return to the ring at a Saudi Arabia show in 2018, but let's not talk about that.

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Edited by Anirudh
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