CymruX2
Mid-Carder
Joined on: Sept 5, 2020 9:35:33 GMT -5
Posts: 318
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Post by CymruX2 on Aug 3, 2023 3:05:57 GMT -5
Shawn returned to the ring in 2002, he has gone on record saying it was meant to be a fued with Triple H and then he was done. But as things would have it we got to enjoy HBK for another decade plus, and now he runs a large part of NXT.
Shawn reluctantly had a run with the WHC early into his return, and never held the gold again. He's said he wanted to focus more on the young guys, making them the focal point and helping establish the next generation of superstars.
I can't be the only person thinking that his work with younger talent would have carried more weight if he was a world champion for those fueds?
I'm not saying he would have had to drop the gold to the likes of Kenny Dykstra or whoever was around at the time, but a world championship programme with Shawn Michael's would have elevated a lot of talent, even coming off with a loss.
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Post by JokerFC on Aug 3, 2023 6:46:47 GMT -5
He didn't want the schedule of a champion. Fairly well known and talked about too. Prichard & Ross have talked about it on multiple occasions on their respective pods. He was scheduled to beat Cena at WM23 but backed out of it after initially agreeing. Even a short run didn't suit him.
He also refused a move to SD on more than one occasion because it conflicted with his church activities...
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TheXtremisT
Main Eventer
10 Year Member
This is the way
Joined on: May 3, 2008 8:03:15 GMT -5
Posts: 3,951
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Post by TheXtremisT on Aug 3, 2023 7:05:27 GMT -5
I agree, and would have liked to have seen Shawn at the top of the card more often and with the WHC.
But I'm certain he also said that the schedule as a world champion was brutal and he wasn't willing to sacrifice his family life and community/religious schedule for it.
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Post by ASR (therockisback) on Aug 3, 2023 8:50:46 GMT -5
I would have loved to see HBK win the WWE Title or World Title at least 2/3 more times…. Even if it only lasted a month, a week or a day tbh.
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Post by hbkbigdaddycool on Aug 3, 2023 10:58:10 GMT -5
I was at Wrestlemania 23 live and if HBK had been able to beat Cena for the title that night and even hold it for just a few weeks I would have been okay with that. Just knowing I got to watch it happen live!
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Post by JokerFC on Aug 4, 2023 2:25:12 GMT -5
I was at Wrestlemania 23 live and if HBK had been able to beat Cena for the title that night and even hold it for just a few weeks I would have been okay with that. Just knowing I got to watch it happen live! Same....I was rooting for him that night. Heck of a match. |
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Post by ASR (therockisback) on Aug 4, 2023 18:30:20 GMT -5
Seeing HBK win any kind of Title was good stuff for me... he should have even won the ECW Title between 06-2010 lol.
It was great seeing em win the World Title in 02 but man it sucked how he lost it so quick and it sucked how he never won the big one back after that....overall it was still great seeing em perform anyways so it's all good.
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Post by theoutlaw1999 on Aug 4, 2023 21:06:42 GMT -5
He didn't want the schedule of a champion. Fairly well known and talked about too. Prichard & Ross have talked about it on multiple occasions on their respective pods. He was scheduled to beat Cena at WM23 but backed out of it after initially agreeing. Even a short run didn't suit him. He also refused a move to SD on more than one occasion because it conflicted with his church activities... Shawn on Smackdown just wouldn't have clicked imo. He wrestled on Raw his entire career so seeing him on the blue brand in different surroundings would have been weird. |
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Post by theoutlaw1999 on Aug 4, 2023 21:09:39 GMT -5
Two issues I had with HBK's 02 return.
1) His switch to those awful baggy chap tights.
2) His lack of title reigns.
A few more reigns during his 2nd run would've been perfect and he should've went over Cena at WM23.
I feel that us the fans were ready for him to win that night.
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Aug 5, 2023 3:46:33 GMT -5
I'll never forgive that pillhead for coming out of retirement in Saudi. How can you ruin the most storybook ending to a career by wrestling in that hell hole of all places. It didn't help that he worked one of the worst matches in wrestling history. All while looking like he'd aged 43 years since we'd last saw him in the ring.
Atleast Flair came out cause he was broke. You did it for greed Shawn. You could have easily made an appearance like with the Taker vs Hunter match & still made a ton. It did so much damage to his legacy working that tag match.
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Post by K5 on Aug 5, 2023 11:14:17 GMT -5
I'll never forgive that pillhead for coming out of retirement in Saudi. How can you ruin the most storybook ending to a career by wrestling in that hell hole of all places. It didn't help that he worked one of the worst matches in wrestling history. All while looking like he'd aged 43 years since we'd last saw him in the ring. Atleast Flair came out cause he was broke. You did it for greed Shawn. You could have easily made an appearance like with the Taker vs Hunter match & still made a ton. It did so much damage to his legacy working that tag match. it’s 2023, there isn’t such a thing as legacy any more, everything is bastardized. he did it for the money and there is zero wrong with that. also referring to him as a pill head still reflects on you, not him. |
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Aug 5, 2023 12:24:18 GMT -5
I'll never forgive that pillhead for coming out of retirement in Saudi. How can you ruin the most storybook ending to a career by wrestling in that hell hole of all places. It didn't help that he worked one of the worst matches in wrestling history. All while looking like he'd aged 43 years since we'd last saw him in the ring. Atleast Flair came out cause he was broke. You did it for greed Shawn. You could have easily made an appearance like with the Taker vs Hunter match & still made a ton. It did so much damage to his legacy working that tag match. he did it for the money and there is zero wrong with that. also referring to him as a pill head still reflects on you, not him. I'm still upset about it |
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Post by theoutlaw1999 on Aug 5, 2023 16:33:41 GMT -5
I'll never forgive that pillhead for coming out of retirement in Saudi. How can you ruin the most storybook ending to a career by wrestling in that hell hole of all places. It didn't help that he worked one of the worst matches in wrestling history. All while looking like he'd aged 43 years since we'd last saw him in the ring. Atleast Flair came out cause he was broke. You did it for greed Shawn. You could have easily made an appearance like with the Taker vs Hunter match & still made a ton. It did so much damage to his legacy working that tag match. Shawn imo needs to have one more match at Mania to right the wrong of his Saudi one. I would hate to think that was his last ever match. |
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Post by CM Tusk on Aug 5, 2023 17:19:23 GMT -5
If you’ve never watched that match then Wrestlemania 26 can remain his last match to you. Just like if you never watched Flair’s TNA run or that embarrassment from last year.
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Aug 6, 2023 4:18:10 GMT -5
I'll never forgive that pillhead for coming out of retirement in Saudi. How can you ruin the most storybook ending to a career by wrestling in that hell hole of all places. It didn't help that he worked one of the worst matches in wrestling history. All while looking like he'd aged 43 years since we'd last saw him in the ring. Atleast Flair came out cause he was broke. You did it for greed Shawn. You could have easily made an appearance like with the Taker vs Hunter match & still made a ton. It did so much damage to his legacy working that tag match. Shawn imo needs to have one more match at Mania to right the wrong of his Saudi one. I would hate to think that was his last ever match. That's the thing he turned down AJ Styles the year prior. That made it all the worse when he wrestled for Saudi green. If he came out for AJ I woulda still been mad but not as mad as I was for Saudi. Another match might not be a good idea because he may not be able to go anymore judging from his Saudi performance. |
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Papi Joker
Main Eventer
INTERNATIONAL COLLECTORS LIVES MATTER
Joined on: Feb 23, 2016 23:56:30 GMT -5
Posts: 1,603
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Post by Papi Joker on Aug 6, 2023 20:36:31 GMT -5
When I was younger I jumped on the HBK wagon after he beat my fave (Hitman) at Mania, I believed in him!!!
Then Montreal happened and I was devastated x2.
When he came back as nWo I thought it was really cool!!!
Then the match with hHh was great, I will never like his last belt run (although I think it's cool he had the big WCW gold) but those tights and haircut man...
I liked his switch to cowboy pants, but just think he needed to drop the lyrics on his theme as he just wasn't that cocky dude anymore.
I also think his back injury was a bit of BS and it was his attitude and addictions that kept him away, his shoot interview is quite interesting too.
But let's not forget he was tag champ a few times, he is best to stay way from the ring though, Saudi killed a lot of 'records' imo
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Post by cordless2016 on Aug 8, 2023 15:33:04 GMT -5
Like others have said, it’s been well documented that he didn’t want to be a champion. They had to talk him into winning the 2002 EC. They asked him to move to SD and win the WHC when Batista got hurt in 2006 and turned it down. He did the same again at WM23.
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TheEvilDoink1987
Main Eventer
Joined on: Feb 22, 2010 21:37:52 GMT -5
Posts: 2,801
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Post by TheEvilDoink1987 on Aug 8, 2023 20:08:32 GMT -5
I was at Wrestlemania 23 live and if HBK had been able to beat Cena for the title that night and even hold it for just a few weeks I would have been okay with that. Just knowing I got to watch it happen live! I was also in attendance in Detroit that night and was bummed when Cena won. That was during his superhero reign where nobody was going to beat him so it is kind of funny to think that HBK had a shot. Have to admit the sting of that event is not too bad as I was at MSG for the 2002 Survivor Series when he won the World title. |
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