Other Columns
Fantasy Fights: The Rock vs. Shawn Michaels
By Justin Ballard
Oct 11, 2008 - 10:45 AM

Whasssup everyone? Welcome back to WWI Fantasy Fights!   This week's match will be one of my all-time top fantasy matchups, pitting the Great One against the Showstopper.   Two of the greatest entertainers in wrestling history one-on-one; Shawn Michaels vs. The Rock!

Shawn Michaels: Stands 6'1" and weighs 225 pounds....Has held nearly every major WWE Championship - highlights include 3x WWE Champion, 1x World Champion, 3x WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2x Royal Rumble winner....Ranked #1 in PWI 500 in 1996....Considered one of the greatest all-around performers of all-time....Three best moves: Sweet Chin Music, flying elbowsmash, moonsault....Biggest strength: nearly unparalleled resiliency....Biggest weakness: cumulative injuries

The Rock: Stands 6'4" and weighs 270 pounds....7x WWE Champion, 1x WWE Intercontinental Champion, multi-time Tag Team Champion, Royal Rumble winner....Ranked #1 in PWI 500 in 2000....One of the most consistently entertaining wrestlers in history....Three best moves: Rock Bottom, People's Elbow, spinebuster....Biggest strength: explosive power attack....Biggest weakness: Can be out-strategized

Finally, The Rock Has Come Back....

It was a monumental announcement, broadcast on every network via a live press conference.   After a lucrative Hollywood run that included 6 #1 hit movies, Dwayne Johnson had finally decided to return home to the pro wrestling ring.   He announced, “I proved I could make the transition from top wrestling star to top movie star like no one else in this industry.   But I’ve missed my first passion – being the BEST damn professional wrestler there ever was!   I’m serving notice to all the jabronis in the wrestling business.   The Rock is back, and fixin’ to layeth the smacketh down in a major way, IF YA SMEEEEEELLLLL…….WHAT THE ROCK…..is cookin’.”   WWE easily won the bidding war over TNA by offering Johnson a cool $5 million a year.   The Rock would make his return at Summerslam in a hugely promoted matchup with John Cena.

Being largely comprised of young talent just coming up when the Rock was last part of WWE full-time, most of the locker room looked forward to the chance to wrestle The Great One.   A victory over such a decorated wrestler would instantly elevate the career of an up-and-comer such as CM Punk or MVP.   Not to mention the bonus increases that were likely considering The Rock’s drawing power.

A few of the veterans however, resented both The Rock’s audacity at thinking he could just pick up where he had left off six years prior, and what they perceived as management’s short-sightedness.   By rallying behind The Rock, they were rewarding his disloyalty to the business.   And what if he were to pick up and leave again once Hollywood made him an offer he couldn’t refuse?

The Rock-Cena match drew record-shattering PPV buyrates and largely overshadowed the other main event match pitting (recently unified) WWE Champion Triple H against longtime friend/rival Shawn Michaels.   Both Hunter and Shawn were rather insulted at being pushed down the card to allow Rock-Cena the main event slot.

Regardless of the match order, Shawn bested his perennial opponent in a 22-minute thriller to become a 4-time WWE Champ, while The Rock pulled off what some considered a minor upset, outbrawling Cena in a 19-minute slugfest.

It Doesn’t Matter….

Immediately fans began salivating over one of the few dream matches left that could actually take place – Michaels vs. The Rock.   WWE announcer Michael Cole commented on the following night’s RAW that “The Rock’s victory over Cena surely catapulted him into a top contender’s spot.”   Jerry Lawler disagreed, retorting, “Just because Rocky beat Cena, that doesn’t make up for a five-year absence in one night!”

Michaels followed up his Title win that night with a successful defense against Chris Jericho.   After the bout, co-host Todd Grisham approached the new Champion, asking him how he felt about the likely possibility of meeting The Rock one-on-one.   Michaels remarked, “That ain’t what this belt is about, pal.   You can tell Tom Cruise back there that he can’t just waltz into a title match like it’s 2001.   He can get in line and climb the ladder like everyone else!”

Laying Down the Smack

And climb the ladder The Rock did.   The following week he bested JBL in decisive fashion, driving him through the timekeeper’s table with a Rock Bottom before rolling him into the ring for an easy win.  

In an interview backstage, Rocky addressed Shawn Michaels’ comments: “The Rock has a thing or two to say to a certain roody-poo candy-ass who calls himself the Heartbreak Kid.   If you haven’t been paying attention Shawn, The Rock has just climbed the first step of the ladder.   Let’s hope you don’t ‘lose your smile’ before The Rock gets to the top.   I’d hate to see the fans get screwed out of a great match yet again just because Shawn Michaels needs to go home and have a good cry.”

In the weeks after that, he annihilated Mark Henry with a running powerslam, forced Jeff Hardy to submit to the Sharpshooter, and knocked Shelton Benjamin unconscious with a People’s Elbow.   The Rock fell right back into his old groove, showing little, if any, ring rust.  Jim Ross remarked, “It’s simply amazing that The Rock has returned after such a long absence looking as good or better than when he left.   Rocky continues to remind us all what a natural athlete he truly is!”

Shut Your Mouth

Michaels took The Rock’s comments to heart, and it seemed to unleash a mean streak in him that hadn’t been seen since the early DX days.   Shawn left Randy Orton looking up at the lights that night after two superkicks and a series of brutal stomps to the face.   Orton suffered a concussion that put him on the shelf for weeks.

“Hey Rocky,” Michaels bellowed.   “Do I look like I’m smiling now?   I’ll tell you what would make me happy.   Kickin’ all your teeth down your throat!   I know you’re better at making crappy movies than you are at wrestling nowadays, but by drudging up something very personal I was going through once upon a time, you suddenly have my undivided attention.  I may have been a little hasty before when I said I wouldn’t give you a title shot.   Upon further consideration…I’d be more than willing to superkick your ass back to Hollywood!   I hear all this talk about how fantastic it is that Rocky made a comeback, how great he looks in the ring, how he’s just as good as before.   Everyone seems to have forgotten that six years ago I made the greatest comeback in this company’s history, and right now I am the best damn wrestler in the world!”

Know Your Role

Upon returning backstage, Michaels was stopped by Vince McMahon.   “Shawn, I know you’re the WWE Champion, but I make the matches around here, not you.   I decide who gets a title shot and who doesn’t.   And you have a host of top contenders you’re obligated to defend against.   There’s Batista, Edge, Undertaker, and let’s not forget that Hunter is entitled to a return bout.   At this point The Rock has not earned a match for that title.   Besides I have plans for a Rock-Cena rematch to headline Survivor Series.”

“Let me get this straight.   As WWE Champion I’m above Rocky at this point, but you have no problem with him headlining pay-per-view events ahead of me and my opponent?   Or with him being paid more than anyone else in this damn locker room?”

“Shawn, you’re the top dog in the company.   But I’ve got to strike while the iron is hot.   The Rock is huge right now and we have to capitalize on his drawing power.   After a little while the fire’ll die down and he’ll settle into a smaller role, and we’ll put the focus back on the WWE Championship.   Anyway, how would it look to the top challengers if Rocky gets a title shot just for making some offhand comments about you?”

“Why didn’t that occur to you before you spent five million on that chump?   He abandoned this business five years ago and one day he decides he misses it and you fall all over yourself offering him more money and bigger hype than the rest of us?   I agree, we should strike while the iron’s hot.   I’ve personally had enough of this “Rock Fever” crap, and I want him in that ring where I can show the WWE fans and all the guys in the back that Rocky doesn’t belong in this business anymore.   He gave up his spot in pro wrestling when he chose Hollywood over us!”

Vince hesitated, looking down at his shoes.

“Vince, either get me that poser in the ring, or both this belt and my spot in this company will be vacant by Survivor Series.”

Just Bring It

It was announced at a press conference the following Thursday.   For the first time ever, Shawn Michaels would defend the WWE Championship at Survivor Series against The Rock.   A few top wrestlers – specifically Batista, Edge, and Triple H - protested by refusing to participate in the event.   Triple H publicly stated, “It’s bad enough that Shawn’s walking around with my belt, but now the Scorpion King gets a chance to take it?   Rocky has no business getting a title match before I’ve even gotten my rematch with Shawn.”

The undercard therefore would be stacked with younger wrestlers who were thrilled at the chance for a rare pay-per-view bonus.   Given the huge historical significance of the main event, buyrates were still expected to skyrocket.

The Survivor Series would take place at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, MA.   Tickets for the event sold out in a record 108 seconds.

Private Thoughts: HBK

Tonight I will show Dwayne Johnson what it means to truly have a passion for the business known as professional wrestling.  Rocky turned his back on this great sport and now that Hollywood is no longer exciting he thinks we’ll all just take him back.   I will defeat him swiftly and decisively for the honor of my peers and the WWE fans around the globe.

Private Thoughts: Rock

All the doubters who said there’s no coming back to pro wrestling will be proven wrong tonight.   The Rock will show the world that even after five long years he is still The Great One; still the most electrifying man in this sport.  The faith of The Rock’s fans will be rewarded when I regain the WWE Championship, proving that it is possible to come home again.

The Undercard

For the first time in many years, all the undercard matches were traditional Survivor Series elimination bouts.

In the opening contest, the team of Randy Orton, World Tag Champs Ted Dibiase & Cody Rhodes, and Manu squared off against CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, and Cryme Tyme.   Team Orton dominated early, eliminating Cryme Tyme.   Punk and Kofi mounted a comeback, pinning Rhodes, but Kofi was done in by an RKO, leaving Punk outnumbered 3-to-1.   Punk held his own for several minutes, eliminating Manu, but in the end the numbers game caught up with him.   A superplex from Orton finished him off, leaving Orton and Dibase as the winners after 19 minutes.

Next up was Mark Henry, Chavo Guerrero, John Morrison and The Miz vs. ECW Champion Matt Hardy, Finlay, and WWE Tag Champions Carlito & Primo Colon.   The match was a back-and-forth contest, with the teams staying even throughout.   In the end it came down to Hardy vs. Morrison and Henry.   A Matt Hardy legdrop off the top rope dispatched Henry, and a leaping Twist of Fate from the middle rope was enough to get the pin on Morrison.   Matt Hardy was the sole survivor after 17 minutes.

In match 3, The Undertaker led Jeff Hardy, MVP and R-Truth against The Big Show, Vladimir Kozlov, U.S. Champion Shelton Benjamin, and Brian Kendrick.   The Undertaker suffered a 4-to-1 deficit after the dominant Show and Kozlov gradually eliminated each of his partners.   Taker rallied late in the match, pinning Kendrick and Shelton, and when Show was disqualified for choking, the match was down to just two men.   After a brutal 9-minute one-on-one exchange, Taker put Kozlov away with the gogoplata choke hold at the 31-minute mark.

The final elimination match pitted Chris Jericho, Kane, JBL, and I-C Champ Santino Marella against John Cena, Rey Mysterio, Evan Bourne, and Charlie Haas (who did a hilarious send-up as Santino Charella).   Despite giving away much in overall team size, Cena’s quartet was able to dominate the first half of the match, with Mysterio and Bourne’s aerial assault dazzling and eliminating JBL and Marella.   Kane quickly evened the sides however by chokeslamming Haas and Bourne for consecutive pins.   Jericho pinned Mysterio after a spectacular top-rope Codebreaker, and Cena forced Kane to tap out with the STFU.   Jericho and Cena battled for several minutes, after which Jericho countered an FU attempt with a rollup (complete with two feet on the ropes and a handful of trunks) for a quick pin.   Total match time: 25 minutes.

One-on-One With The Great One

The sold-out building fell silent in anticipation of the main event.   Neither man was a stranger to winning the big belt at Survivor Series, albeit in highly controversial fashion in each instance.   One of the provisions of the match contract was that Vince McMahon would not be allowed within 50 feet of ringside, “just in case,” as Rocky put it, “you decide to ring the bell early again.”

The Rock’s music blared over the PA, and the crowd erupted.   Rocky looked as chiseled as ever, having trimmed an additional ten pounds off his athletic frame to better compete with Michaels’ speed.   Sporting a freshly-shaved head, he climbed the ropes, closed his eyes, and basked in the noisy adulation of the sea of fans.

Shawn Michaels’ music hit and the audience went ballistic again.   Shawn carried the WWE Title over his shoulder and seemed to tune out the fans completely.   His eyes remained locked on his powerful opponent.

As referee Mike Chioda gave instructions, Michaels cracked, “This ain’t your scene anymore, Rock.”   Rocky responded, “This ain’t Montreal, Shawn.”   Michaels gritted his teeth, his eyes ablaze.

At the bell the two combatants hammered each other with right hands.   Within seconds they became a whirlwind of flailing fists.   A Michaels right cross opened a cut below Rocky’s eye.   A Rock uppercut cracked two of Shawn’s teeth.  

His punches the more powerful of the two, the Rock gained the early advantage.   Michaels staggered to the edge and Rocky toppled him over the ropes with a clothesline.   Michaels tumbled to the floor but got up immediately, jogging around the ring to shake off the haze.

Shawn slid into the ring and rolled to his feet.   He was met with a forearm shot to the chest that knocked the breath out of him.   Michaels dropped to the mat and Rocky pulled him up by the hair.   Shawn stomped the Rock’s foot.   Rocky hunched over and Shawn snap-suplexed him to the canvas.   Sadistically, WWE Champion dug an elbow into the Rock’s forehead, spewing a litany of insults.   He went for a cover but got barely a one-count.

Shawn pulled Rocky up and hurled him back down with a savage body slam.   The Rock avoided the subsequent elbow drop and, from a kneeling position, pounded away at Shawn’s ribcage.   Reeling from the pummeling, Shawn kicked both legs up and yanked the Rock toward the ropes with a head scissor.   The Rock hurtled out of the ring and crashed head-first into the ringside wall.

Shawn popped up to his feet, bounced off the ropes, and soared to the outside with a plancha.   Both men lay in a heap on the floor.

At the count of eight they made it back to the ring.   They resumed their punching war, Michaels seemingly too cocky to back off from a toe-to-toe fight.   Rocky reached out and with explosive strength, beeled Shawn over his head to the other side of the ring.   Fans at ringside gasped at the suddenness of the move.   Shawn clutched at his lower back as the Rock stalked him.   Rocky bombarded Shawn with several stomps to the back, each of them leaving foot-sized welts.

Rocky pulled Michaels back to his feet, and the contest raged on.   Michaels countered a hip toss with a backflip/Fame-Asser combo.   The Rock blocked a Michaels moonsault and crushed him with a powerslam.   With each passing minute the holds and reversals became more spectacular.

Twenty-four minutes in, after clubbing Rocky with a flying forearm shot, Shawn ascended the ropes and dove off.   Acting completely on instinct, the Rock sprung to his feet, extended his right arm, and in one motion, planted Shawn into the canvas with a Rock Bottom.   Rocky bounced away from Michaels upon impact nearly unconscious, sparing the Champion a sure pinfall loss.

The crowd noise built to near-deafening levels as each man tried to regain his feet.   Slowly they both crawled upright.   The Rock took a tentative step forward and Shawn drilled him with a superkick, and both men were down again.

“We’ve seen both men execute their finishing moves and somehow they’re both still in this thing,” piped an exhausted Jim Ross.   “What is it gonna take to win this incredible match?”

Blood trickling down both their faces, Michaels and Rocky climbed to their knees and took turns peppering each other with right hands.   Michaels blocked a Rock punch and popped to his feet, lunging with a dropkick aimed at Rocky’s chest.   The Rock caught Shawn’s ankles, dropping him to the mat, and stood up to apply the Sharpshooter.

Torrents of pain rolled down Shawn’s spine as the Rock leaned back.   Shawn howled in anguish, crimson streaming down his contorted face.   After a full minute in the hold, Shawn yanked on the Rock’s ankle, tripping him forward.   Shawn pushed off the canvas and clamped on a Sharpshooter of his own.   Now it was the Rock groaning in torment as the submission hold twisted his vertebrae.   Rocky summoned his freakish strength and began pulling them both to the ropes.  In mere seconds he was able to grasp the bottom strand, breaking the hold.

Shawn limped over to the Rock and pulled him up.   Now both men leaned lethargically on the top rope, desperately swinging at each other, landing punches only about half the time.   The few shots that did connect were meek at best.   Mike Chioda thrust himself between them, trying in vain to get them off the ropes.   Michaels reached over Chioda’s head and gouged Rocky’s eye.   The Rock backed away, grabbing at his injured eye, and Michaels dropped to the mat, rolling him up in a cradle.   Rocky kicked out at two, sending Shawn into the ropes.   Shawn bounced off, leaped over Rocky, and rushed him with a superkick.   Rocky caught Shawn’s foot, swung it away, and flattened him with a second Rock Bottom, knocking them both into a stupor.   Rocky landed squarely on top of Shawn long enough for Chioda to count to three at 29:42.

Aftermath

As expected, the event drew huge numbers and was received well both critically and by fans.   Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer rated the match a full five stars, making it the first WWE match in eleven years to earn his elusive perfect rating.

As WWE Champion, The Rock found himself fighting off several embittered challengers, Triple H, Edge, and Batista chief among them.   He did however find an unexpected supporter in Shawn Michaels, having earned Shawn’s respect in their acclaimed matchup.   The Rock’s 8^th title reign proved to be a success, lasting a full 19 months before he was unseated by another returning star, Brock Lesnar.