Who's Last? Guessing Shawn Michaels' Final WWE Opponent
In less than a week, we went from being excited just to see Shawn Michaels face on WWE TV, to a [...]
Who it Won't Be: Seth Rollins
Other than Dolph Ziggler's overt allusions to Shawn Michaels, Seth Rollins is the closest thing to HBK in today's WWE. This would seemingly make him the perfect dancing partner in Michaels' last hurrah.
But's he not.
At WrestleMania 32, at 31-year old Roman Reigns went toe-to-toe with at 51-year-old Undertaker. And if we can be honest, the juxtaposition was not flattering. Instead, we saw exactly how mortal The Deaman can be.
Despite a similar difference in age, (32 and 53) I don't think the gap in physicality between Micheals and Rollins would be near as vast, but I still don't want to see it. Micheals doesn't either as he recently expressed that if he does come back, he'd have to be paired with an older wrestler because otherwise, it may be hard for us to suspend our disbelief.
prevnextWho it Won't Be: Johnny Gargano
Unless Michaels demands it, there is simply no way Vince McMahon will give this opportunity to an NXT star. Even though the 32-year-old Gargano would be up for the challenge, he's still unknown to most of the WWE Universe. And we're being adults, here, HBK's comeback is about making money.
Even more, Michaels has expressed doubts about wrestling a budding star because pinning a 53-year old Showstopper doesn't exactly create a ton of momentum.
When choosing Michaels' final opponent, WWE will err on the side of spectacle. And Johnny Wrestling won't be able to manifest that by 2019
prevnextWho it Might Be: Triple H
Shawn Michaels got to retire Ric Flair. Undertaker then extinguished Michaels' career. Could Michaels come back end Triple H's wrestling days?
Pardon the fantasy booking, but there is no shortage of storylines available for a WrestleMania 35 match between the co-founders of Degeneration X.
At 49 years old, there's no great reason for Triple H to still be wrestling, so ending his career in 2019 could work. However, if he is destined to take over for Vince McMahon, that means he'll have to take bumps at WrestleMania for the next 30 years, and thus, never actually retire.
Don't count on this one, folks.
prevnextWho it Might Be: Shane McMahon
We have no idea where Shane McMahon is right now.
Without looking, we'll guess he hasn't shown his face since this spring. However, we'll bet his ears perked up once the whispers of HBK coming back started to leak.
However if WWE wants to do Shane-O-Mac vs. Michaels, they're going to need to start building ASAP. And Shane may be happier taking a break from WWE.
Don't bet on this happening.
prevnextWho it Might Be: Kurt Angle
Anyone familiar with their WrestleMania 21 classic knows that Michaels and Angle are capable of putting on an incredible performance. As mentioned, Michaels says he prefers to work with someone older, and Angle is already rumored to be prepping for an in-ring return.
Could we see the WrestleMania sequel? Maybe, but WWE has better options.
prevnextWho it Might Be: AJ Styles
A match between Styles and Michaels would be th greatest combination of in-ring talent in WWE history. Styles would have to lose his WWE Championship because no one would believe HBK would hold a title nor do I think HBK wants to be a champion at age 53.
So this one would have to be for pride. Who's the greatest wrestler of all time?
WWE could do a lot with that story. But there's one more I think they like better.
prevnextWho it Will Be: The Undertaker
Of all the names on the list, only the Undertaker had a 15-minute segment with Shawn Michaels this week. Only the Undertaker will have HBK as his special guest referee at The Super Show-Down. Only The Undertaker is rumored to fight Michaels in a tag match at the November Saudi Arabian show. And only The Undertaker is believed to be Michaels opponent at WrestleMania 35.
Where there's smoke, there's The Deadman.
It's impossible to say if WWE wants to have HBK vs. Taker at next year's 'Mania, but most reports have them meeting in some fashion later this year.
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