Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born on July 22, 1965) is an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Shawn Michaels. He is currently performing on the RAW brand of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where he is one-half of D-Generation X; the other member being Triple H. He is also one-half of the World Tag Team Champions with John Cena.
Michaels is one of the longest tenured performers in World Wrestling Entertainment; having worked in various positions for the company since 1987.
Born to a military family on an air base in Ray, Michaels spent a brief part of his early years in Reading, Berkshire, England, but mainly grew up in San Antonio, Texas. In San Antonio, he attended Randolph High School on Randolph Air Force Base.
Trained by Mexican professional wrestler Jose Lothario, Michaels debuted in 1984, working with Mid-South Wrestling and later Texas All-Star Wrestling promotion, where he and Paul Diamond were awarded the TAW Tag Team Championship by Chavo Guerrero, Sr..
Michaels also wrestled for Central States Championship Wrestling. There, he and tag team partner Marty Jannetty defeated The Batten Twins for the Central States Tag Team Championship, later losing it back to the Battens. Michaels also made several appearances in the Dallas, Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling throughout 1985.
Michaels made his national-level debut in 1986 in the American Wrestling Association (AWA), once again teaming with Jannetty. The pair were billed as "The Midnight Rockers" and won the AWA World Tag Team Championship twice. They also appeared in the Mid-South on loan at this point. In a raid of AWA talent in 1987, The Rockers were signed by a competing promotion: the World Wrestling Federation. However, they were fired two weeks later for "partying too hard" (a misunderstanding, according to Michaels' autobiography). They returned to the AWA, but were re-signed by the WWF a year later.
They redebuted on the June 18, 1988 episode of Superstars. Because of WWF chairman Vince McMahon's desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive monikers, they were repackaged as just "The Rockers".
The energetic team proved popular with both children and women, as well as 'smart' fans who appreciated technical wrestling. The team were mid-card stalwarts of TV and pay-per-view shows for the next two years, but never seemed to get a fair chance at the WWF's Tag Team Championships.
Their chance belatedly came in October 1990: The Rockers were scheduled to win the WWF Tag Team Championship from The Hart Foundation. Jim Neidhart, half of the championship team, was in the process of negotiating his release from the company.
The match was taped with The Rockers fairly winning the belts, but soon after, Neidhart came to a stopgap agreement with management and was rehired. The belts were returned to the Harts, while the change was never broadcast or even acknowledged on TV. When news spread, WWF explained that the original result was void due to a collapsed turnbuckle in the ring during the bout. A buckle had indeed broken, but not to a noticeable or dangerous extent during the match.
Michaels is one of the longest tenured performers in World Wrestling Entertainment; having worked in various positions for the company since 1987.
Born to a military family on an air base in Ray, Michaels spent a brief part of his early years in Reading, Berkshire, England, but mainly grew up in San Antonio, Texas. In San Antonio, he attended Randolph High School on Randolph Air Force Base.
Trained by Mexican professional wrestler Jose Lothario, Michaels debuted in 1984, working with Mid-South Wrestling and later Texas All-Star Wrestling promotion, where he and Paul Diamond were awarded the TAW Tag Team Championship by Chavo Guerrero, Sr..
Michaels also wrestled for Central States Championship Wrestling. There, he and tag team partner Marty Jannetty defeated The Batten Twins for the Central States Tag Team Championship, later losing it back to the Battens. Michaels also made several appearances in the Dallas, Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling throughout 1985.
Michaels made his national-level debut in 1986 in the American Wrestling Association (AWA), once again teaming with Jannetty. The pair were billed as "The Midnight Rockers" and won the AWA World Tag Team Championship twice. They also appeared in the Mid-South on loan at this point. In a raid of AWA talent in 1987, The Rockers were signed by a competing promotion: the World Wrestling Federation. However, they were fired two weeks later for "partying too hard" (a misunderstanding, according to Michaels' autobiography). They returned to the AWA, but were re-signed by the WWF a year later.
They redebuted on the June 18, 1988 episode of Superstars. Because of WWF chairman Vince McMahon's desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive monikers, they were repackaged as just "The Rockers".
The energetic team proved popular with both children and women, as well as 'smart' fans who appreciated technical wrestling. The team were mid-card stalwarts of TV and pay-per-view shows for the next two years, but never seemed to get a fair chance at the WWF's Tag Team Championships.
Their chance belatedly came in October 1990: The Rockers were scheduled to win the WWF Tag Team Championship from The Hart Foundation. Jim Neidhart, half of the championship team, was in the process of negotiating his release from the company.
The match was taped with The Rockers fairly winning the belts, but soon after, Neidhart came to a stopgap agreement with management and was rehired. The belts were returned to the Harts, while the change was never broadcast or even acknowledged on TV. When news spread, WWF explained that the original result was void due to a collapsed turnbuckle in the ring during the bout. A buckle had indeed broken, but not to a noticeable or dangerous extent during the match.
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