WrestleMania 28: Why Shawn Michaels Was the Perfect Addition to Hell in a Cell

It is no secret that I thought the Hell in a Cell match between The Undertaker and Triple H would be one of the best WrestleMania matches of all time—until Shawn Michaels involved himself in proceedings.

I hated this decision; I even wrote an article about it. But I am here to say I was wrong, and give you the reasons why.

First of all, Shawn Michaels didn’t interfere in the match the way that everyone thought he would. He didn’t cost anyone a victory, and therefore the match remained pure.

He called it right down the middle, showing no favouritism to either competitor, which made the match a joy to watch in my opinion. (In fact, rewatching it now will be a lot better because I won’t be worrying about what Shawn Michaels might do!)

The second reason he was a great addition to the match was because when he did get involved, it was in the right way.

He was shown to be in two minds about stopping the match; he ended up feeling the wrath of both Triple H and The Undertaker, proving that it was too dangerous for a real referee to be out there. Michaels ended up only firing out one Sweet Chin Music, which he was shown to instantly regret.

The fans loved seeing Shawn and seeing him perform. His finisher was the icing on the cake, which leads me to my final point: Shawn Michaels gave the match the emotional impact it needed.

One reason people believe this match stole the show at WrestleMania was not because of any amounts of violence, not because of the ring work and not because of the result—but emotion.

Shawn Michaels being shown to take pity on The Undertaker as Triple H decimated him was the first example of this we saw.

He was close to ringing the bell but The Undertaker demanded he didn’t.

When speaking to The Undertaker, the fans in attendance and the fans at home could feel not only the mutual respect the two men have for each other, but also the history between them.

It was the same when Triple H was shouting at Shawn to finish it, or he would. Shawn looked panic-stricken, as if he knew what The Game was capable of doing to The Undertaker.

Stopping The Game from sledge-hammering into The Undertaker’s skull was a stroke of genius.

By doing this, Shawn Michaels simultaneously helped the streak survive, and showed the audience that Triple H is/was capable of beating The Undertaker at WrestleMania in the right environment.

Both men got the best out of this situation thanks to Shawn Michaels.

There is no way this could have happened with a normal referee.

The Undertaker did eventually end up winning the match, and it is at this point that there were tears in the eyes of many fans as The Game was helped up by The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels.

They all went into the back together—a trio that have given us four five-star matches in four years.

This was closure for the superstars, closure for the fans and probably closure for the streak.

All I can say is, so much for WrestleMania XXIX featuring Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H. I’d like to believe that is the last time we’ll see any of those three superstars compete.

It truly was the end of an era, and it would not have been the same if Shawn Michaels had not been the special guest referee.