With all that he has done for the industry, it's hard to believe that he has held the world title one time in the last 7 years. Kevin, do you think he will get at least one more title run before he hangs 'em up?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Yes.

I spit out my coffee on this one ! I'm speechless !!!!!!! LOL !

DX is something that would have looked real good on his resume for wrestler of the decade if the decade was the 90's.

Not even close. This lying piece of garbage would be lucky to be #14 let alont #4. Honor and integrity go a long way in this business and he has none. In fact, I haven't wrestled since 2000, but I deserve to be higher on the list than this backstabber. My Hall of Fame appearance alone trumps everything he's done in the last 10 years. I am the best there is, the best there was, and soon to be the best RAW host there ever will be. If you, Kevin Eck, didn't hate me so much, you would realize this. That's the fact, jack.

Not to mention he has the greatest and most entertaining oversell of all time against Hulk Hogan at 2005 Summerslam.

Above Kurt Angle and Edge, what a joke...

Really guys!! You seriously wouldnt consider Shawn Michaels one of the top guys of this decade. The man who retired Ric Flair, had the only match worth metioning at Wrestlemania last year,his feud with Kurt Angle,feud with Randy Orton,feud with Chris Jericho,all on the list by the way,his feud with Mcmahon,not to mention his ability to elevate mid card wrestlers to main event status. Shawn Michaels is great because he dosent have multiple title reigns. Every big time main event match that he wrestles in is great because you know that whoever is in that ring with him is going to look good. He brings out the best in every wrestler he wrestles. He even had a MOTY potential with Shelton Benjamin of all people. So for everyone saying that Kevin and everyone else is a HBK mark, take a second to ponder this...does yor choice for this spot give 110% in every match that hes in. Has your choice put over as many main event and mid card wrestlers as he have. Sometimes its not about how many championships you have or how long your title run is. Sometimes its simply about making those around you look better and nobody in the history of wrestling has done that better than Shawn Michaels.

i am stunned that you have him rated this low but i think its way to high when you look at edge & Orton he has not been as many PPV main events as them

He's the best overall performer that I've ever seen. Even well into his 40's, he's arguably the best.

As much as I'd love to see Michaels take the #1 spot, this a good place for him to be for the decade. Based on your criteria, Michaels could be considered the top wrestler of the decade for memorable matches and programs, as well as star power and impact on the business, but falls short in titles held and activity.

With only one title win since his return in 2002, Michaels clearly does not compete with the other top wrestlers of the decade. His placement on the card tends to be of the main event caliber, but that is generally because of who Michaels Is (thus lending more credence to his star power and impact on the business). In terms of activity, he missed the first two years of the decade and has taken time off frequently, both for injury and to prolong his career - quite intelligent on his part and beneficial for the fans.

I honestly cannot think of another wrestler who has enjoyed more memorable programs and matches in the last decade than Shawn Michaels. HBK has delivered time and time again, raising each program he is in to his standards and untouchable caliber. He can get a decent match out of anyone (see: John Bradshaw Layfield, and example for both the program and the match assertions above) and delivers match of the year contenders, usually multiple contenders, every year since his return.

In point of fact, Michaels has won the PWI Match of the Year award 5 consecutive times since 2004, for a total of 9 wins, and is expected to take home the award again for his WM 25 match with The Underttaker.

While it could be, and has been, argued that Michaels does not have the drawing power of other top stars, I think that may not be the most precise assessment.

HBK is known, loved, and - on rare occasion, loved to be hated - by wrestling fans in a meaningful way. Listen to the crowd reaction when his music hits. Listen to the crowd when he is in the ring. It has long been his stated goal to make the crowd yell the loudest for the longest, and he succeeds every time he steps foot into a wrestling ring or picks up a mic. That's undeniably star power.

As for his impact on the business, it's more than just the size of the crowd in arenas (though he's clearly been able to put butts in the seats; see WM 23 and 25, not to mention several PPVs throughout the years, house shows and MNR). An impact on the business also includes legacy, merchandise sales (where he does well individually and with DX), and the elevation of new stars.

Michaels excels in all areas of having an impact on the business.

And all of that is basically to say "Excellent choice for placement, Kev. Sorry I haven't commented in awhile."

RESPONSE FROM KE: I've missed you. You have always been the voice of reason.

Is this the pill popper of the decade award or wrestler award? The same guy who had the ratings go down each time he has held the belt in his career? Or the guy who faked injuries to avoid putting over the Undertaker,Austin and the Rock? What a fraud.

RESPONSE FROM KE: What decade are you talking about? I'm talking about what he did this decade. When did he ever refuse to put over Undertaker, Austin or Rock? Michaels was never asked to put over Rock anyway (they've never wrestled), and at that point in Rock's career, he never would have been booked to beat Michaels. I get it that you don't like Michaels, but let's not rewrite history.

I think HBK belongs here. However, I'm mainly commenting in order to share part of Sean Carless' recap of a match between Shawn and Hunter at the '05 Royal Rumble at thewrestlingfan.com:

Eventually, HHH tries for a pedigree but HBK back drops out and HHH lands on the chair. HBK goes into his full offensive flurry from there; the forearm, the kip-up, and the flying elbow. He then begins to menacingly stomp his foot, as I start to wonder why the **** no one ever seems to know what that pounding means. "Wait. What is that thumping sound? There it is again! and again! and again! and again! What could this be? Well, let's turn around at find out! Wait it's a su...BLARRRRRRRRGGGGH".

Ah well, I've always liked SCM regardless. :D

I'd pay money to see RVD or Y2J. They took what HBK did, and took it to the next level. GIVE ME MORE RVD and Y2J!!!

I do admit that the HBK/ Taker wrestlemania match was one of HBK's best matches ever. No doubt. It was phenominal.

But, I was finished with HBK in the 90's after Stone Cold stunned him. Don't get me wrong, I love his work rate, but once you've seen RVD or Y2J, it's hard for HBK to measure up.

I'm not talking about the politics of who had a belt more; I could care less RVD was never the Champ, he's the kind of wrestler that would put my "ass in a seat."

I hope I made my point loud and clear: HBK needs to retire, so I can see more RVD and Y2J.

Where the hell is RVD hiding anyway? I'd brather see him come back then Brett Hart. Can Brett wrestle? I heard he had a stroke a little while back.

RESPONSE FROM KE: RVD was the champ briefly in 2006.

"Feud with Jericho in 2008 was one of the most memorable of the past 10 years"

I honestly don't even remember them feuding last year.

RESPONSE FROM KE: I hope you're joking.

Total disagree with you on this one but with you being such a Michaels mark, no surprise. No4 with one world title all decade?????. Ahead of Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho????

RESPONSE FROM KE: Titles are important, but it's not all about titles. Remember the first two things I listed as criteria:
Star power and impact on business
Memorable matches and programs

Being a Michaels mark has nothing to do with it. If it did, he'd be No. 1. I'm also a Jericho-holic, so he would be No. 2. I tried to be totally objective. But I knew going in that no matter where I placed Michaels on the list, someone would say he was too high.Frustrating, but predictable.

Shawn Michaels at #4 on Kevin Ecks Wrestlers of the Decade list? A certain sign that this famous couple is now in Splitsville, oh the Horror :-)

#1 wrestler of the decade? Santino Marella!

Crystal Ball gazing here... but Bret surely will screw DX out of the tag titles next week keeping Jericho on RAW. As a way of making it up with Michaels, he'll give him Undertaker at WM26 ending their long running feud. Jerishow will keep the belts till WM26 where Edge and Christian take them. If Edge is losing his battle to be fit then the Harts will take them. Does that make sense to anyone else?

Really?

I am huge HBK fan, but don't see how he is above Edge and Angle in "this decade".

Can you also make a list of top 10 [workers + talkers] of the decade? At least we don't have to see Cena, HHH and Taker, the obvious top 3 of the current list, in there.

That shows the politics of this business.

Agreed. DX is a huge joke.

I know its probably too late now but i think Jbl and Big show deserved top 10 status

"RESPONSE FROM KE: I hope you're joking."

Honestly I had to look it up. I don't know why I forgot it since I liked with the whole wife punching and tv smashing, but it just never seemed that interesting to me. Certainly not one of the most memorable "feuds of the decade".

RESPONSE FROM KE: OK. We just disagree.

didnt expect anything less from you eck but your showing some extreme bias on this one. there is no way he should be above angle, edge, orton or jericho.

RESPONSE FROM KE: I think an argument could be made for Angle over Michaels, but not the other three. Did you even bother to read anything between "SHAWN MICHAELS" and "I will count down the top 10 wrestlers of the decade every day through Friday?" That's a pretty good resume.

Look, these lists are all about sparking debates. It's very subjective and everyone has their own opinions. But if your best argument is "you're biased" or "you're a mark" then your argument is weak. I'm also a big Jericho fan, so why wouldn't I put him higher? For that matter, why wouldn't I put Michaels and Jericho at Nos. 1 and 2?

Not rewriting history at all. He and HHH tried to bury the Rock from the get go when they were on the booking committee. The Undertaker had to physically threaten him to put over Austin at Wrestlemania. The lost revenue every time he's champion in terms of house shows and PPV buys is well documented. What has he done this decade? One title, missed time due to injury and drugs, and stupid DX skits.

RESPONSE FROM KE: It is true that HBK and HHH tried to hold Rock down behind the scenes, but Michaels never refused to job to him. The Undertaker story also is true -- but that was in 1998. Doesn't matter for this list. In this decade, Michaels has put over Cena, Orton, Angle, Jericho, Benoit, Kennedy, Jeff Hardy, Edge, Batista, Hogan, etc. Isn't that more relevant?

When Michaels first won the title, WWE was already in a down cycle. 1993-1995 were very lean years. The top two babyfaces during that period were Bret Hart and Kevin Nash.

What has Michaels accomplished this decade? Come on, you're better than that. Hate the guy if you like, but don't try to tell me that he wasn't one of the best performers and biggest stars of the decade.

Oh, and if missing time due to drugs and injury and participating in stupid skits makes you ineligibe for the list, I guess we have to say goodbye to Kurt Angle.

Disagree too. I am a Michaels mark as well, but I think I am being realistic. I'm not saying he shouldn't be in there at all. I'm saying he should be lower, 8th or 9th at best.

The two criteria you base that 4th place upon are:
Star power and impact on business
Memorable matches and programs.

He arguably had an approximately similar amount of those than Orton, Angle, Jericho and Edge.

Well the truth is he had less (Angle for instance = more starpower without a doubt, bigger impact being an olympic medalist and helping a company climb the ladder on his name and his name only, way more exposed to the media, he also had more great matches and programs in my opinion).

And Michaels had A LOT less titles this decade than all these guys. It is a no brainer.

Well, I'm really trying hard to convince myself that you are being objective Mr Eck, but the truth is I do not think you are.

RESPONSE FROM KE: No one had more memorable matches than Michaels (in my opinion). Star power also is subjective, but he has worked at a main-event level longer than Edge, Orton and Jericho. Angle has given some credibility to TNA, but that makes him a big fish in a small pond. To the mainstream, TNA doesn't even exist.

I only had Michaels one notch above Angle anyway.

Is it so hard to grasp that my opinions are actually based on observation and research, not to mention 36 years of watching wrestling, writing about it for 15 years and working in the industry for a short period? No, it can't be that. It has to be that I'm not objective.

When Michaels first won the title, WWE was already in a down cycle. 1993-1995 were very lean years. The top two babyfaces during that period were Bret Hart and Kevin Nash.

__________________________________

After Shawn's babyface turn, he was as big a babyface as Bret. Do you remember Two Dudes with Attitudes? They had the spotlight for most of 1995 while Bret had midcard feuds with Bob Backlund, Jerry Lawler, Isaac Yankem, Hakushi, and Jean-Pierre Lafitte. Even after Bret won the WWE Title from Nash, he was not the focal point of the booking. Shawn was as responsible for those lean years as Bret was. Yes, that has nothing to do with your list, but let's be fair.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Michaels turned babyface after WrestleMania 1995. From that point, he was among the top faces, but Nash was the champ until that Nov., when he dropped the belt to Hart. In '93 and '94, Michaels was a heel. Hart, Lex Luger, Nash, Scott Hall and Undertaker were the top faces.

Kevin,

You could certainly flip-flop a lot of the guys on this list, but in general you are making good arguments for their placement.

HBK has had some of the best matches of the decade, despite all of his injuries. The fact that he can make a match so special without a title involved is why he should be high on this list.

He can be a great babyface, and he can toe the line as a heel like he did with Flair and Taker. The feud with Jericho was incredible, and you rarely get 2 guys of that caliber going head-to-head in the ring and on the mic.

Anyways, love the blog, keep it up.

Kevin, wouldn't it be cool if all the people who are so quick to jump on you for your rankings took the time to list their own Top 10 along with their justifications?

That might be asking for a little too much thought, though. Too easy to go to the "You're biased, Kevin!" retort.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Yes, that would be very cool.

Agree on this one. Shawn Michaels is a fantastic performer and while a lot of people are calling you out Kevin for the selection, its' because he puts people over all the time. That's a strength that Dwayne Johnson had also.

Shawn's battle with the Undertaker, Flair and all of those with HHH are epic.

Its really tough to decide whos better between Angle and Michaels.Both of them are excellent performers and deliver killer matches whenever they get in the ring.But I still think Angle deserves to be above Michaels(Though I am a huge HBK fan).

Eck, I think HBK briefly addressed the notion that the Undertaker physically threatened him to ensure that Austin would be put over at 'Mania in his book, and he says it was all "urban legend" (p. 286 of Heartbreak and Triumph)

RESPONSE FROM KE: I read the book. However, I think Michaels wasn't being completely honest. Listen to what The Undertaker had to say about that night.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG-INHPE9Dc

The part about Shawn is about a minute into it.

I was a big Shawn Michaels fan until this latest DX run, which really has sell-out written all over it. The little kids with the glow sticks seem to enjoy it, but it is a huge let-down to me, especially considering how entertaining DX used to be. If I can force myself to get past the lame current version of Shawn Michaels, I can agree that he definitely belongs in your top ten. However, there is no way I'd put him in my top five.
That said, I am having fun with your countdown.

We call this the Fox News arguementative style. Dislike something someone says? Call them biased, an idiot, or any other ad hom you can spit out. Don't fact check yourself, don't research anything, just scream and whine and drown out the person who's schooling you with reality.

Its his freakin list, he can put HBK where he wants to(and its a fair placement imo).

I'm sick of all this "mark" crap. Anyone who can honestly say that Shawn Michaels wasn't a major star of this decade apparently missed wrestling during this decade. This wrestler is notorious for stellar matches, is the "go-to guy" for a stellar match, has been one-half of the participants in MOTY five straight years (about to be six) of this decade, has made guys who suck look great (i.e. Cena), has made guys who are awesome even more awesome (i.e. Shelton Benjamin), can wrestle a mop and still put on a fantastic show (i.e. Vince), has had outstanding feuds (HHH, Y2J, Angle), has delivered some of, if not the greatest (promo in Montreal in 05) promos of this decade, has retired and given Ric Flair one of his finest matches, has reformed one of the most famous factions in the history of the business this decade, and had perhaps the greatest WM matches ever (vs. Angle and Taker) in this decade. Let's remember, this is also a guy who did ALL of this with a repaired back and who was never supposed to wrestle again. Of course, Shawn Michaels more than deserves to be on this list. The only thing keeping him from being higher is probably his lack of titles. To remotely suggest that a person who has done all of this stuff-keeping in mind, that NO politics are involved in any of the aforementioned accolades - is totally and utterly nonsensical. None of the people who are complaining about Shawn having this placement have adequately explained why he shouldn't have this placement. Enough, already with this "mark" crap. It's a weak and ridiculous argument when you're speaking of someone with these accolades.

With all that he has done for the industry, it's hard to believe that he has held the world title one time in the last 7 years. Kevin, do you think he will get at least one more title run before he hangs 'em up?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Yes.

Do you really believe that? I think he doesn´t want the title anymore. It´s pretty clear that his main focus lies on his family and working full time, every house show, all the appearances as champ? Don´t get me wrong I hope it will happen, he definitely would deserve it.
Btw, it hurts that Cena will be above HBK. (Just another prove that wrestling isn´t fair.)

I was expecting a lot of backlash for wherever you put HBK, even though I think this is very fair placement. I don't understand how people can deny him being one of the greatest in ring performers not only of this decade, but in history. Some of his matches on Raw were memorable (i.e. vs Shelton Benjamin in '04 I believe, one of my all time favorite matches), much less his work at Wrestlemania.

Speaking of Wrestlemania, can you imagine this...
The Rock vs Shawn Michaels for the first time ever.

why is it so hard for people to understand that titles are not everything. hbk may not be the champion and wrestling at the main-event but his matches are always better than any main-event or title matches at that ppv.

Taker may be the most respected man backstage but it is HBK who has inspired so many current wrestlers and he is their idol, if you dont believe me then go and watch any wrestler's interview on youtube or anywhere. That alone speaks for his impact on the business.

Finally, yes HBK was not the top draw when he was champ back in 96 but there were certainly other reasons for that. What one need is a little bit of iq to figure that out. I would say just put austin in michaels place and keep the storylines and other things same and then imagine the wwe's ratings. The owner of the company himself has said many times than nobody would have done it better than michaels at that time.

Its a nice list Kevin and I agree HBK's spot. Don't get bother if people call you an hbk mark because i m also in your company :)

You caved in....shame on you.
HBK should be no.1.

You can only put Angle above HBK if he had an impact after there feud. Sure Angle has had more title runs than HBK this decade but i cant think of any TNA match hes had where i said "Thats a MOTY qualifier."

It's funny because people started to cry about Shawn's spot long before we even knew where he was going to be placed.

Can't argue with the justification, phenomenal performer and always comes up with the goods on the big stage. I think Edge, Orton, Angle and Batista are "bigger" stars and made more of an impact though. I would have had Y2J and HBK 9th and 10th even though Jericho is my favourite.

PS. I don't think all the Jeff Jarrett marks are going to be happy about this list...oh wait, there aren't any!

The lack of titles is actually an argument in HBK's favor. He's the only performer in the business who DOESN'T need titles to remain on top. He can put over other guys, work his way through storylines that make him look bad, and accept second-banana status in DX -- and still, somehow, continue to be a crowd favorite.

In spite of it all, HBK was one of the top performers in the business throughout the decade. I'd say #4 is about right.

And I'd point out that ranking someone #5 or #8 performer of the decade should not be mistaken for disrespect. This is a tough list to make. Just getting in the top ten is a sign of consistent excellence.

Actually i also agree that Michaels deserves this spot, or a little higher.
He had some of the best Matches and not only at wrestlemania, i am talking about the ladder match with jericho. that long match with cena.
And please stop bringing up Michaels past ppl as a reason to why he shouldnt get this spot,especially since much of it is before this decade.
Michaels has changed alot since then.
Not to mention he is one of the best actors as well, which makes his matches more believable. he always knows what emotion to put on to get really into a match
This List has been great so far Eck.
My only problem is even though i am a huge a Rock fan, i think big show deserved a spot on the top 10 and 8 or 9 would have been the best spots.
Hey about a not quite section in the list for guys like jbl big show and i dont know maybe carlito

FIRST OF ALL SHAWN MICHAELS IS SHOWSTOPPER THE MAIN EVENT THE ICON LEGEND AND OF COURSE MR WRESTLE MANIA ALL TO ALL YOU IDIOTS SAYS HE DIDN'T DESERVE THIS NUMBER WTF WTF WTF ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT DID YOU ALL FORGOT HIS MATCHES WITH UNDERTAKER AT WRESTLE MANIA I KNOW THAT UNDERTAKER IS GOING TO WIN BUT WHEN HBK GIVE IS SECOND SWEET CHIN MUSIC I THINK THAT THIS IS IT TAKER GONE HIS EVERY MATCHES WITH JOHN CENA KURT ANGLE BRET HART Y2J ARE JAW DROOPING MATCHES HATERS ALL RIGHT WHEN START WATCHING WRESTLING SINCE LATE 2001 WHEN I SAW HIM FIRST TIME I DON'T LIKE A BIT . WHEN I SAW HIS PROMO AND MATCH WITH TRIPLE H I SAW 34 TIME YES 34 TIME . HE SHOULD DESERVE MORE THAN NO 4 BECAUSE HE CAN DO SOMETHING YOUR JOHN CENA RANDY ORTAN AND ALL YOUNG WRESTLER COULD DO THAT TELL ME FROM 2004 TO 2009 HE HAVE MATCH OF THE YEARS GO TO WIKIPEDIA I'M HIS BIGGEST FAN EVER I LOVED EVERYTHING HE DOES BECAUSE HE CAN AND YES TO ALL YOU HATERS I GOT TWO WORDS FOR YA SUCK ITTTTTTTTTTTTTT

RESPONSE FROM KE: What decade are you talking about? = SLAM DUNK!

Anyway, I don't know where I expected HBK to be, but it wasn't as #4, even though I think that is a good balance. Like you, I would kick Kurt Angle down a couple notches for having gone to TNA, because TNA does not have the same level of stars as WWE.

Most likely, the final three will be Undertaker, John Cena, and HHH. It will be interesting to see which man is listed where. Although, based on Batista's & Randy Orton's ranks, I think I may have the order right. If not, then I may have to respectfully disagree.

He is the best and I would put him on number one!! Lathough, Shawn Michaels is just in a league of his own :DD
WWE rox :))
xoxo

People who argue against Michaels because of his lack of titles are ignorant. In this decade Michaels has mostly been in storylines that didn't involve titles but were enjoyable and greatly helped the business i.e. Jericho, JBL, Hogan, McMahon, Undertaker. All wrestlers have egos and want to be champion, but it takes an unselfish superstar to allow others to hold belts while he works other areas.

STOP THE PRESSES! This is not a mirage. This is real. This is now. This is... OBJECTIVITY. I want you to take out your cell phones, text your friends, take a picture, shoot a video, call them all and tell them that rational thinking is back, baby!

I promise that all you stupid Hart trolls never never never EVVVVEERRRRRRR thought that Kevin Ect wouldn't put Michaels first. Well, it seems his journalist integrity supersedes his mancrush.

And for the record, he's right.

How did I know that the entry with the most comments would be HBK!

The funny thing about this argument is that if you had done a list of the best workers and talkers from this decade, he may well be in that too....

Deserves the spot for saving WM25, for making Hogan look like he was still on his first hip, for putting over most of the main event guys this decade and for THAT match against Angle a few years back.

Good work Kev, as usual.

Wow, this is a heated choice. Going into your list, I wondered where you would put HBK and I wasn't sold that he was a top guy, until I read this post and remembered your criteria. He might not be in the title scene anymore, but his matches are always high profile and worth watching and based on all the criteria, I agree 4th place is a good spot for him.

I meant to say that to remotely suggest that a person who has done all of this stuff-keeping in mind, that NO politics are involved in any of the aforementioned accolades - shouldn't be on this list is totally and utterly nonsensical. But I think you all get my point.

RESPONSE FROM KE: I've missed you. You have always been the voice of reason.

I remembered how much I like commenting on your blog with this entry. Thanks, Kev. I'll try to be around more often!

all da ppl who think angle should be higher than hbk should think about this. since angle joined tna hes been wrestling guys that wouldnt b given a chance n da wwe. granted that shows how bad wwe is at noticing talent (i.e. shelton,punk,swagger) angle is now competing against mostly ppl that are irrelavant.

I love your blogs Kev, keep up the good work. With regards HBK being placed number 4, this is def a justified position for him. He can headline, support, play face and heel better then 99 per cent of the current roster.

eck: ive seen your hbk bias time and time again. arguing against that kind of a bias with some kind of logic isnt going to go anywhere and so i didnt bother. but i at least felt the need to comment on it as this one time was particularly ridiculous.

i think most of your other opinions are spot on though, this isnt a diss.

RESPONSE FROM KE: DId you actually say that I shouldn't argue with logic?

You should've counted down the Top Match of the Decade instead, so we could read you defend your appreciation of Shawn Michaels with logic against those that cringe each time you mention his name at least five times.

Seriously, how many of the top matches of the decade didn't include Shawn Michaels? I can think of Angle/Benoit, Hogan/Rock, maybe one of the Taker/Batista and/or Orton/Cena matches (2007's Cyber Sunday and SummerSlam, repsectively, would get my nod).

I'd also include HHH/Jericho from April 2000 on RAW in the Top 10 but only for everything in the aftermath and storylines around it moreso than the content of the match itself so I doubt it would make your list.

Other than that, yea... HBK/Taker from WM25, HBK/Angle from WM21, HHH/HBK from SummerSlam 2002, WM20 main, and Cena/HBK's rematch would probably get into my top 10 (and that's even without the Ladder match against Y2J).