Shawn Michaels Doesn't Consider His Crown Jewel Comeback To Be His Final Match

Michaels hasn't spoken much about his return match, where he reunited D-Generation X alongside Triple H to take on The Undertaker and Kane, and for good reason. That's why it was surprising to hear him not only acknowledge it during an interview with Chris Van Vliet, but to explain, at length, why he still considers the retirement match he had eight years earlier to be his actual last match.

"I don’t consider that, I don’t consider those a match," Michaels explained, comparing the tag match to a cameo appearance by a returning wrestler in a Royal Rumble. "A single performance by me, by HBK, by that guy, that’s not who that was. That was a dude hanging out with his buddies... One was the artist, the other one was a dude, like I said, hanging out with his buddies.

HBK's Crown Jewel Comeback May Have Deterred Him From Ever Wrestling Again

To give Michaels credit, even though he was technically the only wrestler in that match who came out of retirement, he was by far the best performer of the four in that match. Granted, that's not saying much, but it's a shame that it likely ruined any chance of him coming back to wrestle some more interesting matches, like a dream showdown between him and AJ Styles.

I hope, but doubt, that's still on the cards, particularly with The Phenomenal One heavily implying that he'll be retiring soon too, because no matter what HBK says, if he doesn't wrestle again, the record books will show that match at Crown Jewel was his last. If pretending it was just some sort of exhibition that doesn't really count makes him feel better, that's great, but unfortunately, in reality, it does.

Michaels isn't the only wrestler to have had a perfect retirement ruined by the want to do just one more. HBK was on the other side of the ring when Ric Flair had what might be the greatest retirement match of all time. That match has since been tainted by countless, much worse comebacks. There's a chance others will fall into the same trap, with rumors swirling that older stars will be offered a lot of money to come back for one more match at WrestleMania in Saudi Arabia.