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- Shawn Michaels and Mr. Perfect are both regarded as some of the most incredible in-ring talents of all time. However, their dream match at SummerSlam 1993 was a big dud and several steps down from what it should have been. Fans may not be aware that the pair had another match a couple of years prior to this one, and this match showed that the pair did in fact have chemistry, which unfortunately was not tapped into at the ‘Biggest Party of the Summer’ in 1993. This will forever be one of the more unfortunate disappointments of all time when it should have been a classic.
Without wanting to give too much credence to Dave Meltzer's star rating system, wrestling fans cannot deny that it is used as a barometer for the quality of a match. While often tinged with personal preference and Meltzer's favored performers, it is often a good indicator for fans to check something out that they may have missed. WWE's first five-star match was Shawn Michaels vs Razor Ramon in an all-time classic ladder match at WrestleMania 10. What is more interesting is that there was potential for a five-star match involving Michaels a year earlier at SummerSlam 1993, a hugely anticipated wrestling clinic against Curt Hennig, Mr. Perfect. In a rather drab event that was main-evented by Lex Luger defeating Yokozuna via countout, Shawn Michaels vs Mr. Perfect only managed to obtain a three-star rating from Meltzer, making it the third-highest rated match on card.
UPDATE: 2023/07/16 15:00 EST BY ANDREW KELLY
Shawn Michaels and Mr. Perfect are both regarded as some of the most incredible in-ring talents of all time. However, their dream match at SummerSlam 1993 was a big dud and several steps down from what it should have been. Fans may not be aware that the pair had another match a couple of years prior to this one, and this match showed that the pair did in fact have chemistry, which unfortunately was not tapped into at the ‘Biggest Party of the Summer’ in 1993. This will forever be one of the more unfortunate disappointments of all time when it should have been a classic.
Mr. Perfect Vs Shawn Michaels Seemed Like A Surefire Success
Before examining the match and why it did not live up to its potential, it is worth mentioning that Shawn Michaels in 1993 was a very different worker than Shawn Michaels in 1994. This is not to knock Michaels as being inferior or as being the reason why the match was a bit lackluster, but is a point to be made at the beginning of Michaels' singles career. Curt Hennig, meanwhile, was very reminiscent of Shawn Michael's later career as a gatekeeper. If you could have a good match with Hennig, bigger things awaited you. On a booking level the match made perfect sense. A young stalwart tackling one of the very best wrestlers the company had to offer, it was traditional booking to give the young brash heel some way to reflect that perhaps they weren't as good as they think they are. The feud began with Michaels superkicking Hennig at WrestleMania, and the match at SummerSlam was set to be an absolute classic.
Then the bell rang. An 11-minute match ending in countout due to the interference of new bodyguard Diesel gave Michaels the victory. The entire match seemed set up to facilitate the introduction of Diesel. It fell flat, perhaps due to the lofty expectations or because the match was unfortunately stuck in first gear before a deflating ending. Matches being used to create angles was not new in 1993 for the WWE but never before had such fantastic talent been given so little to work with. As a note on SummerSlam 1993 overall, four of the ten matches ended via DQ or countout, so angles were very much taking precedence over matches.
HBK And Mr. Perfect Didn't Live Up To The Hype At SummerSlam
It would be unfair to blame the failure of the match entirely on Vince McMahon's propensity for creating moments instead of matches. The participants do have to take some responsibility. While both were individually excellent, this was a Shawn Michaels pre-Showstopper and still learning his craft as a top level performer. Hennig also looked sluggish and was supposedly suffering from a rather bad back injury which slowed his movement. This was incredibly apparent as the match moved at a snail's pace and never truly got out of first gear. A few rather sloppy chops were exchanged in a rather turgid corner exchange and both seemed to be waiting for the end rather than giving fans a spectacle.
This isn't to say the match was bad. It would be more appropriate to say it was solid, if unspectacular. The prospect of what could have been is far more deflating than the actual match itself. In a vacuum it would probably be argued that the match was good and pay-per-view worthy, but because fans went in with heightened expectations it was inevitably a letdown. There was also the very real issue that the crowd was just not into it. Maybe they didn't buy Shawn Michaels as an effective heel, and thus the inclusion of Diesel was the correct decision, or the match bored them into silence. Whatever the reason, the lack of crowd reaction really harmed an already struggling match.
HBK vs Mr. Perfect seems like the type of match that fans would fantasy book in their WWE 2K series, but it came at a rather awkward time in WWE and in both men's career. A great idea on paper does not always equate in the ring, and that was certainly the case here. SummerSlam 1993 was a rather forgettable event in the midst of big changes for the company but the match that could have elevated it will forever be labeled as a missed opportunity.
Shawn Michaels And Mr. Perfect Had A Far Better Match
Another aspect of the disappointing match between Mr Perfect and Shawn Michaels which made it worse, was the fact they proved previously that they could have a better match than the one they gave at SummerSlam 1993. Perfect and Michaels very seldom crossed paths in WWE (outside of house shows), but they did have one other televised singles match within their careers, and even though it came two years before SummerSlam, with Michaels far more inexperienced, it ended up being far better.
On an episode of Prime Time Wrestling in 1991, reigning Intercontinental Champion Mr. Perfect put his title on the line against Michaels. This was at a time when Michaels hadn’t yet broken out on his own, with him still teaming up with Marty Jannetty in The Rockers tag team, but this match began to prove that he could be a singles star in his own right. For 10 minutes, the pair had a fluid match jam-packed with great offense, world class selling, and showcases of brilliant charisma from both men.
Despite not getting too long, and even with a very frustrating disqualification finish in which The Big Boss Man got involved, attacking Perfect ahead of their WrestleMania 7 clash, this still managed to score a four-star rating from Dave Meltzer (per cagematch.net) and was one of the best matches of that year so far. This match alone showcased just how much better a match they could have had at SummerSlam, but unfortunately it just wasn’t meant to be.