Shawn Michaels admits he shouldn’t be wrestling. One false move and the 38-year-old “Heartbreak Kid” could be crippled for life.
His family and friends worry about him injuring his back again, but Michaels shrugs off their fears.
Michaels has a deep faith that “nothing will happen to me.” Wrestling, he insists, “is where the Lord wants me to be” and despite the risks in the ring, “my faith will get me through.”
Michaels is a different person than the one who made his wrestling debut in October 1984. He joined World Wrestling Entertainment 16 years ago, and says that he sometimes was difficult to deal with at times.
In those days, wrestling was his life — and the 6-foot-1, 225-pound “sexy boy” took that life very seriously. It showed in his performances in the ring, where he would do almost anything to please the fans. That “showstopping” mentality took a toll on his body and Michaels had to temporarily retire afer Wrestlemania XIV in 1998. He underwent surgery for two herniated discs in his back and was told he shouldn’t wrestle again.
During his hiatus, he opened a wrestling academy in San Antonio, had a son and became a born-again Christian.
When WWE owner Vince McMahon asked him to return to wrestling four years later, Michaels at first turned down the offer, saying he needed more time to sort out his life. Six months later, Michaels “felt peace” and decided to rejoin WWE as commissioner.
One night as he was reading a Bible passage from the book of Joshua, the words “‘be strong and courageous’ jumped out at me and I decided to return to the ring.”
But Michaels made it perfectly clear to McMahon that he would only wrestle a limited schedule. “One of the things I was up front with the WWE about was that my family and faith were my first priorities.”
Michaels pretty much gets to pick the shows he wants to do, including Sunday at The Mark of the Quad-Cities, Moline.
He usually is home with his family Tuesday through Saturday of every week.
“I’m fortunate. Everyone else doesn’t have that,” he said.
Perhaps that is why Michaels continues to give it his all while he is in the ring. “I’m out there trying to do something special for the fans,” he said. “I hope I bring something to the company and our shows that would be missing if I wasn’t there.”
Known for his high-flying stunts, Michaels said he learned a lot of his moves through “on the job training.”
“I don’t give a lot of thought to what I do when I’m out there. It’s spur of the moment,” he said, adding with a laugh that if he did think about what he was doing he “might chicken out.”
When wrestling fans list the greatest matches of all time, Michaels’ name always comes up.
“That’s the best compliment ever. The most special thing people can say to me. It really is very rewarding to hear.”
Michaels said he plans to wrestle as long as “I feel this is where I’m supposed to be,” but often wonders how long his body can take the punishment.
“Certainly with age I feel pain a lot more than I used to. It takes me a lot longer to recover now,” he said.
It also takes him a lot longer to prepare. “I take better care of myself than I did before. It’s a constant job to keep my body in good condition and pain free,” he said.
His workouts, he said, include trying to keep up with his 4-year-old son, who knows his dad is a wrestler, but is not allowed to watch any of his matches.
Michaels makes sure his storylines are tamer than most and, when asked, gives input on some of the more risque plots in the WWE. He admits there are “things I don’t agree with” in the wrestling characters, but adds, “it’s not my place to tell others what to do.”
He does believe, however, that he has an obligation to use his celebrity to make a difference in the world. Last summer, he recruited some of his peers to do autograph sessions — including one in the Quad-Cities — raising tens of thousands of dollars to benefit the families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. And more recently, he became involved in a WWE program to register new voters.
“I’m trying to be a light in the darkness,” Michaels said.