Jim Ross Reflects On Shawn Michaels’ Overselling At WWE SummerSlam 2005

On a recent episode of his podcast, “Grilling JR,” Jim Ross discussed he much-discussed SummerSlam 2005 main event between Hulk Hogan and Shawn Michaels, a match famous for his overselling of moves. Here are the highlights:

On the match: “I liked the match overall a lot. But I thought that Shawn at times, with his selling and his bump taking, was a little bit over the top which took away from the overall performance. Both guys came in shape. They had a good psychology. Shawn was that undersized, devious little heel. And Hogan, of course, the babyface got the color. Bleeding, get the empathy from the crowd… But Hogan did all the territory babyface stuff that he needed to do, including getting color.”

On why Michaels didn’t get in trouble with Vince McMahon: “Vince loved Shawn like a son. Vince has told me many times, I said it here on this show. Vince has said to me on many occasions, ‘When I see Shawn Michaels, I see young Vince McMahon.’ Defiant, contrarian, but hugely talented. That’s what Shawn was. He had Vince’s ear, and he has Vince’s emotions. They were attached in that respect, and that gave Shawn many opportunities and breaks to win debates and arguments and creative issues over the years.

“And the day after when he did that Monday Night Raw promo, he’d already spent time on the phone or in person with his buddies. And they had him jacked up. And he was easily manipulated at that point in his career.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit the Grilling JR podcast with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.