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He's one of the most charismatic showmen ever to grace a Habbo Hotel ring. He was HCW's most resilient champion. Pound-for-pound, he may
be the company's toughest.
If HCW closing hadn't hampered Shawn Michaels' in-ring career, there's no telling what the "Heartbreak Kid" would have accomplished. As it was, he accomplished more than anyone at the time. At 225 pounds, he somehow managed to win the XCW SmokeySkull Championship, defeating men close to twice his size along the way. One of the keys to his success was that Michaels would put his body on the line. There were Ladder Matches, TLC Matches, and Casket Matches, but even in "regular matches" (if there was ever such a thing with Shawn), HBK was intent on being "the Showstoppa, the main-eventer, the icon." It took its toll on his long-term carrer. Still filled with wrestling energy, when most superstars are hitting their prime, Michaels had to bow out of the spotlight after HCW closed. Soon he had opened XCW, but officially his in-ring career was ended, or so it was thought.
But Michaels doesn't necessarily have to lace up the wrestling boots to be an instrumental part of XCW programming. One of the most natural "talkers" in history, he has the ability to rile up fans and fellow superstars simply by grabbing a microphone. Remember, Michaels was one of the founding members of Habbo e-feds aka XCW, perhaps the most notorious federation in sports-entertainment history. He had as many memorable moments outside the ring as they did inside the ring. And Michaels remained one of the most popular superstars when he returned on a regular basis in April 2003, even though it was in a non-wrestling capacity as chairman off WWE.
Perhaps the best indication of the impact that HBK made on the business was the reaction he received on April 5, 2003, live on RAW, when he was introduced onto top of the Habbo Hotel Room Listing. Fans at the XCW Arena cheered because they were happy to see him, or jeered because they were shocked he was getting so many people. But they were all on their feet, as they seemingly always are when HBK's "Sexy Boy" theme song hits.
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