Michael Shawn Hickenbottom born July 22 1965 better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American professional wrestling personality, television presenter, retired professional wrestler, and occasional referee. He has been signed to WWE, as an ambassador and occasional appears in non-wrestling roles, since December 2010. He wrestled for WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation WWF from 1988 until his first retirement in 1998. He held non-wrestling roles from 1998 to 2000 and resumed wrestling in 2002 until retiring ceremoniously in 2010.
In the WWF WWE, Michaels headlined major pay-per-view events from 1989 to 2010, main-eventing the company's premier annual event, WrestleMania, five times. He was a key player in the successful stable, D-Generation X. He also wrestled in the American Wrestling Association AWA where he founded The Midnight Rockers with Marty Jannetty in 1985. After winning the AWA Tag Team Championship twice, the team continued to the WWF as The Rockers, and had a high-profile breakup in January 1992.
Michaels was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011. In naming him the greatest professional wrestler of all time, IGN wrote: "Michaels was the most athletic, inspired and daring storyteller in the business; raising the bar for the entire industry with each match. Michaels is a four-time world champion: a three-time WWF Champion and a former World Heavyweight Champion. He won the 1995 and 1996 Royal Rumbles and is the WWF's first Grand Slam Champion. He has won the PWI Match of the Year Award a record eleven Hickenbottom was born on July 22, 1965, in Chandler, Arizona. The last of four children – Randy, Scott, and Shari are his older siblings – he was raised in a military family and spent a brief part of his early years in Reading, Berkshire, England but grew up in San Antonio, Texas. As a child, Hickenbottom disliked the name Michael, so his family and friends just called him Shawn. Ever since, he has been referred to as Shawn. Additionally, Hickenbottom moved around frequently since his father was in the military.
He knew he wanted to become a professional wrestler at the age of twelve. Hickenbottom was already an athlete; his career began at the age of six when he started playing football. He was a stand-out linebacker at Randolph High School and eventually became captain of the football team. After graduating, Hickenbottom attended Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, but soon realized that college life was not for him. He then began pursuing a career in professional wrestling.Hickenbottom began to train under Mexican professional wrestler Jose Lothario. During his training, Hickenbottom adopted the ring name, "Shawn Michaels. After his training with Lothario, he debuted as Shawn Michaels with the National Wrestling Alliance's Mid-South territory and Texas All-Star Wrestling TASW promotions in October 1984 at the age of 19. During his time with TASW, Michaels replaced Nick Kiniski in the American Breed tag team, teaming with Paul Diamond. Michaels and Diamond were awarded the TASW Tag Team Championship by Chavo Guerrero, Sr. The team was later renamed American Force. While in TASW, Michaels and Diamond feuded with Japanese Force. He also worked for another NWA territory in Kansas City called Central States Wrestling. There, he and tag team partner Marty Jannetty defeated The Batten Twins for the NWA Central States Tag Team Championship, later losing it back to the Battens. Michaels also made several appearances in yet another NWA territory, the Dallas, Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling throughout 1985.
Michaels made his national-level debut at the age of 20 in the American Wrestling Association AWA once again teaming with Marty Jannetty. The pair were billed as The Midnight Rockers and held the AWA World Tag Team Championship, defeating Doug Somers and Buddy Rose. In 1987, The Rockers were signed by a competing promotion: the World Wrestling Federation WWF. They were fired from WWF two weeks later, for a bar incident a misunderstanding, according to Michaels' autobiography. They then returned to AWA, but were re-signed by WWF a year later.
The Rockers redebuted at a WWF live event on July 7, 1988. Due to WWF chairman Vince McMahon's desire to have his performers carry WWF-exclusive ring names, Michaels and Jannetty were renamed, as simply "The Rockers. The team proved popular with both children and women. The team was a mid-card stalwart of television and pay-per-view shows for the next two years during this time, Michaels headlined his first pay-per-view for the WWF when The Rockers were involved in the 4 on 4 Survivor Series match main event of the 1989 Survivor Series.
In October 1990, The Rockers were scheduled to win the WWF Tag Team Championship from The Hart Foundation Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart as Neidhart, half of the championship team, was in the process of negotiating his release from the company. The match was taped with The Rockers winning the belts, but soon after, Neidhart came to an agreement with management and was rehired. The belts were returned to the Hart Foundation, while the title change was never broadcast or even acknowledged on television. When news spread, WWF explained that the original result was void due to a collapsed turnbuckle in the ring during the bout. A buckle had indeed broke, but not to a noticeable or dangerous extent during the match. The Rockers continued their partnership, eventually splitting on December 2, 1991 during an incident on Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake's televised Barber Shop talk show promotional segment. Michaels superkicked Jannetty and threw him through a glass window on the set of Beefcake's talk show. Jannetty returned to the WWF the following year and enjoyed moderate success before leaving the company in 1994, while Michaels became a prominent villain of the early to mid-1990s as "The Boy Toy.
The Heartbreak Kid 1992 1995
See also: Shawn Michaels and Kevin Nash
At the suggestion of "Mr Perfect" Curt Hennig, Michaels adopted the nickname "The Heartbreak Kid. Along with his new name came a new gimmick as a vain, cocky villain. He was put together with mirror-carrying manager, Sensational Sherri, who, according to the storyline, had become infatuated with him. Sherri even sang the first version of his new theme music, "Sexy Boy. During that period, after Michaels had wrestled his scheduled match at live events, his departure was announced with "Shawn Michaels has left the building", alluding to the phrase "Elvis has left the building".[2At WrestleMania VIII, in his first pay-per-view singles match, Michaels defeated El Matador: both men had simultaneously eliminated each other from that year's Royal Rumble. He subsequently became a contender to the promotion's singles championships. Michaels failed to wrestle the WWF Championship from champion "Macho Man" Randy Savage, in his first opportunity to compete for that title at British pay-per-view UK Rampage, held on April 19 at the Sheffield Arena. He failed to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship from Bret Hart in the WWF's first-ever ladder match at a Wrestling Challenge taping on July 21, which would subsequently be made available on multiple Coliseum/WWE Home Video releases. He, however, won the title from The British Bulldog on the October 27, 1992 episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, which aired on November 14. Shortly thereafter, he faced Hart for the WWF Championship in the main event of the 1992 Survivor Series, but lost the match. Originally the secondary main event, Michaels and Hart became the primary main event after The Ultimate Warrior was unable to compete, and was replaced by Mr. Perfect in the tag team match that involved Randy Savage against the team of Ric Flair and Razor Ramon. During this time, Michaels and Sherri split and he engaged himself in a feud with former tag team partner Marty Jannetty. Michaels lost the Intercontinental Championship to Jannetty on Monday Night Raw on May 17, 1993. He then regained it on June 6 with the help of his debuting "bodyguard" and off-air friend Diesel.
In September 1993, Michaels left the WWF. The storyline reason was that he hadn't defended the title often enough; in reality, he had been suspended for testing positive for steroids – a charge he never admitted. After turning down World Championship Wrestling WCW's advances, Michaels returned to the WWF and made several appearances in the United States Wrestling Association USWA during a WWF USWA cross-promotion. He returned to WWF television in November at the Survivor Series pay-per-view, substituting for Jerry Lawler, who was dealing with legal issues, in a match pitting himself and three of Lawler's "Knights" against the Hart brothers, Bret, Bruce, Keith and Owen.
He soon entered a staged rivalry with Razor Ramon, who had won the vacated Intercontinental Championship, during Michaels' absence. Since Michaels had never been defeated in the ring for the title, he claimed to be the rightful champion and even carried around his old title belt. This feud culminated in a ladder match between the two at WrestleMania X. Michaels lost the match, which featured both his and Ramon's belts suspended above a ladder in the ring. This match was voted by fans as "PWI Match of the Year" by Pro Wrestling Illustrated. It also received a 5-star rating from Wrestling Observer Newsletter member Dave Meltzer, one of five WWE matches to do so. Over the next few months, Michaels battled various injuries and launched the Heartbreak Hotel television talk show segment, mainly shown on WWF Superstars.
On August 28, 1994, Michaels and Diesel captured the Tag Team Championship from The Headshrinkers Samu and Fatu. The next day, at SummerSlam, Diesel lost the Intercontinental Championship to Ramon when Michaels accidentally superkicked Diesel. This triggered a split between Michaels and Diesel, a storyline that was drawn out until Survivor Series that November. Michaels went on to win the Royal Rumble in 1995 which set up a championship grudge match at WrestleMania XI against Diesel who had gone on to win the WWF Championship from Bob Backlund). As part of the storyline, Michaels recruited Sycho Sid as his bodyguard for the build-up, lost the match and was attacked by Sid the following night. After this, Michaels took time off because Vince McMahon wanted Michaels to become a fan favorite.
Kliq, WWF Champion and D-Generation X 1995 1997
Michaels returned to the ring, as a fan favorite, in May 1995. He went on to defeat Jeff Jarrett in July at the In Your House pay-per-view event, to win his third Intercontinental Championship. This led to a title defense against Razor Ramon at SummerSlam, in a ladder match, which Michaels won. Around this time Michaels became the leader of a backstage group known as The Kliq. Critics perceived the group to have sufficient clout with WWF owner Vince McMahon, becoming dominant wrestling figures in the WWF for several years in the mid-1990s. Michaels disputes the perception, saying that McMahon pushed only deserving wrestlers. Michaels' fan base was later nicknamed "The Kliq" as an inside reference to the real "Kliq. In October 1995, he was legitimately attacked by several men outside a bar in Syracuse, New York. Shortly afterwards, at the In Your House: Great White North pay per view, Michaels was declared unable to compete by the WWF and forfeited the Intercontinental Championship to Dean Douglas who in turn Douglas lost the championship to Kliq member Razor Ramon. This event has been cited as an example of the Kliq holding others down. The next month, during a match with Owen Hart on an episode of Monday Night Raw, Owen performed an enzuigiri that struck the back of Michaels' head. They continued the match, but Michaels collapsed in the ring, supposedly because he had suffered a concussion. The concussion was scripted, which was kept from most fans at the time. A retirement angle was written so that Michaels could take some time off, after he came back from an injury too soon.After teasing a retirement, Michaels returned to the WWF at the Royal Rumble match in 1996, which he wound up winning for a second year in a row, to receive a WWF Championship match in the main event at WrestleMania XII. Around this time, Jose Lothario became Michaels' on-screen manager. At WrestleMania XII, Michaels defeated WWF Champion Bret Hart in the overtime of their sixty minute Iron Man match, which had ended in a scoreless tie. On May 19, 1996, Michaels and his fellow Kliq members were involved in the incident known as "Curtain Call. Diesel and Razor Ramon were about to leave WWF to company rival WCW. After Michaels won a match against Diesel, Ramon and Hunter Hearst Helmsley came to the ring and joined Michaels and Diesel in a group-hug. As Diesel and Helmsley were seen as villains at the time, in contrast to Michaels and Ramon, this constituted a breach of "kayfabe", as acting out of character, which was rare and controversial at the time. As WCW gained momentum due to the signings of Hall and Nash, Michaels held the championship for most of the year. Michaels' championship reign ended at the 1996 Survivor Series event, where he lost to Sycho Sid, his former bodyguard. Michaels recaptured the championship from Sid in January 1997 at the Royal Rumble.
On a special episode of Raw dubbed Thursday Raw Thursday, Michaels vacated the WWF Championship he explained to fans that he was informed by doctors that he had conjured a knee injury, and that he had to retire. His speech was regarded as controversial, as Michaels was allegedly unwilling to lose to Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 since it was noted that he was going to have a rematch with Hart at WrestleMania. Michaels contemplated thoughts of retirement and stated that he "had to find his smile again," which he had "lost" somewhere down the line. After knee surgery by Dr. James Andrews, Michaels returned a few months later, briefly teaming with Stone Cold Steve Austin to win the WWF Tag Team Championship. In his autobiography, Michaels reveals about his real-life feud with Bret Hart, claiming that Bret did interviews on live television claiming that he [Michaels] was faking his whole injury.It was widely known by fans about the real-life personal issues going on between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart throughout the spring of 1997. Both men would go out on television and make personal, insulting remarks about one another. Shawn Michaels briefly left the WWF in June 1997 after a real life backstage fight with Bret Hart at a house show, which stemmed from Michaels making an on-air remark alleging that Bret who was married at the time was having an affair with then WWF Diva Sunny. Shawn Michaels and Stone Cold Steve Austin were still WWF Tag Team Champions at the time during the ongoing feud with The Hart Foundation and a tournament was made to decide new Tag Champions. Michaels would return later that summer in July. At SummerSlam, Michaels officiated the WWF Championship match between WWF Champion The Undertaker and Bret Hart. The match ended in controversial fashion, with Michaels hitting Undertaker with a chair unintentionally, as he was aiming for Bret after he spat in his face. Michaels was then forced to award the championship to his nemesis, Bret Hart. The next night on Raw, signs of a heel turn started to show as Michaels told the WWF fans what happened at SummerSlam was an accident and that he would deal with the Undertaker when the time came. At WWF One Night Only, held in Birmingham, England in September, Michaels defeated The British Bulldog to capture the WWF European Championship. The fans at the event were so appalled at the result of the match they booed Michaels out of the building, to the extent that they littered the ring with garbage, cementing his second heel turn. With this win, Michaels became the first Grand Slam Champion. At the October pay-per-view event, In Your House: Badd Blood, Michaels and Undertaker participated in the first Hell in a Cell match. During the match, it saw Michaels fall off the side of the 15-foot 5 m high structure through a table and saw him as the winner in the match. The match received a 5-star rating from Dave Meltzer.
In the fall Michaels joined forces with real-life friend, Hunter Hearst Helmsley Triple H Hunter's thengirlfriend Chyna and Rick Rude to form the stable, D-Generation X DX. Moving away from the familyoriented product this marked the beginning of the WWF Attitude Era. Michaels continued his rivalry with Bret Hart and his reformed Hart Foundation, which was now a pro-Canada stable. Michaels taunted the group and Canada by engaging in acts, such as blowing his nose with and humping the Canadian Flag. Michaels later claimed the flag desecration was Bret's idea. Michaels feud with the Hart Foundation culminated in a championship match at Survivor Series in 1997 against Bret Hart. Michaels came out of this match, dubbed by fans the "Montreal Screwjob as the WWF Champion. Michaels now held both the WWF and European championship at the same time. Michaels dropped the European Championship to D-Generation X member, Hunter Hearst Hemsley, during a farcical match.At the 1998 Royal Rumble, Michaels received a serious back injury in a Casket match against The Undertaker. Michaels took a back body drop to the outside of the ring and hit his lower back on the casket, causing him to herniate two discs and crush one completely. This rendered Michaels unable to compete in the main event of the following month's No Way Out of Texas In Your House as advertised, and forced him into retirement after losing the WWF Championship to Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV.
After being away for 5 months, Shawn Michaels would make a surprise return to the WWF as a guest commentator on the July 13th episode of Raw is War. Michaels would continue to make non-wrestling appearances on WWF programming, and on November 23, 1998, replaced Sgt. Slaughter as the WWF Commissioner, a portrayed match maker and rules enforcer, eventually joining Vince McMahon's group of wrestlers called the Corporation as a villain. Throughout late 1998 and early 1999, Michaels made regular television appearances on Raw, in which he scheduled matches, throwing around his authority, and sometimes even deciding the outcome of matches. On January 4, 1999 on Raw, Michaels re-joined DX as a fan favorite, but disappeared from WWF television for a few weeks to have back surgery and by the time he returned, DX was on the way of dissolving within the next couple of months.
Michaels made occasional appearances as the WWF Commissioner during the spring and summer of 1999, but remained absent from television after August until May 15, 2000, when he returned on Raw to declare himself the special guest referee for The Rock and Triple H's Iron Man match at Judgment Day. One month later, Michaels briefly reappeared on Raw to hand over the role of Commissioner to Mick Foley and after another appearance in October, he did not make any in-ring appearances until mid-2002 although he appeared briefly on television to make a speech at WWF New York during Armageddon 2000. Michaels also had no part at all in the Invasion storyline. Believing that his wrestling career was over, Michaels was interested in training individuals who wanted to become professional wrestlers. He saw potential in using his name and opened the Shawn Michaels Wrestling Academy in 1999, after his lawyer Skip McCormick suggested the idea. Michaels left the academy in 2002 giving co-founder Rudy Boy Gonzalez sole responsibility due to Michaels' new contract with WWE. Michaels was also a sportscaster for San Antonio's local news for a short period during his retirement.
On November 23, 1999, Michaels made a special appearance at FMW's Yokohama Arena show as the guest referee for the H Hayabusa vs. fake Hayabusa Mr. Gannosuke main event. He got himself involved in the match when fake Hayabusa delivered a low blow on him and he responded later on with Sweet Chin Music.
In 2002, Michaels returned to WWE television after 18 months of absence. On the June 3 episode of Raw, Kevin Nash announced him as a new member of the recently reformed New World Order nWo. Michaels was the only nWo member to have never worked in WCW. After the nWo had disbanded, Triple H appeared to make amends with Michaels. This was solidified when Michaels pleaded Triple H to return to Raw. Later on, they came down to the ring sporting their DX music and attire. When the pair was about to perform their trademark "Suck It" taunt, Triple H turned on Michaels by performing a Pedigree on him. Continuing the angle, a week later, Triple H attacked Michaels from behind in a parking lot and put his head through a car window, in storyline. In response, Michaels challenged Triple H to a fight a non-sanctioned match at SummerSlam which Triple H accepted, laying the foundation for a rivalry that would last for several years. In his first official wrestling match since WrestleMania XIV, Michaels won at SummerSlam, but was attacked by Triple H with a sledgehammer after the match. At Survivor Series, Michaels won the World Heavyweight Championship from Triple H in the first-ever Elimination Chamber match. Michaels' reign as champion came to an end a month later when he lost the championship to Triple H in a Three Stages of Hell match, a series of three matches in which wrestlers attempt to win the majority of matches, at Armageddon.Michaels then began a rivalry with Chris Jericho, after Jericho claimed that he was the next Shawn Michaels. On January 13, 2003, after Jericho won a battle royal to select his entry number for the Royal Rumble, choosing number two in order to start the match with Michaels who had already been named number one. At the Royal Rumble, Jericho, with the help of Christian, eliminated Michaels. Michaels defeated Jericho at WrestleMania XIX. Despite this, Michaels was low-blowed after hugging with Chris Jericho. On the final episode of Raw of 2003, Michaels would defeat Triple H after a Sweet Chin Music for the World Heavyweight title in his hometown of San Antonio, Texas with Eric Bischoff as the special guest referee Earl Hebner originally refereed the match, only to be knocked out by Triple H in the middle of the match. However, Bischoff reversed the decision due to both men's shoulders being on the mat. Angered by this, Michaels attacked Ric Flair and Bischoff. Because of Michaels putting his hands on Bischoff, Bischoff then fired him. However, Michaels would be rehired by Sheriff "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.
As a part of an ongoing feud with Triple H, the two competed alongside Chris Benoit in the main event match at WrestleMania XX for the World Heavyweight Championship. The former DX partners both came up short in the match, however, as Benoit won the championship. At Bad Blood in June, Michaels lost to Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match. Four months later, he lost a World Heavyweight championship match against Triple H, after Edge interfered at Taboo Tuesday, when the fans voted for him ahead of Edge and Chris Benoit to face Triple H one more time. Following this, Michaels was out of action for a few months with a legit torn meniscus.
At the Royal Rumble in 2005, Michaels competed in the Rumble match and eliminated Kurt Angle. In seeking revenge, Angle re-entered the ring and eliminated Michaels, and thus placed him in an ankle lock submission hold, outside of the ring. Michaels issued a challenge to Angle for a match at WrestleMania 21, which Angle accepted when he appeared on Raw to attack Michaels. The following week on Raw, Marty Jannetty and Michaels had a one time reunion as The Rockers and defeated La Résistance Robért Conway and Sylvain Grenier. Three days later on SmackDown!, Angle defeated Jannetty, after Angle made Jannetty submit to the ankle lock. To send a "message" to Michaels, Angle also humiliated Michaels' former manager, Sensational Sherri, when he applied the ankle lock hold on her. At WrestleMania 21 in April, Angle defeated Michaels by submission, again with an ankle lock. Two months later, at a WrestleMania 21 rematch, Michaels defeated Angle at the Vengeance pay-per-view event. Following the events of WrestleMania 21, the next night on Raw, Muhammad Hassan and Daivari came out to confront and assault Michaels. On the April 11 episode of Raw, Michaels approached authority figure Eric Bischoff, in which he demanded a handicap match with Hassan and Daivari, a match consisting of one wrestler or team of wrestlers facing off against a team of wrestlers with numerical superiority such as two against one, or three against two. Bischoff refused to schedule the match, but informed Michaels to find a partner and he would grant him the match. Michaels then made a plea for Hulk Hogan to come back and team with him. On the April 18 episode of Raw, Hassan again led an attack on Michaels until Hogan appeared to save Michaels and accept his offer. At Backlash, Hassan and Daivari lost to Hogan and Michaels when Daivari was pinned. On the July 4 episode of Raw, Michaels and Hulk Hogan had a tag team match, which they won. During the post-match pose, Michaels hit Hogan with his superkick, knocking Hogan to the ground and making Michaels a villain for the first time since returning in 2002. The following week on Raw, Michaels appeared on Piper's Pit where he superkicked Roddy Piper and then challenged Hogan to a match at SummerSlam. Hogan defeated Michaels at SummerSlam, and after the match Michaels extended his hand to him, saying "I needed to know, and I found out" and he and Hogan shook hands. Michaels left the ring to allow Hogan to celebrate with the crowd, and Michaels once again became a fan favorite. On the December 26, 2005 episode of Raw, Vince McMahon lauded Michaels for his part in the "Montreal Screwjob". Michaels said he was only being loyal to his company, he had moved on, and McMahon should move on as well. McMahon then began setting unusual stipulations for Michaels' matches and interfering on behalf of Michaels' opponents. During the Royal Rumble, McMahon made his way to the ring, and as Michaels stared at McMahon, Shane McMahon made a surprising appearance, eliminating Michaels from the match. On the February 13 episode of Raw, McMahon tried unsuccessfully to force Michaels to sign retirement papers. The following week, Michaels won a handicap match against the Spirit Squad Kenny, Johnny, Mitch, Nicky and Mikey and after the match, Michaels' former partner, Marty Jannetty, came down to help Michaels from the assault by the Spirit Squad. After the two reunited, McMahon offered Jannetty a contract if he "kissed his ass. The following week, Jannetty refused McMahon's offer and instead took Chris Masters' "Masterlock challenge. Michaels tried to help Jannetty, which ultimately resulted in Shane attacking Michaels and forcing him to kiss his father's behind. At Saturday Night's Main Event, Shane defeated Michaels in a Street Fight, a match without disqualifications and where scoring conditions can occur anywhere, after he applied a sharpshooter on Michaels, which led to McMahon immediately ordering for the bell to be rung, even though Michaels did not submit, which was an allusion to the "Montreal Screwjob". Despite interference from the Spirit Squad and Shane, Michaels defeated McMahon at WrestleMania 22 in a No Holds Barred match, a match where there are no disqualifications. At Backlash, The McMahons Vince and Shane defeated Michaels and "God" in a tag team match, with help from the Spirit Squad in a no disqualification match. On the May 22 episode of Raw, the Squad was scripted to injure Michaels' knee. This was angle was written so that Michaels could have surgery on his knee, which had been legitely injured for some time.
In 2006, a series of events took place which suggested a reunion of Michaels and Triple H as DX. They began at WrestleMania 22, where both Michaels and Triple H performed the crotch chop, during their matches. On Raw, the two continued to deliver chops, as Michaels feuded with Vince McMahon and Triple H went for the WWE Championship, repeatedly butting heads with Vince McMahon in the process. On the June 12 episode of Raw, DX officially reunited. During Triple H's gauntlet match, which had him compete against the Spirit Squad. Michaels came in to help Triple H, and the two did the DX "crotch chops. At Vengeance, DX defeated the Spirit Squad in a 5 on 2 handicap match. They also defeated the Spirit Squad at Saturday Night's Main Event in a 5-on-2 elimination match and defeated The McMahons at SummerSlam. At Unforgiven, DX once again defeated the McMahons and ECW World Champion The Big Show in a Hell in a Cell match.
At Cyber Sunday, DX took on Rated-RKO Edge and Randy Orton. The fan-selected referee Eric Bischoff allowed the illegal use of a steel chair to give Rated-RKO the ill-gotten win and the plaudit of being the first tag team to defeat DX in a tag team match since their reformation in June 2006. At Survivor Series, however, Team DX emerged victorious against Team Rated-RKO in a clean sweep victory. At New Year's Revolution, Triple H suffered a legit torn right quadriceps during their match with Rated-RKO. Rated-RKO claimed victory over DX, citing Triple H's injury, as the "end" of DX. On January 15, Michaels lived up to his word of "dealing" with Rated-RKO, from his comments the previous week before when he took out Randy Orton with a con-chair-to after a handicap match against Edge and Orton. On the January 29 episode of Raw, Michaels captured the World Tag Team Championship with WWE Champion John Cena after defeating Rated-RKO. He then defeated both Edge and Orton in a Triple Threat number one contender's match on another episode of Raw to earn a shot at the WWE Championship. At WrestleMania 23, Cena retained the championship, after he made Michaels submit to the STFU. The next night on Raw, Michaels and Cena competed in two back-to-back ten team battle royals, winning the first and losing the titles in the second to The Hardys Matt and Jeff when Michaels threw Cena over the top rope. Michaels' feud with Cena continued and he faced off with Cena, Edge and Randy Orton in a Fatal Four-Way Match at Backlash for the WWE Championship. Cena retained the championship when Michaels performed Sweet Chin Music on Cena causing him to fall on Orton, which gained Cena the pinfall.
Michaels then entered a feud with Randy Orton when Orton claimed that he could beat Michaels. The week before their scheduled match at Judgment Day, after Michaels won a match against Edge, Orton interfered, punting Michaels in the head. Orton assaulted Michaels again, just prior to their match at Judgment Day, interrupting Michaels' interview segment. Michaels collapsed during the course of their match, causing Orton to win by referee stoppage. Afterwards, Orton continued the beating, when he performed an RKO to a fallen Michaels. Michaels was then removed out of the ring in a stretcher. During the feud, Michaels conjured a storyline concussion. This injury was used to keep Michaels out of action, as he required surgery for his knee. Michaels made his return on the October 8 episode of Raw, performing a superkick to newly crowned WWE Champion, Randy Orton, during his title ceremony at the end of the show and then celebrating over the knocked-out champion as Vince McMahon watched. At Cyber Sunday, Michaels was voted by the fans to face Orton for the WWE Championship; though he won via disqualification when Orton hit Michaels with a low blow, which resulted in Orton retaining the championship. Michaels got another opportunity at the WWE Championship, when he was granted his rematch against Orton at Survivor Series. In their match, Michaels was banned from using Sweet Chin Music upon request by Orton, referring to as Michaels superkicking Orton week after week. Michaels lost the match, when Orton performed an RKO for the win. As part of the storyline involving Ric Flair, Michaels faced Flair in a Career Threatening match at WrestleMania XXIV, in which he won by performing Sweet Chin Music and thus ending Flair's career. Afterwards, Batista confronted Michaels about his actions at WrestleMania, calling him selfish and egotistical. The two faced off at Backlash with Chris Jericho as the guest referee. Michaels won after faking a knee injury and performing Sweet Chin Music. Jericho then confronted Michaels on this matter, in which Michaels admitted to faking the injury in order to defeat Batista. Michaels then defeated Jericho at Judgment Day. At One Night Stand, Michaels lost to Batista in a stretcher match, thus ending their feud. On the June 9 episode of Raw, Michaels was attacked by Chris Jericho during his talk show segment, The Highlight Reel, being thrown directly through a television screen. The following week, it was revealed that, within the context of the storyline, Michaels had suffered a detached retina. At The Great American Bash, a match between Michaels and Jericho was scheduled, in which Jericho assaulted Michaels' eye, which caused Jericho to win by referee stoppage. A month later at SummerSlam, Michaels announced his retirement from professional wrestling. That night, Jericho punched Michaels' wife in the face. On the next Raw, Michaels renounced his retirement and challenged Jericho to an unsanctioned match at Unforgiven, which Jericho accepted. The next week, they had an in-ring contract signing for the unsanctioned match. During this, they started to fight, causing a legit small triceps tear for Michaels. He was medically cleared to compete at Unforgiven, and beat Jericho so severely that the referee called the match. Later that night, Jericho replaced CM Punk in the World Heavyweight Championship scramble match, and won the title. The next month. at No Mercy, Michaels lost a championship ladder match to Jericho.
In December 2008, Michaels, having lost his family's savings due to the global recession, grudgingly accepted a one-year general employment contract from John "Bradshaw" Layfield JBL. After failing to help JBL win the World Heavyweight Championship from John Cena at the Royal Rumble and being derided for it, Michaels agreed to face JBL in "All or Nothing" match at No Way Out in February. Michaels won the match, letting him out of his contract early, while still receiving full payment.
On the March 2 Raw, Michaels became the first person to defeat Vladimir Kozlov, and so earned a match with The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV in April. The Undertaker defeated Michaels in a highly acclaimed match to extend his WrestleMania winning streak to 17 0. After WrestleMania, Michaels took a hiatus from WWE.Michaels returned to WWE programming in a series of segments that aired on the August 10, 2009 episode of Raw, where he had scripted left the WWE. Triple H met with Michaels at an office cafeteria in Texas where he was working as a chef; throughout the segments, Triple H would try to convince Michaels to return to WWE and reform DX. After several incidents during the segments, Michaels agreed to team with Triple H to face The Legacy Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase at SummerSlam. At the pay-per-view event, DX defeated Legacy. The two teams would exchange victories, with their feud concluding in October. Two months later, at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, DX defeated Chris Jericho and The Big Show to win the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match TLC. On the January 4, 2010 episode of Raw, Michaels buried the hatchet with long-time rival Bret Hart, as they shook hands and hugged in the ring. In contrast to the storylines featured on the show, this was in fact a real-life reconciliation which laid to rest animosities surrounding the Montreal Screwjob. While some cast doubts on its sincerity, both men have confirmed that it was indeed genuine. DX lost the Unified Tag Team Championship in a Triple Threat match to the team of The Miz and Big Show on the February 8 episode of Raw, the match also included The Straight Edge Society CM Punk and Luke Gallows. At the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, Michaels cost The Undertaker the World Heavyweight Championship in the main event. At WrestleMania XXVI, Michaels lost to The Undertaker and, as a result, he was forced to retire due to the match stipulation, the same way HBK ended Ric Flair's career. The following night, on the March 29 episode of Raw, Michaels gave an emotional farewell speech, departing with the familiar sentence, "Shawn Michaels has left the building. On the December 14 Raw, Michaels won the Slammy Award for Moment of the Year for his match against The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVI. Michaels accepted the award via satellite. Three days later, he announced a long-term deal with WWE, where he will serve in an ambassadorial role. He made his in-person TV return at the December 11 Tribute to the Troops taping, where he and Triple H had a one-night only DX reunion. He appeared on the January 10, 2011 Raw, where he was announced as a WWE Hall of Fame inductee. After being ridiculed by Alberto Del Rio later that night, Michaels hit him with Sweet Chin Music. On the March 28 Raw, Michaels addressed Triple H and The Undertaker about their match at WrestleMania XXVII.
Michaels was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 2 by Triple H. They were also joined by fellow Kliq members Kevin Nash who had returned to WWE for the Royal Rumble and Sean Waltman.
He returned on the June 27 Raw, where he was confronted by CM Punk, and superkicked David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty. Later that night, when Diamond Dallas Page's special appearance was interrupted by Drew McIntyre, he superkicked McIntyre. On February 13, 2012, he confronted Triple H about accepting The Undertaker's challenge for a Hell in a Cell at Wrestlemania XXVIII, and announced he'd be the special guest referee for it.
August 6 was "Shawn Michaels Appreciation Night". He appeared on Raw, where he was confronted by Brock Lesnar, then again after the broadcast for the Appreciation Night ceremonies. On the January 24 WWE NXT, he announced a tournament to crown the inaugural NXT Tag Team Champions.
On the April 1, 2013 Raw, Michaels returned to offer to corner Triple H in his match with Lesnar at WrestleMania 29. During that match, Michaels superkicked an interfering Paul Heyman, helping Triple H win and keep his job. He returned on the May 27 Raw in a backstage segment with John Cena, and again on the SummerSlam pre-show.
In October 2013, Michaels won a fan poll to become special guest referee for the Hell in a Cell match between Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton for the vacant WWE Championship. There, he superkicked Bryan, allowing Orton to pick up the win. The next night on Raw, he explained that he was upset with Bryan for attacking Triple H during the match. He degraded Bryan for not showing him respect, turning heel for the first time since 2005. Bryan put him in his Yes Lock finisher to end the segment. On December 9, he presented Bryan with the award for Superstar of the Year. Later that night, Bryan hit Michaels with a running knee after Michaels had super-kicked CM Punk.
Personal life
Hickenbottom's first marriage, to Theresa Wood, soon ended in an amicably settled divorce. He married former WCW Nitro Girl Rebecca Hickenbottom née Curci previously known as Whisper on March 31, 1999, at the Graceland Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Only the couple and an Elvis impersonator were present. Their son, Cameron Kade, was born on January 15, 2000, and a daughter, Cheyenne, followed. His cousin Matt Bentley is also a professional wrestler, having wrestled in TNA and WWE.
Hickenbottom has several tattoos. On his bicep is a heart with a sword through it, and a snake around both in the shape of an "S." On his ring finger is an "R" for his wife Rebecca, and his children's names are on his left wrist, like a bracelet. On his left leg is a picture of his wife, on the right is the state of Texas. On his right hip is a small broken heart with "HBK" above it.
In 1996, Hickenbottom posed for a non-nude layout in Playgirl magazine. Only after he posed did he discover Playgirl has a mostly gay readership, for which some of his fellow wrestlers teased him.
He is ambidextrous, and had trouble differentiating between right and left, which affected his football games as a boy. He uses his right hand to draw and color and his left hand to write. He typically kicks with his right leg in Sweet Chin Music, but uses either arm for his signature elbow drop, depending on position.
Hickenbottom is a born again Christian. He was raised as a Roman Catholic, but became a non-denominational Christian because of his wife. His ring attire often incorporated cross symbols. During ring entrances, he often made a praying gesture on his knees while his pyrotechnics went off. He was in the audience for a televised service of John Hagee's Cornerstone Church in his hometown, San Antonio, where he is also a Bible teacher. In 2008, he appeared on a Trinity Broadcasting Network program with fellow professional wrestler Sting.
Franklin Roberto "Bobby" Lashley born July 16, 1976is an American mixed martial artist, former collegiate amateur wrestler, and professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under the ring name Lashley. He is perhaps best known for his time in WWE, where he is a one-time United States Champion and two-time ECW World Champion. Lashley also has the distinction of being the first African-American to hold the ECW World Heavyweight Title as well as the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.
Lashley attended Missouri Valley College, where he won three national college amateur wrestling championships between 1996 and 1998 and placed fourth in 1995. In 1997 and 1998, he was the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics NAIA National Wrestling Champion.Lashley later joined the United States Army, where he continued to wrestle.[1][5] He was training for the Olympics in 2003, when he suffered a knee injury while doing business at a bank where a robbery broke out. The injury ended his Olympic plans, and Lashley went into pro wrestling soon after.
In November 2004, Lashley began working in the professional wrestling area and signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment. He was assigned to the development territory Ohio Valley Wrestling, where he was known as Blaster Lashley, and was a member of the Bolin Services stable along with Mike Mondo and Ken Doane. However during that time Bolin Services began to crumble with Lashley refusing to help Doane win matches, resulting in him turning face and going by his Bobby Lashley name.
United States Champion 2005–2006.
In mid-2005 Lashley appeared at four live events, wrestling in dark matches for both the Raw and SmackDown! brands.On September 23, 2005, Lashley made his televised WWE debut as a face on SmackDown using the name Bobby Lashley. Lashley was introduced as a three-time National Amateur Wrestling Champion, a four-time All-American, a two-time Armed Forces Champion, and a 2002 Silver Medalist at the Military World Championship. In his first match, he defeated Simon Dean. In his pay-per-view debut at No Mercy, he defeated Dean once again. Lashley went on to defeat numerous superstars both on SmackDown! and Raw. On the November 11 episode of SmackDown!, Lashley defeated Orlando Jordan in a qualifying match for a place on Team SmackDown! at Survivor Series where he was the first to be eliminated. Prior to this elimination Lashley was dominating the Raw Superstars, showcasing various "power moves" and a finisher on Carlito. Yet a chokeslam from Kane, who was on the apron, caused Lashley to be eliminated.
On January 6, 2006, Lashley became the first SmackDown! wrestler to qualify for that year's Royal Rumble.At the Royal Rumble, Lashley was the eighth wrestler to enter the match. He eliminated Sylvain, but he was then eliminated by the combination of Raw's then World Tag Team Champions The Big Show and Kane.Following the Royal Rumble, Lashley began a feud with John Bradshaw Layfield leading up to a match at No Way Out. The match turned out to be Lashley's first loss in singles competition, largely due to interference from Finlay.This prompted a feud between Lashley and Finlay, which lasted throughout February and March. This notably included a lumberjack match, which Finlay won after using a shillelagh.
On April 2, after winning a battle royal by lastly eliminating MNM,Lashley competed at his first WrestleMania WrestleMania 22 in the Money in the Bank ladder match – which was won by Rob Van Dam.Lashley next entered SmackDown!'s King of the Ring tournament. He made it to the finals, defeating Mark Henry and Finlay in the process.However, in the final round – held at Judgment Day – he was defeated by Booker T with help from Finlay. As Booker was being crowned during his coronation, Lashley speared him.These acts developed into a feud with the newly named "King Booker" and the other members of his court Queen Sharmell, Finlay, and William Regal. During this feud, Lashley won his first professional wrestling championship by defeating JBL for the United States Championship, which he lost to Finlay a little less than two months later. Lashley later joined forces with Batista against the Court. Shortly after losing the United States Title, a physician declared Lashley unable to compete, stating that during an annual exam, Lashley was found to have elevated enzymes of the liver and therefore, would not be cleared to wrestle until further evaluation.Lashley returned a couple of weeks later to the SmackDown! roster to continue his feud with the Court and went on to earn his first match for the World Heavyweight Championship at No Mercy against King Booker. The bout was subsequently turned into a four-way bout, also including Batista and Booker's ally, Finlay. King Booker won the match after pinning Finlay.
ECW World Champion 2006–2007
On November 14, 2006, Lashley moved to the ECW brand. He debuted on the brand by making a surprise appearance to sign a contract for the final spot in the Extreme Elimination Chamber match for the ECW World Championship at December to Dismember.At December to Dismember, Lashley was the fifth person released into the match. He eliminated both Test and The Big Show by pinfall after a spear to become the new ECW World Champion. This made Lashley the first African American to hold the ECW Title.
After winning the ECW World Championship, Lashley then had successful title defenses against Big Show, Rob Van Dam, Test, Hardcore Holly, Kenny Dykstra, and Mr. Kennedy.On the March 19, 2007, episode of Raw, Lashley officially became the first and only person to ever break Chris Masters' masterlock hold and thus the first and only person to ever defeat the masterlock challenge.
In early 2007, Lashley was selected by Donald Trump to represent him in a "Battle of the Billionaires" match, against Vince McMahon's representative, Umaga which also featured Vince's long time adversary Stone Cold Steve Austin as the guest referee. At WrestleMania 23 in a Hair vs. Hair match, Lashley defeated Umaga following a spear and helped Trump shave McMahon's head afterwards in accordance with the match's losing stipulation.After WrestleMania, Lashley feuded with Mr. McMahon. McMahon booked himself, his son Shane McMahon, and Umaga in a 3 on 1 handicap match against Lashley at Backlash for the ECW World Championship. After two high impact diving splashes from Umaga, Mr. McMahon tagged himself into the match and pinned Lashley to win the title.Lashley legitimately injured his shoulder during the match and after an examination days later, it was revealed he had a damaged rotator cuff but would not need surgery at the time.At Judgment Day, Lashley defeated Vince, Shane, and Umaga in a 3 on 1 handicap rematch after hitting the Dominator on Shane McMahon. Lashley did not win the ECW World Championship, however, because he did not pin Mr. McMahon. As a result, Mr. McMahon retained the title.On June 3 at One Night Stand, Lashley defeated Vince McMahon in a street fight to win the ECW World Championship for a second reign despite interference by Shane McMahon and Umaga in the match, making Lashley the first man to win the ECW World Championship twice since WWE reactivated the title.
On the June 11 edition of Raw, Lashley was drafted from the ECW brand to the Raw brand as part of the 2007 WWE Draft, as a result of the drafting, Lashley had the ECW World Championship taken from him. He took place in a challenge match against Mick Foley, Randy Orton, King Booker and John Cena for the WWE Championship at Vengeance: Night of Champions which Cena won to retain the WWE championship. Lashley became the number one contender for the WWE Championship by winning the "Beat the Clock" challenge on the July 2 edition of Raw. On July 22 at The Great American Bash, he was pinned and defeated by John Cena, after the match they shook hands as a sign of respect, this was Lashley's final WWE pay-per-view appearance. On July 30 episode of Raw, Lashley was defeated by Mr. Kennedy. During the match, Lashley was "injured" after Mr. Kennedy kicked Lashley's shoulder into the ring steps, allowing Lashley to have time off for surgery for the legitimate injury he suffered at The Great American Bash, this was Lashley's final appearance in WWE. After a six-month injury, WWE announced that Lashley was released from his WWE contract on February 4, 2008.
Asistencia Asesoría y Administración and independent circuit 2008
After Lashley was released from WWE, Lashley returned to wrestling by appearing at Asistencia Asesoría y Administración's flagship event Triplemanía XVI. He, along with Kenzo Suzuki and Electroshock, defeated Chessman, Silver King, and La Parka, Jr.
Also after his departure from the WWE, Lashley would appear in many independent promotions. Such as World League Wrestling. He also appeared in the Denver based Fusion Pro Wrestling, teaming with AJ Styles, and Paul Diamond to face the "Three Egos." He also wrestled for the Inoki Genome Federation in Japan.
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling 2009–2010
Lashley made an appearance at Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's Lockdown pay-per-view event on April 19, 2009 and he also later appeared on that week's episode of TNA Impact!, both times pointing and smiling at The Main Event Mafia, thus appearing as a heel. On July 15, TNA announced that he had signed an official contract with the company.On July 23, Kurt Angle introduced Lashley as the newest member of the Main Event Mafia. Lashley entered the ring and hugged Angle while the rest of the Mafia held a beaten and battered Mick Foley upright. Angle then told Lashley to finish off Foley but as Lashley prepared to spear Foley, he turned on Angle and cleared the Mafia from the ring, thus making him a face.
On the July 30 edition of Impact!, Lashley made his in-ring debut for TNA in a tag team match as he and Mick Foley wrestled against World Heavyweight Champion Kurt Angle and Legends Champion Kevin Nash, where if Angle or Nash was pinned, whoever defeated them would win their respective title. It started out as a handicap match thanks to the Main Event Mafia attacking Lashley before the match, but eventually Lashley entered the match and helped Mick Foley pin Nash to win the match for his team and become the Legends Champion.On the August 27 edition of Impact!, Jeremy Borash interviewed him and TNA President Dixie Carter in which she said their goal was to make him a World Champion in both MMA and TNA. At No Surrender, he defeated Rhino with a knockout punch.
After No Surrender, Lashley began a feud with Samoa Joe. After teaming with Team 3D in a winning effort against Rhino and The British Invasion Doug Williams and Brutus Magnus on the October 1 edition of Impact!, Joe assaulted Lashley and choked him out with a rear naked choke.The following week, Lashley cost Joe the X Division Championship in a match against Amazing Red.At Bound for Glory, Lashley defeated Joe in a submission match.The following month at Turning Point Lashley's winning streak came to an end, when Scott Steiner pinned him in a Falls ount Anywhere match following a shot with a steel pipe.On November 26, Lashley defeated Abyss, Desmond Wolfe, and Robert Roode to win the TNA Championship Series tournament and earn himself a future World Heavyweight Title shot. At Final Resolution, Lashley avenged his prior loss and defeated Steiner in a Last Man Standing match with a pipeshot. On the January 4, 2010, Monday night edition of Impact!, Lashley and Kristal turned heel after requesting their immediate releases from TNA in order for Lashley to fully concentrate on his MMA career. Lashley went on to attack random wrestlers until he was granted what he wanted. On the January 21 edition of Impact! Lashley suddenly apologized to new executive producer Eric Bischoff for his actions, saying he just wanted to compete, but was nevertheless fired by him the following week. This was Lashley's last TNA appearance until 2014. On February 10, 2010, Lashley's profile was removed from the official TNA website. In an interview with Heavy Sports Lashley claimed that the release was legitimate and had been done in order for him to fully focus on his MMA career.
Independent circuit 2011–2012
After Lashley was released from TNA he made one appearance in Antonio Inoki's promotion Inoki Genome Federation IGF. He defeated another WWE alumni The Predator. He returned to Japan in September 25, 2010 for a tag-team match with Bob Sapp against Kendo Kashin and Tamon Honda. Bob and Bobby were defeated. Since then Lashey regularly performs in IGF. In 2011 he participated in the IGF Championship tournament. He won the 1st round match against Keith Hanson, but was defeated in semifinals by Josh Barnett.
On October 20, 2012, Lashley wrestled Jay Bradley and Robert Anthony in a three-way match for the vacant Resistance Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Championship, which was won by Anthony. On June 26, 2013, Lashley signed a two-year contract with IGF, after winning the promotion's general election.
Return to TNA 2014–present
On March 9, 2014, Lashley returned to TNA at Lockdown in Miami, Florida, answering Ethan Carter III's open challenge after his scheduled opponent Kurt Angle could not wrestle due to an injury. On the March 20th episode of Impact Wrestling, Lashley and Carter had a rematch that once again ended in a no contest after an interference by Willow attacking Carter. On the May 15 episode of Impact Wrestling, Lashley made his return after running out to the aid of Eric Young, but instead hitting Young with a spear, and allying himself along with MVP and Kenny King, thus turning heel.
In June 2014, TNA started introducing him as "Lashley without using his first name Bobby, to avoid confusion with another wrestler named Bobby. On the June 19 episode Impact Wrestling, Lashley defeated Eric Young to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, his first championship in his TNA career, as well as his third world championship. He defended the title on June 20, 2014 aired July 3 against Young. On June 25 aired July 17 Lashley defended the title against Jeff Hardy. At Impact Wrestling: Destination X, on June 26 aired July 31 Lashley defended the title against Austin Aries, who had forfeited the X Division Championship for a title shot. On the September 18, 2014 edition of Impact Wrestling, Lashley lost the TNA World Heavyweight Championship to Bobby Roode.
Lashley made his mixed martial arts debut at the Mixed Fighting Alliance MFA inaugural event "There Will Be Blood" on December 13, 2008 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. He won via TKO cut over Joshua Franklin in 41 seconds of the first round. Lashley's next fight was on March 21, 2009. He was supposed to fight Ken Shamrock, but his opponent was changed to Bellator MMA veteran Jason Guida after Shamrock tested positive for steroids. Lashley won the fight after a unanimous decision. Lashley signed with the Maximum Fighting Championship and made his debut on May 15 against Mike Cook, who made his ring entrance wearing a Rey Mysterio mask, which Lashley took as an insult. He went on to defeat Cook with a guillotine choke just 24 seconds into the first round. On June 27, 2009, Lashley defeated Bob Sapp at the PFP: Ultimate Chaos event in Biloxi, Mississippi. He won the bout via TKO strikes in the first round, making Lashley's MMA record 4–0.
Strikeforce
He was scheduled to make his Strikeforce debut against undefeated heavyweight Shane Del Rosario at Strikeforce: Miami, but for unknown reasons, Strikeforce decided to change his opponent. Lashley was then expected to face journeyman Jimmy Ambriz on January 30, 2010 at Strikeforce: Miami, but that matchup was also scrapped. Lashley wound up facing former UFC fighter Wes Sims at the event. Lashley defeated Sims via 1st round TKO victory to remain undefeated.
Lashley was expected to fight on April 17, 2010 at Strikeforce: Nashville, as the promotion had already submitted an opponent for Lashley and was awaiting approval from the Tennessee Athletic Commission. According to Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker, the bout would likely be the fourth bout on the CBS televised portion of the event. On April 5, Lashley confirmed that he will not appear on the card since Strikeforce officials could not guarantee an appearance on the televised portion of the card due to time constraints. Bobby was set to appear at Strikeforce: Los Angeles in June fighting Ron Sparks however he suffered a knee injury and did not compete.
Lashley faced Chad Griggs at Strikeforce: Houston on August 21, 2010. Lashley came out shooting the takedown, and ground and pounding. Lashley dominated at first but Griggs caught him with a series of uppercuts on one of the takedowns in the first round, opening a gash under the left corner of Lashley's left eye and Lashely had trouble keeping Griggs from striking him even though he had dominate control over him on the ground but Griggs was still finding openings on the bottom. Lashley was able to continue in the second round, continuing takedowns and ground and pound. Lashley eventually passed to mount halfway through the second round and unloaded many good punches on Griggs while maintaining control. Referee Jon Schorle then asked the fight to be stood up due to inactivity, even though Lashley was in full mount at the time, Lashley then complained to the referee about the cut under his eye. Referee Jon Schorle then asked the ringside doctor with 33 seconds left in the second round to inspect the cut with Lashley deciding to continue fighting, this created some controversy as referee Jon Schorle did not put the fight back in mount where it was originally stopped. Griggs then sprawled out of a desperate takedown by Lashley near the end of round two and hammer-fisted the eye of Lashley's that was already cut until the round ended. A ring doctor then stopped the fight, resulting in Lashley losing at the end of the second round by TKO. Backstage after the fight, Lashley was taken off on a stretcher due to dehydration. Following the fight it was discovered that Lashley was suffering from mono and was subsequently unable to train for four months.
O0n February 18, 2011, Titan Fighting Championship had announced the signing of Lashley. He was expected to debut against James Jack however on March 16, 2011, officials announced they had lost contact with Jack and instead John Ott stepped in to fight Lashley. The pace of the fight slowed down drastically in the second round, where Lashley began to display the same cardio problems that affected him in his previous fight. He was able to win a unanimous decision, despite suffering the effects of illness.
Lashley was scheduled to fight Eddie Sanchez at Titan Fighting Championships 19. But on July 22, 2011, it was announced that Lashley withdrew from the fight due to personal reasons.
Lashley defeated Kevin Asplund at Titan Fighting Championships 25 on June 7, 2013 winning via keylock submission.
Lashley has signed a three-year deal with Shark Fights and was expected to make his debut against Darrill Schoonover in November, The fight was to be for the heavyweight title. However Schoonover later pulled out of the bout due to an injury. Lashley was then set to headline Shark Fights 21 against Tim Hague. But Hague pulled out of the bout for unknown reasons and was replaced by Dave Huckaba. On November 7 it was confirmed that the fight with Huckaba had been scrapped for unknown reasons, Lashley was then scheduled to face Mark Martinez but Martinez was later pulled out of the bout due to expired blood work.
On November 11, 2011 Lashley became the new Shark Fights Heavyweight champion defeating Karl Knothe in the first round by submission. Knothe was the fifth different opponent scheduled to face Lashley after numerous fighters pulled out due to various reasons.
Independent promotions
He next competed at India's Super Fight League's third event, SFL 3, against James Thompson. Lashley lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Lashley was scheduled to face Matthew Larson at GWC: The British Invasion: U.S. vs. U.K. on June 29, 2013. Lashley won via rear naked choke submission in round one. In an interview with MMA Junkie the day prior to his GWC fight, Lashley indicated that he had two potential fights lined up for August 2013, saying "If I'm going to fight, I need to fight. I need to stay active. I need to do something big now. If not, I need to hang it up and just do stuff with my gym. I'm fighting this fight, and I think I have two in August that were offered to me. Hopefully if I don't get hurt, I can stay active and just keep going."
Lashley fought at Xtreme Fight Night 15: Indestructible on November 8, 2013 against Tony "The Rock" Melton, which he won via unanimous decision.
Bellator MMA
In July 2014, it was announced that Lashley had signed with Bellator MMA. He made his promotional debut against Josh Burns on September 5, 2014 at Bellator 123. Lashley won the fight via rear-naked choke submission in the second round.
In his second fight for the promotion, Lashley faced undefeated Karl Etherington on October 24, 2014 at Bellator 130. He won via submission due to punches, in the first round.
Personal life
Lashley graduated from Missouri Valley College in 1999 with a degree in Human Service Agency Management. Lashley has a daughter, Kyra, who was born in 2005.
In 2007, Lashley opened up a shop that sells health smoothie drinks.
He dated former WWE Diva Kristal Marshall. The couple had a son, named Myles in July 2008.In April 2010, Kristal confirmed on Twitter that she and Lashley have split.
In July 2009, Lashley announced the launch of The Lashley Network. The Lashley Network of websites comprises his official gym, his official nutrition store, and his social networking website. In a press release for the launch he stated that he is keeping his name out in the television media and on the internet so he can reach his goal of being the top fighter in MMA.
In March 2010, Lashley announced the grand opening of his new gym in the Denver, Colorado area titled American Top Team Altitude. The facility will serve as a gym such as popular chain Gold's Gym and will also showcase MMA events.
Lashley was featured in the 2010 video game EA Sports MMA.
In May 2010, Lashley announced the opening of his new MMA Management company Lashley Management. Lashley, along with co-founder Judith Sussman, represent current and future mixed martial artists.
Other media
In March 2007, he alongside Randy Orton, John Cena, and Edge appeared on Deal or No Deal. In 2009, he made a cameo appearance in the action movie The Way of War, credited as the "Tattooed Hispanic Man.