Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American professional wrestler. He performs on the Raw brand of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Currently, Hickenbottom is one of the senior performers in WWE, having joined in 1987. He is one of only two wrestlers (the other being The Undertaker) to have appeared on the very first episode of Monday Night Raw who are still with the company today. While continuing to make on-screen appearances, he was inactive from in-ring competition from 1998-2002 due to a legitimate severe back injury.
Before coming to WWE, Hickenbottom began his career in Mid-South Wrestling in 1984. He then went on to Texas All-Star Wrestling. He made his national debut with the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in 1986. He signed with World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in 1987 while still under contract with the AWA. He returned to the AWA, only to go back to WWF in 1988.
Hickenbottom is a four-time world champion: a three-time WWE Champion, and a one-time World Heavyweight Champion. He was also the winner of the 1995 and 1996 Royal Rumbles and the first Grand Slam Champion.
