"The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels is a different man in 2015 than he was in the 1990s. Michaels went from being a cocky and brash young man to maturing and turned a corner in his life through his faith, but things didn't always go smoothly for him during the prime of his career.
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The WWE Hall of Famer recently opened up to Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard blog about his tumultuous rise to the top of the WWE in 1997 and 1998 to promote his upcoming book.
Michaels discussed a story of The Undertaker, whose real name is Mark Calaway, telling people he would beat him up if he didn't job to "Stone Cold" Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV in 1998 like he was supposed to.
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"Back then, Mark didn't like me. But at no time has he ever claimed that he said anything to the face of Shawn Michaels, and that's because he didn't," Michaels told the blog. "Mark went to everybody and told them, 'If this doesn't go down the way it should, I'm going to have a big problem and Shawn is going to have a big problem. I'll go over there and beat the heck out of him.' But he never had to say anything to me. My whole intention at WrestleMania XIV was to drop the belt to Steve, but I was going to make everybody sweat it out and make them think I wasn't. Obviously, I got that accomplished. That's extremely unprofessional, but that's exactly who I was and what I was doing."
Michaels, who injured his back in a Casket Match against Calloway at the 1998 Royal Rumble in January, dropped the title to Austin in what was his last match for four years due to the ailment.
Michaels troubles backstage in the WWE started well before 1998 as he and friends Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Sean Waltman and current WWE executive Triple H had major pull with WWE owner Vince McMahon.
The group had a big backstage influence and collectively became known as The Kliq.
Michaels touched on people backstage hating them for their pull over McMahon, who had no choice but to appease them with the company beginning to struggle.
"People's dislike for us was palpable. So it was our adamant decision to feed into that even more," Michaels said. "There were times when the wrestling narrative -- the inside the business narrative -- seemed so silly, and we made a decision never to glad-hand and take the heat off ourselves. We found the decision to add heat on top of us and make it worse was pretty amusing, and that's what we always decided to do."
Michaels' main adversary during this time was Bret "Hitman" Hart as the two hated each other on and off-screen.
This feud eventually led to the infamous Montreal Screwjob in 1997 at the Survivor Series in Montreal that saw McMahon swerve Hart -- who was heading to WCW -- out of the WWE Championship by going against the agreed upon disqualification finish.
Michaels was asked if the departure of his friends in the Kliq for rival WCW hadn't happened, things could have gone down differently in Montreal.
"I don't think anyone would have swayed Bret's decision-making," he said. "But if Kevin and Scott were still there, and I still had my friends, it would have prevented the entire thing from getting as out of hand as it did. Bret and I were friends, but we were young and we made bad decisions. We couldn't see outside the wrestling business. It was the end-all, be-all. You were in that box constantly, so that's all you thought about. It affects your decision-making."
Lastly, Michaels, who has since mended fences with Hart, touched upon how his faith turned things around for him in his life and has changed the attitude he had when he was younger.
"I was difficult. I made it a point to be that way," he said. "But I've admitted to it and it's time to move on, which is what I've done. People will constantly bring up my past and throw it in my face, but the Creator of the Universe doesn't. If you ask forgiveness from Him, then it's gone forever. The past is never brought up to shame you or degrade you. That's what I love about my faith and Christianity. It's the polar opposite of darn near everything I experienced in the wrestling business. I still love the business and I'm thankful for everything that it's provided, but the idea that it deals in the truth is the furthest thing from reality."
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