Was just randomly thinking of WWF in 1996 and this match popped into my head as something i'd like like to revisit. So I dug out the HBK: From The Vault DVD and gave it a watch. I've always loved it and it's a highly regarded match of course, some say it's Nash's best one, although I have said that was his match with Bret at Survivor Series, so we'll see on this one. This was also Nash's last televised WWF match before he split for WCW.
These two were best friends, then there was dissension, Nash turned on HBK and they became enemies. It needed a match fitting to the ongoing hatred these two had against each other, and what better way than a 'No holds barred' match? So, here it is.
Diesel is out first and is looking as cool as ever. He gets in the ring and throws his jacket straight onto Vince at the announce table. He's like “What the fuck is this?”. They show Mad Dog Vachon in the audience. Wonder if he'll come into play in this match
HBK is still in the back, being 'coached' by Jose Lothario, although i'm sure in his head, HBK is probably thinking “I don't need your stinking help, i'm fucking ready for the this shit, i'm the WWF Champion”. He finally makes his way out, and takes his jacket and belt off whilst walking to the ring and just goes running in the ring and straight for Diesel.
This thing is fucking on.
He starts clubbing Nash with some big right hands, but Nash finally says 'None of this shit', and gives HBK a big knee to the gut. He sends Shawn into the corner, but he reverses it and dropkicks Nash over the top and onto the outside. He follows this up with a baseball slide to keep Nash out the ring. He gets onto the top turn-buckle and Moonsaults onto Nash
HBK then, rather randomly, goes to the Spanish announce table and grabs a boot off someone, before getting onto the top turn-buckle again and ramming the said boot onto Nash's head, and goes for the cover for a 2 count. Nash sends Shawn flying into the turnbuckle, which HBK goes into it back first and flips over the ropes onto the apron. Nash then gives him a big sledgehammer shove and sends Shawn face first onto the guardrail. Shawn is dead.
Nash in control now. He goes to the outside and clumps Shawn with a big right hook, before throwing him back in the ring. Nash continues to pound on Shawn with punches and a big clothesline, before delivering classic 'Snake eyes'. Nash takes this opportunity to go and berate Vince some more lol. He puts Shawn into the corner and shouts “Hey old man, this is how we do it in the 90's” at Jose, before putting big knees into Shawn. He picks him up for a big, jumping side slam. Nash in control and fully enjoying this now.
Nash takes his wrist tape off, for which Earl Hebner doesn't like, so Nash strangles him with it and taking his trousers...........................no no.............belt off. He starts whipping Shawn's back with big
lashes of the belt. Ref is back up and his trousers are still up, so that's good. Not so good for HBK as Nash then uses the belt to strangle him with it, we get a camera close up of Shawn's anguish, which i'm not sure we'd see nowadays TBH. Nash swings HBK around with the belt and hangs him with it, in quite spectacular fashion
“Hang in there Shawn” - Lawler
Nash ties HBK to the ropes with the belt and he's now stuck. Even Vince unintentionally joins in and says “Shawn Michaels, trying to hang on”. Nash then goes over to the announce area and throws poor Howard Finkel off his chair and grabs it. As the ref is trying to untie HBK from the ropes (oh, how nice of him), Nash comes over and wallops him in the back with the chair. Shawn is now untied, but Nash is still in control and holds the chair aloft to show this and whacks Shawn again in the back with it. Nash tries hitting him again with it, but Shawn moves and he hits the ropes with it instead, which cause the chair to bounce back and hit Nash plum in the face.
This is HBK's big chance and the crowd know it.
Shawn picks up the chair himself and goes to hit Nash with it, but before he can, he gets a nasty low blow for his troubles.
'Don't rub them Son, count them'
The ref throws the chair to the outside and both Nash and HBK are flat, down on the mat. Nash is up first, whips Shawn into the ropes and into the big back body drop. He goes for a pin but only gets a 2 count. He then puts on the old 'twisted skull chrusher thing', man HBK has been through the mill so far. Shawn tries to power out of it, but Nash keeps swatting him with big blows, before one of them sends him to the outside. Nash follows him and signals for the Jackknife, which he does...............onto the announce table where Vince is.
The monitor ends up hitting Vince plum in the face in the process and his damn headset is also still plugged in
Shawn is dead again. Vince tries to tidy up whilst Nash gets in the ring with the WWF belt and poses with it. HBK eventually tries to make his way back up, not knowing where the fuck he is. He does get up and sneakily grabs a fire extinguisher and fires it straight into Nash's face, blinding him. Mind you, it took him two tries, and after the first failed, he seems to say something like “Motherfucker”
Now this has to be Shawn's big chance.
Ash can't see a thing and is throwing wild, blind punches at thin air :shane HBK takes this opportunity and lands some big right hooks of his own, before hitting a big flying forearm. Nash is finally down, HBK 'kips up' and is feeling it now. He goes to the outside and grabs a chair, but it's got a monitor wrapped around it, but he doesn't seem to notice or care as he whacks Nash with the chair. Lawler is like “That is my headset”. He then wallops Nash right in the face and that sends the big man right down onto the mat.
Nash is back up and HBK sends him into the ropes and tries a back body drop, but Nash is having none of it and clubs him in the back. He then gives Shawn a BIG BOOT, which I always love. He then signals again for the Jackknife, which he tries to hit, but HBK reverses it and starts punching the fuck out of Nash and gives him a stamps for good measure. He goes to the top and delivers a Macho Man elbow. He's in command now and stamps the mat and signals for 'Sweet Chin Music', he flies at Nash but it get's blocked and Nash gives him a big clothesline. Both are down on the mat.
Man alive this has been FUCKING GREAT.
They both bet back up, but Nash delivers another clothesline and sends Shawn to the outside. He picks Shawn up and plants him, face first, onto the guardrail, before throwing him back into the ring. Just as Nash is about to follow suit, he stops and walks over to the crowd. What is he doing? He goes and grabs Mad Dog Vachon and PULLS OFF HIS FUCKING PROSTHETIC LEG, yes you read that right, HE PULLS OFF HIS FUCKING PROSTHETIC LEG
He tries to hit Shawn with the leg, but is instead hit with sweet revenge and he gets a big low blow
'Don't rub them, Son, count them'
Shawn picks up the leg, just typing that makes me smile, waits for Nash to get back up again, and runs over and plants the leg right into the cranium of Nash. That's gotta hurt. He then hits 'Sweet Chin Music' for the win and to retain the WWF Championship.
Shawn then seemed to fire a message to Hogan with “You want a big boy to play with”?
Well, this was just as good as it's ever been. Some big spots that i'd forgotten about TBH, like the table bump HBK took. I just love the pace of the match, the control that Nash has for large proportions of it and the way HBK sells being beat the shit out of. The leg spot if funny, but hey it's a NHB and it added to the match in the end. Just a war, with HBK trying to survive and o what he could, when he could, to come back and make it through. I'd still say Nash's best match was with Bret, but fuck this isn't far off.
A full on, WWF classic, and not the only one of course from this year.
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