Chris Jericho Calls Shawn Michaels “The Best Ever,” Discusses Their WrestleMania 19 Bout

Chris Jericho reflects on sharing the ring with Shawn Michaels.

Chris Jericho has had a storied WrestleMania career that includes a main event against Triple H and working with the likes of Ricky Steamboat, Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, AJ Styles, Edge, and CM Punk. But it’s his WrestleMania 19 bout against Shawn Michaels that is widely considered his best effort on the Grandest Stage of Them All.

Speaking to Inside The Ropes, Jericho discussed working with Michaels and how it was a match that wasn’t supposed to happen.

“Shawn is one of those guys….it’s like when (Ricky Steamboat) came back at (WrestleMania 25). He’s better than 75 percent of the roster. I’m demeaning the roster but Steamboat is like (Wayne) Gretzky. Shawn is like (Mario) Lemieux or Gordie Howe. In my opinion, the best ever. It’s not Flair, it’s not Bret, it’s Shawn Michaels for me,” said Jericho. “It was never supposed to be. It was a one-shot thing where I did a Highlight Reel and I was calling him old. Which is funny because he was 37 and I was 32. I was just kind of demeaning Shawn on the Highlight Reel, he super kicked me in the face, and that was supposed to be the end of it. We walked to the back and I remember Vince sitting there, smiling. Vince looks at Shawn and Shawn goes ‘It’s money’ and Vince said ‘You’re fucking right it’s money.’ That was where that whole angle started. It was supposed to be me and Edge that year, originally. But that happened in mid-December, and after that it’s like I think we’ve got something here with Jericho and Michaels for WrestleMania.”

In another recent interview with Inside The Ropes, Jericho revealed that he lobbied for his WrestleMania 18 bout against Triple H to not be the main event, believing they could not follow The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan. In comparing the two Mania matches, Jericho was much more pleased with how WrestleMania 19 turned out.

“It was the exact opposite of (WrestleMania 18),” stated Jericho. “It was a great build-up, a great story, it was not the main event ‘on last,’ but it stole the show. It was ‘a main event’ and one of the best matches in Mania history. There have been 35 show stealers in WrestleMania history. And our match is one of them.”

Jericho will not be part of WrestleMania this year as he’s signed to All Elite Wrestling. He is scheduled to face Kenny Omega at AEW Double or Nothing on May 25.

You can listen to the full interview with Jericho in the video above.