"He never backed down" - Current RAW star is not at Shawn Michaels' level, says WWE veteran (Exclusive)
WWE veteran Vince Russo recently compared Shawn Michaels and Johnny Gargano, saying the former had a never-say-die attitude, which the latter lacks.
If one looks back at history, The Heartbreak Kid is one of the rare talents who achieved immense success despite not having an imposing physique. Michaels relied on his in-ring prowess and determination to take down his opponents.
One talent who's often compared to the WWE Hall of Famer is Johnny Gargano, as even the latter rarely backs down despite his physical limitations.
On Sportskeeda Wrestling's The Wrestling Outlaws, Vince Russo mentioned that the best part about Shawn Michaels was the fact that he was never afraid of his rivals.
Russo explained that even during his feud with The Undertaker, Michaels looked directly into his opponent's eyes, conveying that they were on the same level.
"Here's the one thing I used to love about Shawn. I wrote for Shawn in his prime. Here's the one thing about Shawn that I loved. I remember writing a feud; it was Taker and Shawn, and if you go back and look at the build to that, Shawn would get right in Taker's face and literally look him right in his face. In Shawn's mind, he literally believed, 'I could beat you.' He literally believed that, so he never backed down," said Russo.
Russo added that The Heartbreak Kid would back up his attitude by actually pushing his opponents to the limits, even if he eventually fell short. The WWE veteran stated that he doesn't get the same feeling from Johnny Gargano.
"And somehow and someway, even if he got beat, he would give the fight of a lifetime, and it would go toe-to-toe. I don't feel that with Johnny Gargano. I felt that with Shawn Michaels." [12:14 - 13:07]
Check out the full video below:
Johnny Gargano considers WWE legend Shawn Michaels as his biggest influence
In an interview a couple of years back, Gargano mentioned that Michaels was his favorite wrestler growing up and how he used to groove to his theme song.
Johnny Gargano added that he even dressed up like the former WWE Champion for Halloweens and that his parents had Michaels' picture drawn on his birthday cake.
"He [Shawn Michaels] is the reason I got into this whole thing. He was my favourite wrestler growing up, I used to dance around my house to 'Sexy Boy' on a daily basis. I used to dress like him for multiple Halloweens. He was on my birthday cake and my mom actually painted him on my wall and to be able to work with him now in NXT and to see him on a regular basis it's a dream come true," said Johnny Gargano.
It remains to be seen if the former NXT World Champion could come close to touching Shawn Michaels' legacy in WWE by the time he hangs up his boots.
What do you make of the comparisons between Michaels and Gargano? Sound off in the comments section below.
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