The WrestleMania 28 news is coming fast and furious today. Earlier we learned that WWE is currently in talks with former NBA great and future Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal to appear at the show in a match against Big Show.
Now, word comes down that Shawn Michaels is likely going to be plugged in as the special guest referee for the Triple H vs. Undertaker co-headliner. From Dave Meltzer's Observer Newsletter:
Michaels is planned to referee the HHH vs. Undertaker match at Mania this year, which is slated to be the No. 2 match on the show this year. That means if Cena isn't WWE champion (or HHH isn't, and he shouldn't be), that the title match will at best be the No. 2 bout. Lots of talk of Punk vs. Jericho or someone else in the title match position. Cena did bring up the only way to make Rock vs. Cena the biggest match ever is for the title to be involved. Obviously it would not have been brought up if that wasn't the plan at the time. For business on that night, it would help the show more than adding a title match three bouts down on the show. This show isn't drawing on depth, but on the power of the main event (and to a lesser extent the No. 2 match) to be able to be promoted as the biggest match in Mania history. ... If nothing else, if Punk has the title it will make Punk's match come across as bigger even if from a money drawing aspect it's not like him in a title match is going to sell buys that aren't already being sold for the main events and the Mania name. The other selling point is HHH and Michaels, the two guys who had come the closest to ending the streak, both already having lost twice, with the idea they may work together this year to end the streak.
The idea of Michaels as special guest referee was kicked around last year but ultimately they never pulled the trigger on it. Last year they did a build that no one enjoyed because they completely ignored the fact that Triple H had already had a match against Undertaker back at WrestleMania 17. They literally refused to acknowledge it.
It was also considered a poor build because it basically centered around Trips claiming he was the only one left in the entire WWE locker room who had a chance to break the streak. That's regrettable language as far as future prospects go but in hindsight, it worked well in terms of having a good reason to insert Michaels into the story as the referee.
"The Game" can play it with the best of 'em and his angle will undoubtedly be to appeal to his best friend to do what neither could do alone and finally end the streak once and for all but to do it together. D-Generation X and all that.
This will give WWE the chance to weave a tale of trust into one of betrayal or vice versa, as Michaels did lose to Undertaker at two consecutive WrestleMania's, the last of which proved to be "The Heartbreak Kid's" retirement match. But he's also a born again Christian who seeks only to do the right thing, so he'll naturally have a crisis of conscience and struggle to retain his fundamental moral core at the expense of his friend, a man who legitimately took care of him for years on the road while he struggled through drug and attitude problems.
This has the potential to be great. A second match between Triple H and Undertaker isn't all together appealing, especially considering they're both one year older and with that much more tear on their body but if they handle this story right -- and that's certainly no sure thing -- this could be something truly special.
Let's hope for the best.