One of the dream matches for the ages in wrestling is Eddie Guerrero vs Shawn Michaels. Both men were at the top of their games in WWE and were considered two of the best in the world. However, they never managed to wrestle each other, although a match was planned to take place at the biggest stage of them all – Wrestlemania 22.
Eddie Guerrero vs Shawn Michaels
Eddie Guerrero was planned to take on Shawn Michaels in a huge match at Wrestlemania 22. The Latino star was a fan favourite in WWE, having won the WWE Championship from Brock Lesnar just two years prior, retaining the title against Kurt Angle at Wrestlemania XX. Being 38 years old he was in his prime, and approaching legendary status in wrestling, looking poised to remain a main event player for years to come.
But shockingly, he died in 2005 suddenly. On November 13, 2005 he was found dead in his hotel room by his nephew Chavo Guerrero. His cause of death was an acute heart failure and his death sent shockwaves across the wrestling world. A tribute show was put on in his name and Rey Mysterio would win the Royal Rumble in tribute to Latino Heat.
Eddie Guerrero wrestled with Rey Mysterio at his final WrestleMania in 2005, in a match that harkened back to the pairs battles in WCW in the 1990s. It was a classic WWE match and had fans excited for future matches involving the Latino Heat.
However, he passed away before we could get many more legendary matches. He was planned to have a number of dream matches in the future, with Bruce Prichard revealing that WWE planned to have Eddie Guerrero vs Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania 22.
Bruce Prichard revealed on his Something to Wrestle podcast that Guerrero was talked about to face Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 22, and was pencilled in for a dream match that the former WWE Executive would “Love to have seen”.
“It was kicked around as a possibility because they never worked together, and that was, at least in my head, a dream match,” Prichard said. “That was one of those that I definitely would love to have seen.”
It’s a travesty that two of the all time greats never managed to go one-on-one in the ring together. Sadly, Eddie Guerrero passed away 6 months before the big event. Shawn Michaels would go on to fight Vince McMahon at Wrestlemania, whilst Rey Mysterio paid tribute to his late friend by winning the World Heavyweight Championship from Kurt Angle at Wrestlemania 22.
How Did Eddie Guerrero Die?
Eddie Guerrero died as a result of acute heart failure due to underlying atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. His heart was said to be enlarged due to years of steroid use, and his addition to drugs and pain pills over the years all as noted causes to his untimely death.
Chavo Guerrero explained that Eddie had passed out in the hotel room bathroom with a toothbrush in his hand, and was barely clinging to life when Chavo discovered him. He discussed this on an interview with Dark Side of the Ring, revealing he was the man to find his uncle dying in his hotel room.
The Monday Night Raw after his death was dedicated to Latino Heat. The Eddie Guerrero Tribute episode of Raw had many wrestlers, such as Rey Mysterio, Edge and Batista all speaking about their favourite memories of Guerrero and how much they were going to miss him.
It was a wholly emotional episode and one of the saddest episodes of wrestling TV ever produced. 17 years on, the memory of Eddie Guerrero lives on with a number of wrestlers doing his famous “Frog Splash” and “Three Amigos” signature moves in honour of the Latino star.
Guerrero was set to win the World Heavyweight Championship from Batista on the Smackdown after he died, meaning fans missed out on a second legendary World Championship run in the WWE.
It is a shame we never got to see Eddie Guerrero vs Shawn Michaels, which was sure to be one of the greatest Wrestlemania matches of all time.