HOUSTON -- June 15, 2003 -- On one hand, Shawn Michaels was relieved after his match against Ric Flair tonight at Bad Blood. The Heartbreak Kid had been battling stomach flu all week, so he was happy to get through the match successfully.

On the other hand, he was a bit disappointed.

“I’m disappointed in the time,” he said moments after the conclusion of the match. “You had two of the best wrestlers in the world. We were given 18 minutes to wrestle. That’s b.s.”

On Friday’s Byte This!, HBK said he was hoping to have 30-35 minutes of good, old-fashioned wrestling with the “Nature Boy.” Tonight, he got barely half that amount of time. Michaels’ body language and facial expressions after the match indicated that he was frustrated.

Asked if he wanted to have a rematch, HBK said, “That’s up to the office. I don’t think they plan on one, but I have no idea.”

Michaels no doubt was hoping for more for his first major singles match with Flair. Until tonight, the two had only wrestled together in a few tag team matches and one singles match, about 10-12 years ago in Corpus Christi, Texas, a match taped for WWE Wrestling Challenge.

Michaels said he’s been bedridden all week, unable to train due to the stomach flu, so while he wasn’t sure if he was a step slower during the match -- “That’s for everyone else to say,” he said -- he was feeling worn out afterwards.

But fortunately, there were no major injuries.

“I’m fine,” he said. “My back is sore, and I’m hungry, so that’s a good sign.”

Michaels said his symptoms began on Monday after RAW and continued until Friday afternoon. He started feeling better yesterday, but took a turn for the worse this morning.

All day long at the Compaq Center, he drank fluids to make sure he was sufficiently hydrated. He only had a little bit of bland food, like pasta and a bagel.

“But I feel like it’s starting to taper off,” he said. “Now I’m just feeling run down.”

It’s not the first time that the Showstoppa has battled illness heading into a big pay-per-view. At the 1997 Royal Rumble in San Antonio, Michaels battled the flu.

“That one wasn’t as bad as this,” Michaels said. “That was just one night. This has been all week.”