The Undertaker is set to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame by Vince McMahon in his home state of Texas. Being in the industry for such a long time, the Undertaker has seen many changes in the WWE over the years. He spoke about those changes and revealed his thoughts about the current generation of wrestlers. He described what changes the current product in the era of social media has seen.
Speaking on the True Geordie podcast, “The Deadman” said that the bad habits prevalent in the locker rooms in the ’80s and ’90s is no longer seen but courage and resolve is missing from current wrestling.
“Things have changed. I can’t just say that it’s changed in wrestling. In all sports, it’s a different generation. Call it evolution if you want. One, I don’t think the guys are leading the same lifestyles that guys in the past did. One, they can’t, because everything they do, there is somebody, somewhere [pulling out a cell phone]. I feel bad for them because they can’t go and blow off steam somewhere after they work because they are constantly under some type of surveillance, where I didn’t have to worry about that because there wasn’t cell phones and all that,” The Undertaker said (h/t Fightful).
The Undertaker recalled his own past and how the locker rooms back then were different. He also revealed how a few wrestlers would carry knives and guns in their bags, and disagreements were “settled in the showers”. He said that the current talent is missing a certain level of grit.
“I feel like there is a level of grit that is missing from today’s product. I don’t know that it’s anybody’s fault. We all aged out. That new group has come up. When you watch Brock wrestle, you’re interested because you know, he has this background as an amateur wrestler, professional wrestler, mixed martial artist.”
The superstars from this generation that do possess this “grit”, according to The Undertaker, are Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns.
Undertaker will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on April 1. He recently revealed that he turned down the offer to be inducted before and could have been inducted sooner.
