The recently released episode of The Undertaker’s docuseries, The Last Ride, featured footage of ‘Taker interrupting Elias in the ring. He would proceed to deliver a chokeslam and Tombstone Piledriver to Elias. Turns out that this exchange was intended to build into a matchup between the two Superstars at WWE’s 2019 Saudi Arabia event, Super ShowDown.
Taking to his Instagram account, Elias revealed how a clash was “set to happen” in Saudi Arabia after their segment. He reflected on how everything about that night was “electric.”
As can happen, however, plans changed. Instead of Elias, The Undertaker would ultimately face off against Goldberg.
“Myself and The Deadman have crossed paths multiple times since I’ve been here, and I hope it’s not the last,” Elias wrote. “There is a great story to be told both on screen & behind the curtain. He’s one of the greatest to ever do it.”
The fourth episode of Undertaker: The Last Ride was made available this past weekend. The docuseries has provided an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at The Undertaker as he reflects on his legacy and what he still wants to accomplish in pro wrestling. The final episode is scheduled to air on the WWE Network on Sunday, June 21.
The Undertaker has opened up about his interest in potentially signing with WCW. His interest stemmed from his past frustrations with WWE’s creative direction. Speaking with Sam Roberts on the Not Sam Wrestling podcast, The Undertaker highlighted how there were too many “really goofy characters” in contrast to WCW. According to ‘Taker, WCW was doing “real angles.”
‘Taker noted how it was common knowledge that WCW had an open checkbook. The money being offered was something he was well aware of, especially as “You would be able to get a good check and stay at home most of the time.”
He admitted that thoughts of jumping to WCW for the money “were there.” However, he ultimately couldn’t bring himself to do it. The Undertaker joked how he isn’t the best businessman, but revealed that “something inside me said you couldn’t leave here [WWE].”
The Undertaker then recalled an opportunity to renegotiate his contract at that time. He reflected on how he had only been with the company for approximately 8 or 9 months. With his contract close to expiring, he was hoping to “get a little bump on the money.”
His meeting would see him opposite Jim Herd, Ole Anderson, and Jim Barnett. According to ‘Taker, “They looked at me straight in the eyes, and said you are a great athlete, but nobody will ever pay to see you wrestle. My loyalty to Vince was stronger than the short term cash I could have made if I left.”
The first four episodes of The Undertaker’s docuseries, Undertaker: The Last Ride, are available to stream now on the WWE Network.
Shane McMahon has challenged The Undertaker to a Hell in a Cell rematch. The challenge came during this week’s episode of Last Ride Post-Mortem. The Post-Mortem show followed the airing of The Undertaker’s docuseries, Undertaker: The Last Ride. The most recent episode aired this past Sunday on the WWE Network.
The episode featured footage from Extreme Rules 2019. The Undertaker teamed with Roman Reigns on the show. They defeated the team of Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre in a No Holds Barred tag team match. Whilst appearing on the Post-Mortem, Shane McMahon reflected on how ‘Taker believed the Extreme Rules match was going to be his last ever, stating:
“I know I got one more with him. So, I’m ready. I’ll challenge him now. I just did. I got one more, I know I got one big one. I want a rematch. Hell in a Cell 2. I was that close,” Shane McMahon said, in reference to nearly hitting his elbow drop onto ‘Taker from the top of the Cell. “Let’s continue with this story.”
The two previously faced off in a Hell in a Cell matchup back at WrestleMania 32 in 2016. The Undertaker would emerge victorious. Shane McMahon hasn’t been involved in a rivalry since his feud with Kevin Owens ended in 2019.
The Undertaker has shared his initial impressions on Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson during a recent interview with 5-time New York Times Best Selling Author, Gary Vaynerchuck. When asked by Vaynerchuck which wrestler surprised him the most in terms of growth and development throughout his storied career, ‘Taker revealed it was none other than “The Great One,” The Rock.
The Undertaker shared how it was an easy question to answer before naming Johnson, labeling him “the biggest star in the world.” ‘Taker recalled how Johnson debuted at Madison Square Garden as Rocky Maivia, sharing how it was “awful.” According to him, they “handcuffed him right out of the get-go.”
He reflected on how fans in Madison Square Garden will always be honest with you, whether they like you or not. ‘Taker noted how they were “merciless” with Johnson that night and that they “lit him up.”
The Undertaker’s Opinion On Rocky Maivia
Judging Johnson solely by his debut, The Undertaker confessed he had no clue how charismatic he was capable of being. Instead, he chalked Johnson’s debut up as “a shame” and figured that he wouldn’t be in WWE for long.
Things changed, however, after Johnson aligned himself—and then broke away from—the Nation of Domination. “It didn’t take long for him, once he got to the Nation of Domination, it flipped,” The Undertaker explained. “By the time he was at the end of his run with them I knew he wasn’t going to be with them for long. You could just tell he was destined for success.”
Ric Flair recently took part in an interview where he discussed his longtime friendship with the Undertaker. The two first met in 1989, when Taker was part of a tag-team along with Dan Spivey called the Skyscrapers. Evidently, Taker, Flair, and Horace Grant’s brother went out one night and the Jack Daniels was flowing. According to Flair, he lost a Rolex that night.
“Me and Taker and Harvey Grant were out one night and I lost a Rolex, which is a whole different part of the story,” Flair said to Metro UK. “Trying to hang with him and that Jack Daniels man, it’s tough. We’ve had so much fun!”
Flair also spoke about coming back to WWE in 2001 and working against Taker at WrestleMania the following year.
“When I agreed to come back to work it was never to wrestle,” Flair said regarding his return to WWE in 2001. Flair would end up facing the Undertaker at WrestleMania 18 in Toronto that year.
“I was so nervous wrestling Taker – when anybody in the world would be so excited to walk down that ramp and I was horrified.”
Flair was 53-years-old when that match took place. He noted that he told Taker he was hurting at the time.
“Once we got going – and he knew, I told him, it’s hard to tell somebody I’m struggling. Well, Ric Flair’s got a problem, guys. I’ve always been so comfortable with him, I had no problem telling him. And he got it.”
WWE Superstar and Mayor of Knox County Glenn Jacobs/Kane recently appeared on WWE’s The Bump. The Big Red Machine was appearing on the WWE Network show to discuss the ongoing The Last Ride documentary that features his on-screen brother The Undertaker.
One of the points raised was the respect between the two performers, with Kane being asked if there was a specific moment or moments that he knew he had earned the Deadman’s respect.
Kane Talks Respect
“I actually do, there’s a couple” Kane vegan. “First of all, let’s keep in mind that from the beginning of my career? even before I was in WWE? He was always a big advocate of mine” Kane revealed.
“Even when I was having a lot of trouble early on? This person was there pushing for me and talking with me and making sure that I was doing what I needed to do eventually to become successful” Kane would continue. “I got a lot of that. The conversations weren’t always the most pleasant (laughs), they could be sometimes a little harsh! Nevertheless, they were much needed.”
Glenn Jacobs would then praise The Undertaker for the way that he treated him as a ‘peer’ when he first appeared in the company. “When I came in as Kane, and just overall the whole like 1997 into 1998 and working with him so much? The whole time he treated me as a peer, and as an equal. Then I remember, wince 2003 when I had taken the mask off? We were actually at a wedding, and he told me how proud he was of the transition, and not only my in-ring work but also my work on the microphone.”
Do you think that Kane’s character developed and changed as well as The Undertaker’s during his run in WWE? Let us know in the comments
The Montreal Screwjob is one of the most notorious incidents in the wrestling history and the Undertaker, who was the locker room leader at the time, was not very happy about it.
The Dead Man recently appeared on The Bill Simmons Podcast where he talked about a number of things and also discussed the infamous incident.
Revealing his reaction to the screwjob, Taker claimed that he was ‘p***ed’ about the whole thing and he felt that he could have been used to get what they needed:
“I was p***ed about the whole thing because I felt like I possibly could have been used to get what we need. Take Shawn out of this, let me do it, and then I’ll do business on the other side and I think Bret probably would’ve gone with that.
“There was such disdain at that time between the two of them, but I was just at the point where if you would’ve just come to me with this too I think I could’ve helped this whole thing out.” said The Undertaker. “I’m right here and you know I’m going to do business. It happened and I was really p***ed.”
The former World Champion continued by saying that he was really disappointed in the whole situation. He also talked to Vince McMahon and told the boss to involve him if something like that happened again because it didn’t have to go down like that.
It’s interesting to note here that Earl Hebner, who was the referee for the match between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart recently had an interview and he claimed that the Montreal Screwjob was a work. You can check out his comments at this link.
The Undertaker has been one of the last protectors of kayfabe but he has started to open up a little bit in recent years by joining social media and giving off character interviews.
The next step in this journey is The Last Ride documentary series on WWE network which documents the thought process of the Dead Man from recent years.
During a new interview with Busted Open Radio, Taker talked about the documentary and revealed that they originally started filming things before his WrestleMania 33 match with Roman Reigns, because he thought it was going to be his last bout:
“It’s kind of strange how [The Last Ride] came about and this process. We didn’t start with the process of, ‘Let’s make a documentary.’ This original concept just started, because when I got to Orlando [for WrestleMania 33] and was going to work with Roman, in my mind that was going to be it.
So I just wanted [the footage], because I protected this character for so long,, and I didn’t know what we were going to do with the footage but I knew that I wanted it and I knew I wasn’t going to have another opportunity to get it.”
— SiriusXM Busted Open (@BustedOpenRadio) May 22, 2020
The Undertaker faced Roman Reigns in a one on one match in the main event of WrestleMania 33. The Dead Man lost this bout and he left his coat and hat in the ring afterwards, signalling the end of his character.
However, Vince McMahon managed to pursue the Attitude Era star to return to the ring and he has competed in a number of big matches since then.
WWE Superstar and Mayor of Knox County Glenn Jacobs/Kane recently appeared on WWE’s The Bump. The Big Red Machine was appearing on the WWE Network show to discuss the ongoing The Last Ride documentary that features his on-screen brother The Undertaker.
One of the questions posed to Kane was the planning of matches between he and ‘Taker. Kane would discuss how it was sometimes difficult to plan and map out bouts against the ‘Deadman.’ This was because both men were behemoths in stature, and as Kane later mentions, they would prefer to have a smaller performer to work with.
Undertaker vs Kane
“In fact, it was kind of hard because when you have two characters like Undertaker and myself who are very much alike? We do the same things” Kane would begin. “And the characters? Even though they’re mere opposites they’re in many ways…they’re almost exact clones. They’re very, very similar.”
Kane elaborated further, saying “how do you construct a match? When you have the Undertaker who’s indestructible, and Kane who is indestructible? You have to figure all that stuff out. Also you don’t want, for instance, you don’t want The Undertaker to look ‘normal’ by Kane beating them up. So you have to figure out ways to get around all that.”
Kane would finish by saying that planning matches with The Undertaker was always an epic undertaking. The Big Red Machine would also bring up the aforementioned ‘David vs Goliath’ approach. “Frankly, for me it’s always been an epic undertaking, ‘Taker would tell you the same thing. It’s always been easier to work with a smaller guy because you have a built in story; to kind of have the David vs Goliath, you know? The Rocky Balboa story, whereas when you have the Clash of the Titans? It’s harder to do traditional storytelling in that fashion.”
Have you been enjoying The Last Ride? Let us know in the comments
WWE legend The Undertaker was Peter Rosenberg’s guest on this week’s edition of the Cheap Heat Podcast on ESPN Radio.
They discussed a wide variety of topics during the conversation, including the Last Ride docu-series, working with Hulk Hogan, the Montreal Screwjob and much more.
They started off by talking about the creation of The Undertaker character and his first meetings with Vince McMahon in 1990.
The Undertaker says he was impressed by Vince McMahon’s early vision for the gimmick. He also recalls envisioning the Undertaker character being similar to horror movie icons like Freddie Kruger and Jason Voorhees.
The Undertaker’s Early Character Development
“[Vince] brings me up to Connecticut, we meet and he’s got storyboards of what he thinks this character is, and it’s just like, wow, this is really cool. It’s really different. Immediately, my mind is just spinning. I’m thinking, Freddie Kruger, Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees – all these super villains that are in these slasher movies. But then I’m also trying to figure out how it applies to professional wrestling. Originally, he gave me the likeness and then a lot of it was put in my hands to develop.”
The Undertaker says it took him some time to flesh out the character. At the time, he was known as a big guy who was athletic and could move around the quickly. It took him some time to settle in to the slow, plodding menace he’d eventually develop into.
“It took me a couple times out to realize, well, this isn’t going to work for what I envisioned for this character. I had to slow down some of my pace and some of my athleticism. Then i figured out, ‘I’m going to go really slow and then I’m gonna bang and blow it out of the water and catch people off guard with it, just like they do in the movies.’ So i’m trying to figure out all those elements of how to make it work in a wrestling ring.”
Proving WCW Wrong
Before he joined the WWF in 1990, The Undertaker was working in WCW as “Mean” Mark Callus. At the time, The Undertaker felt like WCW was a better fit for him than the cartoonish WWF. When his WCW contract expired in the summer of 1990, he became very discouraged. WCW refused to offer him a pay increase. The reality of the situation got worse when WCW officials told him nobody would pay to see him wrestle.
The Undertaker used that negative experience as motivation. As The Undertaker character was taking shape, he thought about how he could differentiate himself from the rest of the WWF’s main event stars.
“There were so many over-the-top characters already [in the WWF],” he began. “Everything was over the top. So I was trying to figure out how am I going to separate myself from what everybody else is doing? How do you stand out with all these already established performers?”
“Vince had had that [Undertaker] character for a while,” he said. “He just didn’t have the right guy that he felt could do it. I guess he needed somebody big that didn’t have much personality (laughs). Here I come stumbling in on that. So I got lucky there.”
“When [WCW] told me that nobody would ever pay to see me, you can imagine the size chip that went on my shoulder. It was like, “Ok, screw you guys, you will regret the day that you didn’t sign me.” It’s so crazy how things work out. If they [WCW] would have given me a little extra cheese, that’s where I wanted to be. I didn’t know any better, but I figured I was a more mainstream wrestler, that’s where WCW was at the time. Vince had all these different characters, and that didn’t really seem to suit where I wanted to be. I wanted to be there with Flair and Arn and all those guys. That just seemed to fit my outlook on wrestling.”
Undertaker says he wasn’t asking WCW for a big raise and would have stayed for a small pay bump.
” Beleive me, I wasn’t asking for the Lex Luger deal or the Road Warrior deal. It was a little extra cheese. ‘Nobody’s gonna pay money to see you. We’re gonna give you the same deal.’ I’m like, ‘OK, writing is on the wall. They didn’t even put me up a little.'”
Getting in to the WWF
The Undertaker says Paul Heyman and Bruce Prichard are the two men responsible for getting his foot in the door with Vince McMahon.
“So, Paul [Heyman] is managing me at the time that this all came about. Paul Heyman and Bruce Prichard are close. So Paul and Bruce were talking and Bruce was working on Vince. I guess Bruce had finally gotten Vince to agree to watch the Great American Bash [match] that I had with Lex Luger. Maybe a week before that, I really screwed up my hip in match. So I can barely move. But i know i’ve gotta go out and do something. So Vince watches the pay-per-view and says, ‘Yeah he’s ok, nothing special.’ But Bruce said, ‘Does it matter that he can barely walk going into that?’ That grabbed Vince’s attention a little bit. Bruce kept working on Vince until finally I got a meeting.”
“We Don’t Have Anything For You”
Vince McMahon wound up canceling the first meeting he had scheduled with The Undertaker. This was right around the time Brutus Beefcake was badly injured during a parasailing accident. Expecting that his meeting with Vince McMahon would go well, he already gave notice to WCW that he was leaving.
“So now I’m basically working down there, they think I have a contract, I’m working in WCW without a contract. We finally went to the Meadowlands [Arena] I think, the next morning i had a meeting at [Vince’s] house. Even then, I went in thinking, I got this. I had the meeting, maybe two hours i spent with Bruce and Vince and JJ Dillon and Pat Patterson. I have this meeting and think i’m being impressive and charming. At the end of the meeting Vince looks at me and goes, ‘We don’t really have anything right now.’ (laughs). I already gave my notice thinking, I’ve got the meeting, the job’s in the bag, Ive already given my notice down at WCW.”
When asked if Vince McMahon was ribbing him, The Undertaker doesn’t think so. He legitimately thinks Vince just wasn’t ready to integrate him into WWE storylines yet.
“[Vince] didn’t have anything. He’s like, ‘Well, maybe after Mania we’ll have some slots opening up. I was like ‘Ok, well, thank you, I appreciate your time’ and out the door I went. They did within a few weeks call me and said ‘Hey, Hogan’s doing this movie out in LA.’ They wanted me to go read for it [Suburban Commando]. I read for the movie and got the part, the worst movie ever. It was awful, it was truly awful. But you know, that kept me busy for a little while. Then finally, I got a call [to debut at Survivor Series 1990.]
The Undertaker has opened up while giving some interesting details on the battle inside of his mind with retirement from pro wrestling.
The former WWE Champion did so during an interview with The Toronto Sun to promote his documentary series on the WWE Network.
Taker started out by stating that you might try to attempt to do this business, but if it’s not in your heart and soul, you’re not going to be a success. Instead, Taker thinks that you might be a flash in the pan. He said that he’s wrestled for the majority of his adult life and done it at a high level.
“I do realize that Father Time is tapping me on the shoulder. And I don’t want to turn around and face him. I feel like I’ve got a match (left) that is befitting what I feel like that the legacy of The Undertaker deserves.
But the hard part is, if I grade myself, I grade myself on where I was physically in the early 2000s. I don’t grade myself on the curve of it being 2020 and being 55 years old.”
Taker continued by noting that the expectations of what he has for himself with the limitations that he has physically is a delicate balance.
“You’ve got to take a really good look (and ask yourself), OK, is this the match that you’re looking for, is it in the realm of possibility and do I risk long-term damage?… I have young kids still. Do you run the risk of jeopardizing your long-term health?”
Taker admitted that all of this is what’s going on in his head while doing the documentary. He said that this is what he’s looking for and trying to achieve.
Taker added that trying to come to grips with leaving that aspect of the business.
WWE Superstar and host of UpUpDownDown Xavier Woods recently appeared on the Gorilla Position podcast.
During the interview with James Delow, Xavier Woods would discuss a number of topics during his time with WWE. These included his New Day run, the creation of UpUpDownDown and his eventual return from injury.
At the end of the interview Woods was thrown a curve ball, he was asked by Delow to submit his suggestion for The Undertaker’s final match. The new ‘Last Ride’ documentary series by WWE began last week and it detailed how ‘Taker is looking to have one final ‘great match’ before he rides off into the sunset. Woods’ suggestion for the Deadman was…interesting.
Xavier Woods on ‘Taker’s Final Match
“This is for me specifically right?” Xavier Woods began, almost apologising before he gave his answer. “Perfect opponent for The Undertaker? Papa Shango.”
Woods would then explain his scenario where he believes that a cinematic style match with Papa Shango and The Undertaker would work. “Think about this, in that WrestleMania match, that Boneyard Match? We saw greatness. We saw powers being used. Magic was being used, that house blew up!”
Papa….Shango?
Xavier elaborated further, saying “it [Boneyard match] was incredible. The only thing about it? Only ONE person had ‘powers’ and we got such an incredible match! Imagine if there were TWO people with powers!? Shango making him [Undertaker] BLEED the BLOOD.”
After much laughter (although Woods did seem pretty serious about this), Xavier Woods would then reference the feud between Papa Shango and The Ultimate Warrior. Shango would ‘curse’ Warrior during their feud, leaving him the writhe in pain and unable to properly compete. “What did he [Shango] burst? Was it Warrior’s appendix? Something was messed up in his guts? Yeah he did something. Like think about that, this [Shango vs Taker] would be so good, so give that to me!”
If you could pick a final opponent for The Undertaker who would it be? Please also feel free to give reasons as to why it wouldn’t be Papa Shango.
The Undertaker will be 70-years-old the next time that his contract with WWE expires. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, The Undertaker signed a 15-year contract extension with the company last year.
This comes after it was noted last August that the former WWE Champion is considered to be a WWE lifer after he signed a big-money deal with WWE in early 2019.
Per the report, the deal came together when WWE Chairman Vince McMahon angrily reacted to the non-WWE dates Taker was booking.
McMahon made an offer to Taker that couldn’t refuse financially in August that led to him signing the deal. At the time, there weren’t many details about it aside from the fact that Taker could no longer work the non-WWE signing dates that he had started to book.
Taker was pulled from the Starrcast II convention, which ran on the same weekend as AEW’s Double or Nothing after he had already been announced to appear.
When Taker’s previous deal expired last year, he started to agree to do appearances and then broke character by joining social media platforms. McMahon reportedly got so mad that Taker would actually take non-WWE bookings that he made him a big-money offer.
While McMahon was upset with Taker, the lucrative contract was offered once things calmed down between the two. Going back to 2018, it was reported that Taker was charging $25,000 per hour for non-WWE signing appearances.
The Undertaker’s WWE documentary series The Last Riderecently debuted on the WWE Network. As part of WWE’s promotional push for the series, the WWE Legend sat down with People Magazine for an interview.
During their conversation, “The Deadman” opened up about his reluctance to retire from in-ring competition. He also shared his ambition to wrestle a perfect final match.
Reflecting on his historic career, The Undertaker acknowledged how he has been blessed to have exceeded any and all expectations since his debut as the character. That being said, he stressed how he wants a “John Elway ending.”
The Undertaker noted how he’s “fighting an uphill battle,” and admitted how time is running out for him. “But that’s the struggle. It has nothing to do with fame, it has nothing to do with money, it has nothing to do with anything other than wanting just that, “Yeah. That’s the match that I needed to go out on.’”
The first episode of The Last Ride is available to stream now on the WWE Network. It documents The Undertaker’s journey into WrestleMania 33. He wrestled Roman Reigns at the event in what was intended to be his final match.
Upon losing the match to Reigns, The Undertaker would symbolically leave his coat, gloves and hat in the ring, signifying the end of his career.
The Undertaker did an interview with ESPN where he spoke about a wide range of topics including the future of WWE doing cinematic type matches.
This comes after the highly praised Boneyard Match with Taker beating AJ Styles and Bray Wyatt defeated John Cena in a Firefly Fun House Match at WrestleMania 36.
“I think it could if I wanted to do that. That possibility is there, but we’ll just see on that. We were both very proud of that match. Considering all the circumstances, we were really, really happy with it. And the fact that we got to go offsite and give it a theme like that, it helped tremendously.”
Taker continued by bringing up how he’s always been a big believer in the story mattering more than moves during pro wrestling matches. He thinks that moves don’t tell the story. He brought up how the promos done by Styles leading up to WrestleMania were places that no one had dared to go before.
He thinks even if they had a regular match, the brawling style of it would’ve been the same as their Boneyard match due to the promos done by Styles.
“The way it was shot, I mean my goodness, it was a mini-movie. I just really think it’s going to catch on. Bray Wyatt’s character is probably the closest to mine. He’s got that really over-the-top demented type character. He could do some things in that realm that would be just phenomenal. We were the trendsetters there. I think there will be more cinematic matches like that in the future.”
Taker added that as far as him doing another match like this, he’ll see what happens but at the end of the day, he was happy with how the Boneyard Match came out.
The Undertaker did an interview with ESPN where he spoke about a wide range of topics including his match with Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 33.
This match, which took place in 2017 and served as the main event, wasn’t received well among fans. It turns out that Taker didn’t like the match either.
“I was so disgusted with it that I didn’t want to watch it back.”
Taker continued by talking about how he didn’t want to watch the following day at RAW with everyone during catering but rather wanted to wait until he was alone at home.
The reason for that was due to him wanting to look at the bad stuff in it rather than good. He wanted to pick it apart and didn’t want to hear praise from anyone because he understands that he’s older and moves around slower.
Taker understands that he has a limp and he missed some spots in the contest.
“I was so disappointed for Roman. Even after Brock Lesnar beat the streak, for guys coming up to have a match against The Undertaker at WrestleMania — especially where Roman was at — it was important for his career.
Especially because he was going over. For me, in that role, I wanted to do the very best that I could do for Roman. I think the world of him.”
Taker continued by noting how he wanted to be able to do the best he could for Reigns and knew that he didn’t have any business in the ring that night.
While he understands he could have mailed it in to protect himself, that’s not the way he works. Taker also didn’t think it was fair to Reigns to do so. He felt that he tried his best but it wasn’t his night and things went bad.
It appears that WWE actually wanted to end The Undertaker’s undefeated streak at WrestleMania years before they did it.
Of course, Taker suffered his first loss at the event in 2014 at WrestleMania 30 to Brock Lesnar, which at the time had shocked the world.
In a new interview with the New York Post, The Undertaker’s wife, Michelle McCool, stated WWE officials wanted to end the streak six years before they went through with it.
This would’ve been WrestleMania 24 in 2008 where The Undertaker battled Edge for the WWE World Heavyweight Title. It turns out that the WWE Hall of Famer went to WWE officials to get the idea shot down.
“I remember a few years prior at WrestleMania [24] versus Edge, they talked about Edge breaking the streak and it was Edge that was actually like ‘That makes zero sense. I don’t want to do that. Why would I do that? The fans already love him. What’s it going to do for Edge.”
McCool continued by noting how she couldn’t believe it and didn’t think it needed to happen but Taker was fine with it at the time. She stated that people don’t understand he’s gonna do business and understands that business is business.
The WWE Network is slated to air the five-part limited series “The Last Ride,” starting this Sunday. It will chronicle the last few years of The Undertaker’s career.
WWE Superstar Ryback recently made some extraordinary claims on a recent episode of the Shooting Blanks Wrestling Report podcast.
Ryback and co-host Raj Giri were discussing the recent furloughing of WWE’s Gerald Brisco. The former on-screen ‘stooge’ for Vince McMahon has been a fixture in the company for a number of years, having been one of the more prolific ‘scouts’ for the company. Brisco is credited as discovering Brock Lesnar, among others.
Ryback on Gerry Brisco
“He’s done so much for WWE, and for Vince [McMahon]” Ryback would begin, talking about the recently furloughed Brisco. “He’s one of those guys. But we’ve seen Vince cut ties with people that have been a part of that company from the beginning. [People who were] with him building all of this.”
Ryback would then discuss his time in FCW with Gerry’s son Wes Brisco. “I came up with Wes Brisco, his son, in developmental. Wes was always a great guy and Gerry was always so fantastic with me.”
‘The Big Guy’ would then reveal a fascinating story from his time in FCW. Gerald Brisco told the then ‘Terminator’ character that he would be a big star in WWE; and, that there was potential for Ryback to be the person to beat the then undefeated Undertaker at WrestleMania and break the historic streak.
The Streak
“He [Brisco] came up to me when I was in FCW as the ‘Ryback The Terminator’ character. I’d had a match, and I was new to the system. I never got a lot of positive reinforcement from anyone, like as far as anyone from the office. He [Brisco] was still in the position there at the time [helping and building talent]. And he just said ‘you’re going to be a major star in this company.’ He even said ‘I could see you breaking the Undertaker’s streak.’ He was dead serious. I remember thinking like, ‘holy sh*t like he sees something in me.’ I’ll never forget that.”
When Ryback first hit on the main roster at WWE he was being groomed for a major push and had a lot of potential heading into his first WWE Championship match against CM Punk. The circumstances of the situation meant that Ryback would not win the title, as Punk was on the road to his 434 day reign as Champion and a match against The Rock at the Royal Rumble.
Having said that, beating The Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak? Do you think Ryback could’ve been the guy to do so? Let us know in the comments.
The Undertaker is auctioning off a one-of-a-kind experience to help raise money for charity. Proceeds from the auction will go to Feeding America, Meals On Wheels, World Central Kitchen and No Kid Hungry. The winning bid will be awarded a trip to Austin, Texas to enjoy a private dinner with Taker. The person will also be gifted a ring-worn Undertaker jacket.
“WWE legend The Undertaker wants to fly you and a friend out to Austin, Texas, for a private dinner. The night will consist of amazing food and the can’t miss opportunity to reminisce with The Phenom over your favorite matches and moments throughout his career,” a description of the auction reads.
As of this writing, the current leading bid is $4,700.00 after 8 bids have been made.
Undertaker announced he was taking part in the “All In Challenge” through his social media channels:
“You know when I was first starting out in the wrestling business there were times where I didn’t know where my next meal was coming from,” Taker says in the video. “There were a lot of times where I didn’t have enough money for that meal. So on a small scale, I can understand what a lot of these people are going through and are going to go through. So, it’s up to us to reach back and pull some people forward.”
“What I’m going to bring to the table is dinner with the Undertaker. We can talk all things wrestling and along with that dinner I’m going to bring one of my iconic ring jackets that I’ve worn at one of the PPVs that I’ve performed in.”
Taker then nominated Post Malone and Jesse James from West Coast Choppers to also take part in the challenge. You can submit your bid for Taker’s charity auction through the Fanatics website here.
The Undertaker recently did a rare out of character interview with Nine Line Apparel on Instagram Live where the Dead Man opened up about his boneyard match with AJ Styles for the first time since WrestleMania 36.
The two were originally expected to have a regular match but plans changed after the company had to move the show to the Performance Center and the officials made the decision to use the set for the bout which was originally built for a promo.
Talking about the unique match, the Undertaker first mentioned how they envisioned the fight for a live arena until two weeks before the Show Of Shows. Discussing the end result of their efforts, he said that he couldn’t be more proud of the final product:
“The final product — I couldn’t be more proud of it.
Under the circumstances, all the different things going on, everybody pulled
together and put something like that out there that was different and was
intriguing. I can’t speak for AJ, but I’m very proud of what we did.”
The match exceeded expectations of the fans and it received high praise from the WWE Universe and the wrestling world for the cinematic experience it provided.
Undertaker On Why He Returned To The American Badass Gimmick
One of the most discussed aspects of the match was the former Champion leaving behind the Dead Man gimmick to return to his American Badass avatar for this bout.
Explaining the reasoning behind this change, The former World Champion claimed that he had to lean away from the dark side of his character because AJ Styles made the rivalry between the two very personal:
“When AJ threw that first stone and made this personal, then it made it a no brainer, I couldn’t stay that mainstream Undertaker and be able to respond and deal with the things he was saying in that character.”
Taker also explained his reference of the Unholy Trinity
saying that it’s nothing but the unification of his three personalities in the
The Dead Man, The American Badass and the man behind the gimmick Mark Calaway
in one person.
Apart from this, The Undertaker talked about the future of cinematic matches, cutting promos in an empty arena with no audience and more. You can check out more of his interview in the video below:
WWE Hall of Famer and co-host of Busted Open Radio Mark Henry recently discussed the WrestleMania 36 Boneyard Match between AJ Styles and The Undertaker. The bout took place on Night 1 of the event, and was arguably one of the most memorable main event matches in ‘Mania history. With a ‘cinematic’ feel to it, ‘Taker and AJ would fight to ‘bury’ each other alive to win the match.
The Worlds’ Strongest Man on WrestleMania 22
Mark Henry himself faced The Undertaker back at WrestleMania 22. There was talk at the time that Vince McMahon liked the idea of giving Henry the win in that match, and breaking the (then) undefeated Streak. Henry would of course not win, however he described on the Busted Open show just how important a match against the ‘Deadman’ was for his career. The ‘World’s Strongest Man’ would also go on to say just how important this match was for AJ Styles’ WWE career.
Importance of facing The Undertaker
“Yeah, it was really big for me, career wise and development wise” Henry began. “I had been in wrestling for a long time already. And I was getting it, and when that time came? I was prepared and I was ready. And I was able to give something back. But nonetheless, [it was] the high point of my career man. It did so much for me.”
“Just being spoke of in the same breath as the legend? The Phenom? The one that is the Deadman? It adds to your career, so amazing.”
Mark Henry
Mark Henry would finish by stating just how important he feels this is for AJ Styles’ career. “AJ Styles will come away from this match not just the ‘Phenomenal’ AJ Styles. He’ll be in inserted into the annals of The Undertaker and you’ll be linked to his career. And just being linked? Just being spoke of in the same breath as the legend? The Phenom? The one that is the Deadman? It adds to your career, it’s so amazing.”
“The American Badass” Undertaker showed up at WrestleMania
Although Henry made these comments before the match was aired live, it will be interesting to see just how this match affects AJ Styles going forward. There’s likely chance that Styles will get a rematch against ‘Taker in a more ‘traditional’ setting at the likes of a SummerSlam if the COVID-19 situation is under control at that point.
AJ Styles vs. The Undertaker is in the books. The Undertaker was able to beat Styles in a Boneyard Match at the WWE WrestleMania 36 pay-per-view event. The Undertaker brought back the biker gimmick.
It took place in a graveyard and featured The Undertaker fighting off Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, and some druids. The match ended when Taker put him in a hole and placed dirt on him.
Undertaker’s Feud with AJ Styles & The OC
The feud started after Styles took some shots at him on Monday Night RAW through promos. Then The Undertaker made an appearance at the WWE Super ShowDown event during the Tuwaiq Mountain Trophy Gauntlet Match that saw Andrade, Bobby Lashley, Erick Rowan, AJ Styles, R-Truth, and Rey Mysterio compete.
Once The OC took out Mysterio backstage, we saw footage of Taker laying out Karl Anderson and Gallows before heading out to the ring.
Taker attacked Styles by hitting a chokeslam then pinned him. Fast forward, Taker also cost Styles his No DQ Match against Aleister Black when Taker made the save for Black at the Elimination Chamber event.
WWE confirmed the WrestleMania match on March 16th episode of RAW when the two stars signed a contract for the contest. WWE later changed the contest from a singles bout to a Boneyard Match.
WWE has added a stipulation to the upcoming match between AJ Styles and The Undertaker at WrestleMania 36.
During Monday’s episode of RAW, Styles cut a promo about how he has the perfect match for their upcoming contest and it was right in the wheelhouse of Taker.
He challenged the legendary pro wrestler to a Boneyard Match. Styles also poked fun at Taker recently appearing in a Save The Tigers video during his promo. For those who are wondering what this match is, WWE has yet to confirm the exact rules.
In related news, WWE has changed the SmackDown Women’s Title match at WrestleMania 36.
Last week on Friday Night SmackDown, Paige announced that Bayley would defend the SmackDown Women’s Title in a Six-Pack Challenge Elimination Match with Dana Brooke, Lacey Evans, Tamina Snuka, Naomi, and Sasha Banks.
WWE edited their WrestleMania 36 match listing on the official website that now shows it being a Fatal 5-Way Elimination Match. Brooke is the star who was removed from the listing.
As of this writing, there’s no word yet on why Brooke was removed from the match.
WWE presents the WrestleMania 36 pay-per-view event as a two-night event on Saturday, April 4 and Sunday, April 5 in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center. Both nights start at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT will air on the WWE Network.
After weeks of speculation, WWE has confirmed The Undertaker vs. AJ Styles for its biggest event of the year, WrestleMania 36.
WWE confirmed the match on Monday’s episode of RAW on the USA Network when the two stars signed a contract for the contest.
After Styles signed the contract in the backstage area, he sent Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows to the ring to give Taker the contract. Taker took them out before signing it.
Their first encounter came at the Super ShowDown show last month when Taker attacked Styles in the Tuwaiq Mountain Trophy Gauntlet Match by hitting a chokeslam then pinned him to not only win the match but to kick off his next feud under the WWE banner.
Fast forward, Taker also cost Styles his No DQ Match against Aleister Black when Taker made the save for Black.
WWE presents the WrestleMania 36 pay-per-view event on Sunday, April 5, 2020 in Orlando, Florida at the WWE Performance Center. Here’s the card:
WWE Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Drew McIntyre
WWE Universal Champion Goldberg vs. Roman Reigns
WWE NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte Flair
John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt
WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Shayna Baszler
The Undertaker made an unadvertised appearance at WWE’s latest pay-per-view event.
On Sunday night, WWE hosted the Elimination Chamber event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Wells Fargo Center on the WWE Network. A No DQ Match between AJ Styles and Aleister Black took place.
The match ended when Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson attacked Black until The Undertaker came out. He had them in a hold until Styles tried to hit him with a Phenomenal Forearm.
Taker reversed it and hit a chokeslam to Styles that allowed Black to hit his finisher, Black Mass, to get the win. Pwinsider.com reported during the match that “The Deadman” was backstage at the show.
It’s also been reported by Pwinsider that The Undertaker is currently scheduled to make an appearance on Monday’s episode of RAW from the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC on the USA Network.
This appearance is slated to further the feud with Styles heading into the biggest event of the year for the company. It will also likely mark the confirmation of reports about WWE booking Styles vs. Taker at WrestleMania 36 next month.
