The Undertaker vs. Triple H

 

The Winner: The Undertaker

Triple H, after his match with The Undertaker had taken an “office” role. Executive VP of Talent Relations or something of that ilk. He came out one February 2012 night on RAW and was gonna make some big announcement. Just as he was about to climax, The Undertaker’s GONG went off. The Undertaker at this point had not been seen since the previous WrestleMania. Undertaker had a problem with the end of the previous years WrestleMania. He may have won but he didn’t walk out on his own power. Undertaker wanted a chance to redeem himself and he attacked Triple H’s pride in doing so. Saying that Shawn Michaels was always better than Triple H.

The match would happen in Hell in a Cell with Shawn Michaels as special guest referee. It was broadcast as an “End of the Era” match. Presumably because it was the last we would see of any of them. To this point it has not been and the closest we have come is Undertaker only making one appearance. Shawn hasn’t wrestled since (in fact, he has not wrestled since his match with The Undertaker at WrestleMania 26) but Triple H did have a match with Brock Lesnar. Undertaker had a match, kind of, on RAW 1000 teaming with Kane to face Hunico, Camacho, 3MB, Curt Hawkins and Tyler Reks (if that team is not accurate I apologize). It was likely the last time we saw these men who were a part of the 1990s boom in such a high profile situation.

This match was awarded the 2012 Slammy Award for match of the Year.

As The Undertaker’s music ended, he removed his hood to reveal a Mohawk. This was synched perfectly with a lightning sound effect. It appeared when I was watching this that the revealing of the haircut staggered Triple H, watching it back, this was not the case. They stare down for a moment, then the Hell in a Cell lowers. Complete with its entrance theme, “The Memory Remains” by Metallica (which is actually featured on this DVD, must have been cheaper than For Whom The Bell Tolls). An important note for this match, the PPV was outdoors. Despite my wishes, the Hell in a Cell cage was not suspended over the ring by a flock of very strong and well trained birds. After the bell rings, the men back to opposite corners, then charge at each other with strikes. Much like the previous year had one man control the match early, The Undertaker is controlling this one.

At one point Shawn Michaels was checking on Triple H, which is his duty as the official. The Undertaker proceeds to carelessly shove Michaels away. Undertaker, while being vicious, isn’t being relentless. He isn’t moving fast as if he is in a hurry. At WrestleMania 26 he was working franticly to beat Shawn Michaels. Going for a Chokeslam early. Going for Old School very early. He is meticulously wearing down Triple H here. This slower pace gave Triple H an opening for a facebuster. However it had no effect. The Undertaker responded with a hard strike that downed Triple H. Undertaker finally hits the Old School elbow drop. He then tosses Triple H outside and hits him in the head with the ring steps. He hits the guillotine legdrop too. He slowly reenters the ring. Triple H hits a DDT. Another example of him taking advantage of The Undertaker’s slower pace. Triple H tries for a pedigree on top of the steel ring steps but Undertaker reverses with a back body drop.

While his actions do not indicate desperation, his face indicates relief after the back drop. Triple H reverses an Undertaker attack to a spinebuster onto the ring steps, before a weakened Triple H can take advantage, Undertaker locks in the Hells Gate. Triple H reverses it to a powerbomb variation, helped by the elevation of the hold, with Undertaker still on the steps. He only garnered a two count from it. Triple H goes to the outside of the ring and gets a steel chair. In a call back to the previous encounter between the two, Triple H begins pounding Undertaker’s back with the chair. Shawn Michaels tries to stop him.

Shawn Michaels, who up to this point had not really done much other than his officiating duties, began to beg Triple H to just pin him because “you know he is not going to quit”. After Triple H told him he will not, Shawn tried to convince The Undertaker to quit. Undertaker refuses, Triple H threw him out of the way. Then the exact same process repeated. But this time Undertaker told Shawn to leave him alone and “do not stop it”. Triple H used the chair a few more times and then tries for a pin, it only draws a two count. Triple H, clearly seeing that the chairs aren’t working, goes for the sledge hammer.

Triple H tells Shawn Michaels to end it. Undertaker tells Shawn Michaels no. Triple H NAILS Undertaker in the face with the hammer. But it only draws a two count. Triple H then shoves Shawn out of the way and tries to pulverize The Undertaker’s head like a Gallagher watermelon. Shawn swiftly removes the sledgehammer from his hands and tosses it out of the ring. Shawn Michaels teases that he will end the match but keeps stopping himself to check on The Undertaker. After a 3^rd return to check on The Undertaker, Undertaker locks him in the Hell’s Gate. Not Triple H, Shawn Michaels. Triple H breaks this up by hitting The Undertaker with a sledgehammer shot to the head. Undertaker blocks a 2^nd one with a Hell’s Gate. The ref is unconscious. A rerun of the finishing sequence from the previous year happens, with Triple H teasing that he can grasp the sledgehammer but fighting his losing consciousness.

Another official, Charles Robinson, comes barreling down the aisle (much like he did at WrestleMania 24 actually) and gets into the ring just as The Undertaker hits the chokeslam. It only draws a 2 count. Undertaker responds by hitting Charles Robinson with a chokeslam (much like he attacked the referee at WrestleMania 17). Undertaker tries for a tombstone but Triple H reverses and pushes Undertaker into a Sweet Chin Music. Triple H follows that up immediately with a pedigree. It only draws two though. Triple H makes it up first and grabs the hammer. Shawn tries to come between the two and stop Triple H from destroying The Undertaker with the hammer. Triple H tosses him out of the ring. Triple H turns around into The Undertaker sitting up. An action which causes Triple H to drop in fear. Undertaker hits Triple H with a a big boot and more furious strikes. A whip to the corner. A clothesline. A snake eyes and big boot. A big legdrop. TOMBSTONE!

Shawn makes it back into the ring to count a two from that. As the two men fight back to their feet, the crowd seems strongly behind The Undertaker. Undertaker attempts a tombstone but Triple H escapes and hits a Pedigree. It was a two count. Triple H and The Undertaker both try to pull themselves to their feet. Undertaker has the chair. Triple H has the hammer. Just as Triple H starts to bring it up, Undertaker puts his foot on it and begins to wail away with the chair. Triple H kicks out at two from it. Shawn begs them both to give it up. Triple H crawls back over to the hammer as The Undertaker is pulling himself up on the other side of the ring. Undertaker is now waiting for him to get up. Triple H goes after him with the hammer. Taker catches it and takes it away from him. Triple H has no other choice but to signal with a crotch shot. Undertaker responds by hitting him in the head with the hammer. He drops his singlets straps, slits the throat and hits the tombstone. Crosses the arms and gets the victory!

I think The Undertaker in this match looked refreshing, powerful and intimidating. Something he really didn’t at a few of the previous ones. I think 26 played into this match well and I really enjoyed the call back to that finish.

The Undertaker vs. Triple H

The Winner: The Undertaker

After being gone for several months, The Undertaker returned to RAW. As he was entering the ring, someone else’s music started to play. That man? Triple H. Triple H, who had been gone about 11 months at this point, came into the ring. Got up in The Undertaker’s face. Then looked at the WrestleMania marquee sign hanging in the arena. Undertaker looked at it too. Then did his throat slit as apparent confirmation of this challenge.

The match was made with NO WORDS USED AT ALL. They did promos after this of course. But the actual challenge came with no words.

Triple H’s entrance for this match was accompanied by “For Whom The Bell Tolls” by Metallica. That song is not used on this DVD. A knockoff version of it is. Its close but not the same. This match will take place under No Holds Barred rules.

The problem with this match that I don’t think translates well to the writing of this blog is that I don’t think I can get across the drama of the moves that they are doing. There were several close moments in the match that Triple H had, but they just went from signature move to signature move and while it made sense in the context of watching it. There is not a lot of wear down holds. This match is based solely off of what Triple H and The Undertaker are known for doing. The story was simply, who had the bigger will and better arsenal. It wasn’t as fast paced as their WrestleMania 17 match or as psychologically driven as the following years match. This match did though add a lot to the drama of the rematch the following year. And the finish of this match set up the next match.

Triple H got in 3 pedigrees, even a tombstone but nothing would stop Undertaker. Chair shots wouldn’t do it. A sledgehammer wouldn’t do it Undertaker only won though, because he got in a luckily timed hold. He could not stand up at the end of the match, he was not able to walk out after the match. Nobody had beaten The Undertaker this bad. Nobody had come this close.

The Undertaker’s kickout after Triple H’s tombstone was probably the biggest pop of the streak thus far. With the way the match was going, that could have sensibly been the finish. Yet Undertaker survived.

It took everything of the Undertaker to win the match.

The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

One year after he lost to The Undertaker at WrestleMania, Shawn Michaels still could not shake the feeling that his career was incomplete and he could not stand that. So at the December 2009 Slammy show (a full 4 months before WrestleMania) he made the challenge. Undertaker was World Heavyweight Champion at this point. Shawn realized that he needed to win the Royal Rumble to get his shot but he failed. At the February 2010 PPV (Elimination Chamber), he cost The Undertaker the World Heavyweight Championship. The next night on RAW, The Undertaker said that if Shawn wanted a shot at ending The Streak, he had to put something up of his own. His career. Shawn accepted and here we are.

This was the closing match of the show. Shawn Michaels entered first.

The Bell

Both of these men look very orange. Plus the crowd lighting. Orange all around. Right before the bell rang, Shawn did Undertaker’s throat slit taunt. He was trying to get into his head.

Undertaker misses a big running right hand and Shawn unleashes chops in the corner. Undertaker escapes and hits his snake eyes boot. Then he goes for the old school arm wrench. After he hits it, Undertaker limps as if he has tweaked his knee. This of course prevents him from hitting a chokeslam. Shawn is able to derail any offense of The Undertaker’s for several minutes by kicking Undertaker’s leg. Undertaker goes after Shawn’s arm. Shawn breaks away and nearly hits the Sweet Chin Music. That creates separation between the two men. Shawn then begins diving towards the leg of the Undertaker. He is using predatory offense. Undertaker dumps Shawn out of the ring and teases a dive, much like the one that almost broke his own neck at the previous year’s Wrestlemania. Shawn cuts him off though by rushing back into the ring and spearing him. The match spills back outside and Taker sends Shawn spine first into the ring post, he then hits the guillotine legdrop on the apron. Before Undertaker could take any advantage of the legdrop, Shawn takes his legs out from under him and locks in a Figure 4.

Undertaker rolls over in the hold, reversing the pressure. Back to their feet, the men start trading blows. Undertaker ends that with a chokeslam, but Shawn kicks out at two. Undertaker goes for a tombstone piledriver, Shawn reverses that into an ankle lock submission. Undertaker uses his height to kick Shawn in the face with his free foot and break out. Shawn clotheslines The Undertaker out of the ring and then tries for an asai moonsault. Undertaker catches him and after some readjusting, hits a tombstone on the outside. This was the finish of the previous years match (moonsault to tombstone), but on concrete, so it is bigger and stuff.

Undertaker throws Shawn back into the ring and goes for a pin but it is only a two count. Presumably because there was a lapse of time between the move and the pin. Undertaker goes for a last ride and Shawn reverses it to a facebuster. The announcers can’t agree whether it was a success on Shawn’s part or a failure on The Undertaker’s part. Shawn could only get a two count regardless of it. Shawn goes for an elbow drop off the top rope but Undertaker gets his knees up and that injures Shawn’s arm. Undertaker tries his gogoplata submission but Shawn reverses it into a jackknife pin for a 2 count. They both struggle back to their feet. Shawn hits Sweet Chin Music. It draws a two count. Shawn signals that he is trying for another one. Undertaker catches it, reverses and hits The Last Ride. Shawn kicks out at two. Undertaker follows up the failed pin attempt by throwing Shawn out of the ring. He dismantles the Spanish announce table and tries to Last Ride powerbomb Shawn through it. Shawn reverses and hits The Sweet Chin Music which sends Undertaker onto the announce table.

HUGE MOONSAULT FROM THE TOP ROPE THROUGH THE ANNOUNCE TABLE!

Shawn Michaels rolls The Undertaker into the ring. SWEET CHIN MUSIC!!!! ONE….TWO….KICKOUT AT TWO!!!!

Shawn signals that he is going for another Sweet Chin Music. Undertaker catches him and reverses to a chokeslam. Tombstone piledriver by The Undertaker. Shawn kicks out. Undertaker looks shocked at this development.

UNDERTAKER DROPS THE STRAP AND SLITS HIS THROAT! HE IS SIGNALING FOR THE END! He looks at Shawn with pity though. Shawn is pulling himself up. He slits his throat, much like he did at the beginning of the match. He then hits a vicious slap to the Undertaker. Undertaker basically says “Fuck this guy” and hits a JUMPING Tombstone Piledriver to finish the match and the career of Shawn Michaels.

The Verdict

This match goes on very well with the previous year’s, plus the two matches that follow it in The Undertaker’s streak. So many call backs to moments from the previous ones.

The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on April 5^th 2009. After several months of being John Bradshaw Layfield’s employee, Shawn Michaels broke free. This was such a victory for him, that he declared that he wanted to face The Undertaker at WrestleMania. Shawn believe he was qualified because he is “Mr. WrestleMania”. Despite having a less than stellar record. Shawn broke out his religious background and quoted the bible numerous times in the build up.

Shawn’s entrance was comprised of him being lowered from the rafters bathed in white light. The Undertaker’s entrance was comprised of him being risen from under the ramp, then there was pyro. It’s like Heaven vs. Hell.

The Bell

When the bell rings, they circle each other. Undertaker has the size advantage. Shawn has the speed advantage. Shawn is able to avoid strikes and hit chops. He is able to get enough in to stagger The Undertaker. Undertaker catches one though and hurls Shawn over the top rope. Shawn lands on the apron and dives over The Undertaker after crotch chopping him. Shawn then feigns a knee injury. The ref tries to prevent Undertaker from attacking Shawn. Taker throws the ref out of the way and walks right into a Thesz press. Taker though, regains an advantage and uses his monstrous hands to debilitate Shawn.

Undertaker hits a huge press slam and an elbow drop. It gets a two count. Undertaker hits an Old School but misses a running boot in the corner. He hangs up his knee on the buckle. This prompts Shawn to start working over The Undertaker’s knee. Shawn locks in a modified Figure 4. Commentator Michael Cole credits Ric Flair as teaching it to Shawn, but its not the basic Figure 4 Leglock. I believe this variation of the move was taught to Shawn by Jamie “Bah Gawd” Noble. (UPDATE: Shawn Michaels corrected me via twitter, William Regal and Fit Finlay taught it to him)

Undertaker escaped the hold but before he could do anything, Shawn dropkicked his knee out from under him. Undertaker catches Shawn coming off the ropes but his offense is slower, he is having trouble standing after the leg lock and dropkick from a few minutes earlier. Undertaker hits Snake Eyes and a legdrop. It draws a two count. Undertaker goes for a chokeslam but Shawn reverses to a crossface. Undertaker makes it to his feet and hits a side slam. It draws a two count. More brawling commences. Shawn hits a flying forearm. He follows it up with a few inverted atomic drops and a chop. Another clothesline. He goes up top for an elbow drop. Undertaker catches him for a chokeslam. Shawn escapes and goes for a Sweet Chin Music. Undertaker dodges it by ducking, Shawn goes back to the modified figure 4 but The Undertaker escapes and locks in The Hell’s Gate. Shawn makes it to the ropes and the hold must be broken (an amazing minute sequence)

Outside Undertaker tosses Shawn into the steps and goes for a guillotine legdrop, Shawn dodges and The Undertaker goes tailbone first onto the apron. Shawn hits a baseball slide dropkick which keeps The Undertaker on the outside. He then tries for a moonsault off the top rope but Taker swats him to the side and Shawn goes thud. Shawn looks to have injured his arm. Undertaker rolls in and goes for a suicide dive. Shawn avoids it by pulling a camera man (Sim Snuka) into The Undertaker’s way. That isn’t the story here though. Undertaker went HEAD FIRST INTO THE GROUND. Shawn helps the referee into the ring and instructs him to count. The count gets to 9. It would have been a very cheap way to win this match. Shawn signals for sweet chin music, but Undertaker dodges and this a chokeslam. That draws a two count. Undertaker goes for The Tombstone but Shawn escapes, goes for Sweet Chin Music, its caught, Undertaker goes for another chokeslam. Shawn breaks free and hits the Sweet Chin Music. It draws a very close two count.

Undertaker goes for a Last Ride powerbomb, Shawn reverses it by attempting a sunset flip. Undertaker reverses that into a Last Ride. Shawn kicks out of the pin attempt after that which causes Undertaker to throw a mini tantrum. Undertaker misses a flying elbow drop off the top rope. Shawn misses a charge and ends up on the apron, he tries a skin the cat, but Undertaker catches him and goes for a tombstone. Clearly the streak continues, this has to be the end….. NOPE! KICKOUT! Undertaker drops the straps and signals for another Tombstone. Shawn countered into a DDT type thing (this may have not gone as well as planned). Shawn hits a HUGE ELBOW OFF THE TOP ROPE! HE IS SIGNALLING FOR THE SWEET CHIN MUSIC, HE HITS IT! IS THIS THE END?!?!?!?!? NO!!!! KICKOUT!!!!! CHOP BATTLE!!! THEY ARE BRAWLING!!!! BIG BOOT BY THE UNDERTAKER!!!! SHAWN ESCAPES THE TOMBSTONE ATTEMPT!!!! UNDERTAKER CHARGES HIM IN THE CORNER!!!! SHAWN GETS A BOOT UP!!!! SHAWN IS GOING UP TOP! MOONSAULT ATTEMPT!!!! HE IS CAUGHT!!!! TOMBSTONE!!!!!! IT IS OVER!!!!!

The Verdict

One of the greatest closes to a match I have ever seen. Just an amazing match overall. Probably my favorite of this streak.

The Undertaker vs. Edge

 

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

Going into this match, Edge was the World Heavyweight Champion. Edge won the World Heavyweight Championship by unjust means in a triple threat match involving Batista and The Undertaker. Also, Edge ended The Undertaker’s previous World Title reign with an impromptu title shot and post match attack. So when The Undertaker won the Elimination Chamber in February 2008 to challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania, it made this match more heated. Undertaker had waited almost a year for this encounter. In the weeks leading up to this match, The Undertaker debuted a new hold, a judo inspired Gogoplata choke that he eventually named “The Hell’s Gate”. To this point, Edge had never been pinned at WrestleMania. And Edge had never lost to The Undertaker.

The Bell

When the bell rang, Undertaker signaled that this would be the end. He slashed his throat with his thumb. Edge shoved The Undertaker and began striking. Undertaker very simply shut that down by throwing his own strikes. He clotheslined Edge out of the ring but Edge evaded him and got back into the ring. Undertaker hotshotted Edge throat first on the top rope. After a running clothesline and two count, Undertaker began working over Edge’s shoulder, he set up for The Old School but Edge countered by pulling Taker off the top, Taker responded with an armdrag. Undertaker hit a charge in the corner and somehow hung himself up on the rope and hit his leg on the ring apron. Edge responded by spearing Undertaker off of the apron and sending him into the steel ring barricade. Edge then dropkicked Undertaker back into the barricade. He then drove Undertaker kidney first into the ring apron. Edge then hit an innovative neckbreaker on the top rope, with him on the inside and The Undertaker on the apron. Edge continued the work on The Undertaker’s back and ribs. Clearly hoping that it would limit The Undertaker from hitting his finishers, The Last Ride and Tombstone. Edge climbed up top but Undertaker sent him off to the concrete outside. He then followed with a dive over the top rope. Guillotine legdrop on the apron. But Undertaker is having trouble moving because of his back. Edge was able to fight out of a Last Ride attempt because of the Undertaker’s weak back. The match takes a spill outside again and Edge does more back work with a suplex onto the steel barricade. Back in the ring, Edge utilizes a half Boston crab. The focus on the back continued. Undertaker was able to fight out of it and begin his comeback with charges in the corner but Edge blocked the Snake Eyes with a dropkick. Undertaker caught Edge coming off the middle rope with a chokeslam. Edge reversed into a DDT which drew a two count. Edge went for the spear but Undertaker met him with a big boot. He hits a chokeslam but that only draws a two count. Edge blocks an Old School attempt and hits a superplex. It only drew a two count. Edge tries the corner 10 count punch, Undertaker tried The Last Ride but Edge escaped and hit a neckbreaker. It only got a two count. Edge leaves an opening that Undertaker takes advantage of and Undertaker hits The Last Ride but it only draws a two count.

Undertaker signals for The Tombstone but Edge counters into a reverse DDT. It draws a two count. Undertaker hits a big boot and then The Old School. He tries a running big boot but Edge avoids it and the referee gets nailed. Undertaker grabs for a chokeslam but gets kicked in the genitals. Edge grabs a camera from outside the ring and nails The Undertaker in the head with it. Undertaker sits up though. Edge signals for The Tombstone (because that has worked so well for people facing The Undertaker before), Undertaker reversed and hits one of his own. The referee Charles Robinson bolts down the entrance way (it was a long one) and makes a count but it was a two count. Edge’s posse Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder come down but are quickly sent away with chokeslams. Undertaker turns around after dealing with them and is met with a spear. It was only a two count. Edge hits another spear. But Undertaker reverses it and locks in The Hell’s Gate. Edge submits.

The Verdict

Up until the final moments of the match, I was sure Edge was gonna win. I expected Edge to reverse the Hell’s Gate into a pinfall. Undertaker debuted it a few months before and it did involve him putting his shoulders on the mat. I expected Edge to simply reverse the momentum and use it for a pin, continuing his “Ultimate Opportunist” streak. As far as the match goes, it was very reminiscent of the Randy Orton encounter, with Edge seemingly having The Undertaker’s key attacks scouted at every turn.

The Undertaker vs. Batista

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on April 1^st 2007.

When The Undertaker won the 2007 Royal Rumble, he had 3 choices of what to do. Face John Cena for the WWE Title. Face Bobby Lashley for the ECW Championship or face Batista for the World Heavyweight Championship. All 3 of the guys he could choose were relatively the same size. Batista was on the Undertaker’s same Smackdown brand, so it would make sense that he was the one chosen. I remember the build up for this match and how even BEFORE the Royal Rumble, there was talk that Batista was going to be The Undertaker’s opponent and how Batista was being considered to end the Streak.

Undertaker’s entrance here was magnificent. Torches, lightning pyro, flames shooting up from the ground.

The Bell

When the bell rang, Batista speared Undertaker and began to punch him in the corner. Taker reversed and got his shots in. As Taker chased the referee away, Batista got the advantage again. Batista clotheslines The Undertaker over the top rope, Taker lands on his feet and pulls Batista outside the ring. Batista responds by tossing Undertaker into the steel steps. Batista throws Undertaker into the ring and then hits a flying shoulderblock off the top rope. This accompanied by Michael Cole saying “I have never seen Batista go to the top rope”. It did accent the moment but Batista won the World Heavyweight Title with that move the previous November. The shoulderblock got a two count. Batista got another two count soon after with a clothesline. The crowd was strongly behind Undertaker here as during a brawling session, every Undertaker shot was responded to with strong cheers while Batista punches were responded too with strong boos. Undertaker hit repeated charges in the corner and then a snake eyes kick. A big legdrop by Undertaker only drew a two count however. Undertaker hits Old School. He then grabs for a chokeslam but Batista breaks out. After some brawling, the match spills back outside. Undertaker this a guillotine legdrop. An over the top rope dive onto Batista follows. After The Undertaker rolls back into the ring to break up the count, Batista sends Undertaker into the bell table. Batista disassembles a few of the announcers tables and hits a powerslam through one of them. Batista goes for a pin in the ring but it only gets a two count. Batista then calls for a Batista bomb but Undertaker rushes him back into the corner in an almost desperation move. He goes to whip Batista to the opposite corner but Batista reverses to a belly to belly suplex. Batista only gets a two count from that. He goes for the ten count corner punch, Undertaker cuts him off halfway through with a Last Ride powerbomb. That only gets a two count though. After an irish whip reveral, Batista hits a spinebuster. He signals for the Batista Bomb, Undertaker reverses it and this a chokeslam. That only draws a two count. Undertaker signals for a tombstone. Batista slips out, hits a spear and then a Batista Bomb. That draws a close two count. Batista goes for a second, Undertaker escapes with a backdrop. Batista then goes for a powerslam, Undertaker breaks out of it and hits a tombstone and wins the World Championship

The Verdict

So many close nearfalls. I thought watching it as it happened that The Batista Bomb was the end of the match. I was so sure that Batista was going to win here that for months prior, I was rooting against Batista, hoping he didn’t get the title, hoping he didn’t keep the title and hoping that something happened to prevent the match from taking place. This match kickstarted what I believe to be the “Undertaker steals the show at WrestleMania” tradition.

The Undertaker vs. Mark Henry

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match was a casket match. A casket match, for those unaware, is a match, with a casket at ringside. The only way to win is to stuff your opponent into the casket and shut the lid.

The build up for this match, once again, brought to you by @WyzaNow on twitter

On the March 3 2006 edition of SmackDown!, Undertaker challenged Kurt Angle for the World Heavyweight Championship. During the match, after Undertaker executed a Tombstone piledriver, Henry came out and attacked Undertaker, causing the match the end via disqualification. Undertaker won the match, but since a championship cannot change hands via countout or disqualification, he did not win the title. The following week, on SmackDown!, Undertaker challenged Henry to a Casket match at WrestleMania.

This match is taking place on April 2^nd 2006.

The Bell

This would be the first and to this date ONLY casket match in WrestleMania history. Mark Henry ambushed The Undertaker from behind as Undertaker was removing his hat and jacket. When Undertaker finally got the match in his control, he was unable to knock down Mark Henry. He tried 2 clotheslines and all they did was stagger Mark Henry. Henry blocked the third and continued his work on The Undertaker’s back with splashes and forearm smashes. Outside the ring, Mark Henry threw Undertaker into the steps. Undertaker returned the favor but once again, it was nothing to Mark Henry. Back into the ring Henry got a choke on Mark Henry. Undertaker fought out with uppercuts and then he went for Old School. Mark Henry cut him off before he got up top. Finally Mark Henry called for the casket to open. Undertaker fought off and nobody went inside. Undertaker goes for Old School again and this time hits it. Henry does not go down however. Undertaker tries an STO takeover, Henry blocks and Taker goes down. Henry then calls for the casket to be opened again. He goes for his Chocolate Mousse move (ridiculous name), after he hits it, he realizes he is standing in the casket. Undertaker tries to knock Henry down in the casket. Henry pulls him in. IN CASKET BRAWLING~!. They both exit the casket and get back in the ring. Undertaker got caught on a clothesline and hit with Henry’s World’s Strongest Slam. Henry goes for a pin, but there are no pins. Henry rolls Taker into the casket but he can’t take advantage, Taker escapes quickly. Henry attempted a standing corner punch set, Undertaker reversed into a Last Ride. Undertaker threw Henry out of the ring onto (not into) the casket. He then proceeded to dive over the top rope and the casket and onto Henry. Back into the ring. Tombstone by Undertaker. He calls for the casket to open and rolls Henry into it. He slams the lid. WIN~!

The Verdict

Short of the dive over the top rope, I didn’t like this match. It told a good story of Undertaker struggling to get Mark Henry down but casket matches really aren’t very exciting. This would however be the last match of The Streak that could be considered something other than a “show stealing performance”

The Undertaker vs. Randy Orton

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match came to be after Randy Orton got kicked out of Evolution, lost his world title and continuously was made to look like a putz by Triple H. He wanted to prove that he could hang with the “big dawgs” and the best way to do that, would be to end the WrestleMania undefeated streak of the The Undertaker.

I remember the build up of this match very clearly. It was, to my recollection the first time someone challenged The Undertaker at WrestleMania based purely on ending the Streak. For some reason, The Undertaker entered the match first.

The Bell
As the bell rang, Undertaker was on the move trying to catch Orton, but Orton kept evading him. Finally Orton slapped Undertaker but Orton was able to evade him. Finally Orton got caught in a headlock, Orton fought out and hit a dropkick. Orton’s first few minutes in this match were using his speed. Undertaker was matching up very well. Undertaker missed a charge in the corner, giving Orton an opening for a school boy attempt. It only received a two count. Orton then tried for his RKO finisher, The Undertaker responded by tossing him out of the ring. Given the positioning of the move, I don’t know how Orton expected it to go, he was right next to the ropes and it would impeded the completion of the move anyway. Undertaker then hit a guillotine apron legdrop on Orton and back into the ring, he hit his Old School move. He tries a running boot into the corner, but Orton moved and Undertaker ended up going crotch first into the corner. Orton proceeded to dropkick Undertaker off the ring apron. He took the match back into the ring and after a small back and forth brawling session, hits a clothesline for two. Undertaker hits a running ddt for two. Undertaker takes another shot at a pinfall after a sidewalk slam. Undertaker pounds on Orton in the corner and goes for another one of his long term signature moves “The Snake Eyes” but Orton catches Undertaker with a back elbow smash. It’s a two count.

Orton was using his fists a lot as the crowd started chanting “Randy sucks” . They attempted a double clothesline but it didn’t go well for Orton and he ended up going down like a sack of potatoes. Undertaker followed up a two count after the clothesline with a dragon sleeper. Orton’s arm dropped twice but he was able hold it up a third time and hit a ddt. It gets a two count. Orton then locked in a sleeper hold. Undertaker broke out twice but got locked back in. It took a suplex to finally get Orton off his back. Undertaker crawled to the corner, Orton went to pounce but Taker caught him with a big boot. Undertaker sprung off the ropes to hit another one but Orton reversed into a powerslam for two. Orton had Undertaker in the corner, attempting 10 punches (its always 10, I have never understood that), Undertaker reversed to have Orton in Last Ride position but Orton fought out and nearly hit the RKO. Undertaker pushed Orton away though hand into the referee. Undertaker followed that up with a Last Ride but for some reason, he fell over (the argument the commentary team made was that Orton shifted his weight). Before the Undertaker could gain any offense, Randy Orton’s father “Cowboy” Bob Orton ran in the ring and clotheslined Undertaker with his cast. He dragged Randy on top of Undertaker but that only got a two count. Both men returned to their feet and stared each other down. Undertaker got whipped to the ropes but responded by booting Bob Orton off the apron. Randy tried a clothesline, but the Undertaker ducked and grabbed Orton’s throat for a chokeslam. He lifted him up and Randy Orton reversed into an RKO. It was only a two count though. Orton then signaled that he was going for The Tombstone. Undertaker reversed it into one of his own and that was enough to beat Randy.

The Verdict

The story going into the match was that Orton had a plan to beat The Undertaker and that plan seemed to work very well. He reversed several of Undertaker’s key attacks, Snake Eyes twice, Last Ride twice, chokeslam once. He had Undertaker scouted at seemingly every turn, but one thing he didn’t scout, do not attempt a Tombstone on The Undertaker. More people needed this lesson in coming years but still. He probably could have won if he went for an RKO instead of the tombstone.

I was sure going in that The Undertaker was going to lose here. Orton did a segment where he debuted a new T-Shirt bragging about how he beat The Undertaker. I thought this would be it. Towards the end of the match, the crowd started to pick up remarkably. The closest Orton came would be the Bob Orton running in/The chokeslam reversal. I think The Undertaker’s victory came very impromptu.

The Undertaker vs. Kane

 

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match came to be in November 2003 when Kane buried The Undertaker alive. This apparently was enough for The Undertaker to say “To hell with this biker shit, I’mma be a magic zombie again”. He proceeded to do a bunch of magical zombie shit to set this match up. The Undertaker had not appeared on TV since his burial, so this whole match was promoted with Kane’s reactions to magical zombie shit.

The Undertaker was accompanied to the ring by a returning Paul Bearer and druids with torches. Paul Bearer is very fat here. I own this match on DVD.

The Bell

As the bell rang, Kane proclaimed “You aren’t real”. The look on Kane’s face made this better. He reached out and touched The Undertaker as if he were a mannequin, as soon as he did this, Taker pounced with repeated punches. He then turned and looked at the referee, the referee bolted. Kane escaped the ring too, when Undertaker followed, Kane took the advantage with strikes but Undertaker gained the advantage again and hit the running guillotine legdrop. Undertaker used high impact clotheslines and tried to hit a Last Ride powerbomb but Kane backdropped out of it and began hammering with punches and chokes. Kane hits an enormous sidewalk slam and a flying clothesline from the top rope. After a few minutes of Kane punches, Undertaker was able to drop Kane with a boot and a big leg drop. He tried Old School but Kane caught him in chokeslam position, Undertaker retaliated and grabbed his own chokehold. Kane was able to get the better of the battle and hit one of his own. As Kane taunted Paul Bearer, Undertaker sat up. Undertaker followed up with classic offense. Running clothesline, chokeslam. Tombstone. End.

The Verdict

Even going in, there was little doubt as to who was going to win this. Usually people who return from time away, like The Undertaker did here, win. Although, this was subverted in 2010 when The Undertaker returned from an injury caused by another Kane “attack”, he lost to Kane 3 straight times. Kane didn’t get a lot of offense and nor should he have I believe. This match at the time was more about the return of the old school deadman Undertaker than anything else

The Undertaker vs. Big Show and A-Train

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

Courtesy of @WyzaNow on twitter

The Undertaker took a leave from wrestling after the Big Show threw him off the stage, sparking a feud. The Undertaker returned at the Royal Rumble in 2003. He immediately continued his feud with Big Show and defeated him by submission at No Way Out with a triangle choke. A-Train entered the storyline by attempting to attack The Undertaker after the match, but Nathan Jones came to his aid. The storyline resumed as The Undertaker began to train Jones to wrestle, and the two were scheduled to fight Big Show and A-Train in a tag team match at WrestleMania XIX. Jones, however, was removed prior to the match, making it a handicap match.

This would be the largest challenge in the Undertaker’s streak as The Big Show and A-Train weight 850 pounds combined. This is the only Undertaker streak match in which he had multiple opponents.

The Bell

As A-Train spat on The Undertaker’s bike, The Big Show attempted to jump Undertaker from behind. He missed the attack. Undertaker hit a quick chokeslam on A-Train and almost got a two count. Big Show broke that up. When the match finally began the way it should have (one of Big Show or A-Train out of the ring). The match was very quick paced with Undertaker even throwing in a leapfrog. Big Show distracted Undertaker from the outside and it allowed A-Train to hit his chokebomb finisher on The Undertaker. A-Train didn’t go for a pin though, Big Show pulled Undertaker out of the ring and threw him into the post. Big Show tagged in and tried for a chokeslam, Undertaker reversed to a fujiwara armbar, then he fought off A-Train with a cross armbreaker. This submission based offense ended when Big Show dropped a leg on The Undertaker. A-Train and Big Show began working on Undertaker’s ribs with abdominal stretches. Undertaker fights back with punches and a ddt. But he can’t take advantage of this with a pin because Big Show breaks it up. Undertaker gets both men trapped in the corner and splashes on them repeatedly. He does a good job of downing them but after a clothesline to Big Show, Undertaker gets downed by a bicycle kick. A chokeslam by The Big Show follows. Nathan Jones, the Undertaker’s original partner for this match, comes down to the ring and takes out the Big Show with a spin kick, then A-Train with a big boot. Undertaker follows up with a tombstone on A-Train and gets the three count.

The Verdict

It is a little asinine that Undertaker almost competed in a tag team match at WrestleMania, especially with Nathan Jones as his partner. This would be Jones’ only claim to fame. Almost teaming with The Undertaker. The match was pretty good though. I enjoyed the teamwork of A-Train and The Big Show, as well as The Undertaker using some new offense (the armbars and the leapfrog). It appeared that the numbers game would be too much for him at times, so the win isn’t that impressive, considering he needed to rely on interference to win. I suppose the match would have been better just a straight one on one match with A-Train (or Big Show).

The Undertaker vs. Ric Flair

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on March 17^th 2002. Wrestlemania 18

Once again, courtesy of @WyzaNow on twitter : The feud started over The Undertaker's ambush on The Rock during the build up to No Way Out, with Undertaker giving The Rock a Chokeslam and a Tombstone Piledriver onto a car. Shortly afterwards, Ric Flair openly detested The Undertaker's actions. At the No Way Out event, Flair interfered with Undertaker's match against The Rock, finally hitting Undertaker with a lead pipe to aid The Rock in victory. Far from pleased over this result, The Undertaker challenged Flair to a match at WrestleMania. Flair refused, stating that he is an owner and no longer a wrestler. However, Undertaker tried to convince Flair by attacking select members of Flair's friends and family.

The Bell

This match would be held under No Hold Barred rules. Ric Flair rushed to the ring and began to whip Undertaker’s ass. Undertaker responded by running. He was a cowardly Goliath against a courageous/ancient David. Flair got caught when he followed Undertaker outside (he actually dove off the apron at him) and driven spine first into the steel ring post. Commentator Jim Ross points out that Ric Flair broke his back 27 years earlier in a plane crash. Undertaker used a great deal of strikes to beat on Flair and then kicked him off of the ring apron to the outside. Undertaker then audibly declared “Now we go to school”. More punches from The Undertaker leads to Ric Flair bleeding (which actually isn’t an accomplishment, Flair bleeds at a slight breeze, I am surprised it took this long). Ric Flair at this point by the way, was 53 years old. Back in the ring more brawling, Ric Flair got in a few chops to break it up but for the most part the match consisted of Undertaker using clotheslines and punches. He occasionally threw in a headbutt for good measure. A top rope superplex followed, which considering the height of The Undertaker and the horrible shape of Ric Flair’s back is DAMN impressive. Undertaker goes for the pin but breaks it up at two, to continue more beatings. Undertaker tried an Old School but Ric Flair jerked Undertaker off the top rope. Flair’s offense couldn’t continue as he was cut off with a sidewalk slam. Undertaker missed a big boot and crotched himself on the top rope. Ric Flair took advantage of this with chops and punches. He then grabbed a lead pipe from The Undertaker’s motorcycle and began to work over The Undertaker with it.

Back in the ring, Flair had Undertaker on his knees, but Take was able to grab him by the throat. Flair escaped this by kicking The Undertaker in the genitals, he then locked in the Figure 4 Leglock. It was directly in the center of the ring. Ric Flair had beaten people with this hold for decades. Undertaker, using his height, grabbed Flair by the throat to break up the hold. He hits a chokeslam for two. Undertaker, then, much like at WrestleMania 17, takes his aggressions out on the referee. He exits the ring and grabs the lead pipe, Flair cuts him off before it could be used too much. Arn Anderson (who Undertaker attacked to attempt to convince Flair to have this match) runs in and hits a spinebuster on Undertaker for a dramatic two count near fall by Flair. Undertaker then bust Arn Anderson open. Undertaker puts Andreson in a dragon sleeperhold. Ric Flair busts this up with numerous chair shots. Undertaker cuts off the chair related offense with a big boot and then an ugly looking Last Ride attempt. After he can’t get Flair up, he switches to a tombstone and gets the 3 count.

The Verdict

I enjoyed the match. It would have made sense for Ric Flair to win here. He had all of the odds against him, he had the crowd on his side. Had the streak not been a thing, it would be a downright shame that Flair didn’t win. Undertaker looked like a prick, acted like a prick during the match but in the end still came out on top.

The Undertaker vs. Triple H

 

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on April 1^st 2001. Wrestlemania 17

The backstory to this match, was, if I am remembering correctly, Triple H said he had beaten everyone in the WWF that there was to beat. Undertaker disagreed and said that Triple H never beat him. This would be the first WrestleMania in which The Undertaker competed under his biker persona. Triple H was accompanied to the ring by a live Motorhead performance of his theme. Lemmy got a lot of the words wrong.

This match took place in Houston, Texas. Which is Undertaker’s hometown. Thus the crowd was firmly behind him. I remember watching this match live (not in person, but on PPV). This would be The Undertaker’s first WrestleMania match in about 9 years in which he wasn’t giving up some size to the opponent.

The Bell

The brawl started before the bell rang. They began fighting outside the ring. Undertaker tosses Triple H through the Spanish Announce Table. Jim Ross points out that Triple H destroyed The Undertaker’s motorcycle a few days earlier. The bell finally rings when they get back into the ring. Undertaker shows a lot of intensity with his attacks, selling the fact that he would be pissed about his motorcycle. Taker hits a powerslam and then goes for an elbow drop and misses (something that has happened in EVERY match so far, it’s a reoccurring thing that I never noticed from his matches). Despite the opening, Triple H really can’t maintain much offense for very long. He gets hit with a running clothesline. Taker wrenches the left arm hard and then calls for Old School, which the crowd explodes for (this WrestleMania had a tremendous crowd). Triple H blocks the Old School and tosses Taker off the top rope. He follows with a neckbreaker. He continues work on the neck for a few minutes. He does repeated cover attempts (much like Sid did at WrestleMania 13) but does not follow up on his attack enough, rather focusing on harassing the referee. This gives The Undertaker an opening for some punches. Triple H fells him though with a knee to the face. Triple H then goes outside the ring and grabs a sledge hammer. Before he can use it, the referee grabs it from him and throws it back outside. Triple H nearly hits a Pedigree with the ref’s back turned but Undertaker blocks and inadvertently throws Triple H into the referee. He hits a chokeslam and goes for a pin. The referee counts to two before Triple H kicks out. Undertaker then does the completely logical thing and attacks the referee, I don’t understand why he would risk the match for such a small issue as a kickout. As the referee remained unconscious, Triple H and The Undertaker fought into the crowd.

They end up on a camera tower. Triple H manages to grab a chair and he works over The Undertaker’s body with it. Specifically the head and knees. Undertaker responds by chokeslamming Triple H off of the camera tower. Undertaker then dove off of the tower and dropped an elbow onto Triple H. Now word of the condition of the referee but I assume he is still out cold, because if he were in any condition to do his job, he would probably wonder where these guys were.

The match makes its way back towards the ring with brawling. When it finally re-enters the ring, The Undertaker grabs the sledgehammer and signals he wants to end Triple H with it. He lifts it up overhead but is met with a foot to the genitals. Triple H grabs the hammer but before he can use it, is kicked in the face. They trade punches for a few minutes until Triple H attempts a tombstone, Undertaker reverses and hits one of his own. He goes for a pin but the ref is still out, so no count. Undertaker signals for his Last Ride powerbomb (which he started using when he adopted the biker persona) Triple H though, grabs the sledgehammer mid move and hits Undertaker in the head with it. In what I believe to this point to be the closest to the end of the streak, Triple H gets a two count from it. Triple H tries to work further on Undertaker’s head and mounts him in the corner, Undertaker reverses this into The Last Ride and does hit it this time and it is enough to continue the streak.

The Verdict

There were a few things in this match that I did not like, for one, The Undertaker’s attack on the ref in the match, sure it lead to great crowd brawling but it didn’t make sense to me that the babyface would be the one to attack the referee and especially over something so ridiculous as not getting 3 on a chokeslam. I liked Triple H’s blocking of the Last Ride with the sledgehammer but I think the finish coming so soon after that was kind of a downer.

The Undertaker vs. Big Bossman

 

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on March 28^th 1999. Wrestlemania 15

This match stemmed from a feud between The Undertaker and Vince McMahon’s Corporation. Bossman was representing The Corporation. Undertaker was a heel here. I think Bossman was a face but wouldn’t be surprised if he was a heel. Undertaker was accompanied by Paul Bearer. Undertaker was at his most satanic looking here.

This was a Hell In A Cell match. I don’t actually KNOW why. I have never seen this match. My best guess is because Bossman, despite never being in one of these, was a prison guard, so he would be at home in a cell.

The Bell

Bossman started the match with a lot of offense. Undertaker would cut him off though. Bossman did get a neckbreaker and a two count quite early and proceeded to kick The Undertaker back down everytime he sat up. He then yelled at Taker to “Get up, get the hell up”. After this, Bossman tried a kick to knock Taker down again and it got caught. Undertaker took advantage again and the match went outside. Whips into the cell and Bossman pulled out a set of handcuffs and cuffed the Undertaker to the Cell. He then worked over The Undertaker with a nightstick. The Undertaker broke off the handcuffs but still was being beaten by the nightstick. Undertaker began bleeding. This enraged The Undertaker and he began firing up and he tossed Bossman into the cell and did not let up. He used a chair across the back. Then he sent Bossman face first into the cell’s mesh. Bossman also began bleeding. Bossman reversed the Old School rope walk elbow smash by shaking the ropes and crotching The Undertaker. He then knocked The Undertaker from the ring apron into the cell. Bossman won a brawling session in the ring until The Undertaker hit a lowblow. Undertaker tried to hit a Tombstone Piledriver but it got reversed. Bossman was unable to capitalize and The Undertaker hit one a few seconds after for the victory

The Verdict

It was a more back and forth match than I expected. Bossman, while not having a lot of “I think he can win this offense” did hit some tough shots. The handcuff and nightstick attack was pretty good. The ending came far too out of nowhere for me. As far as Hell in a Cell matches go, this wasn’t as hard hitting as others but I heard it was a lot worse than it was. As far as Undertaker WrestleMania matches go, it was on the lower end of significance.

All that being said, and it could be that I was a fan of The Big Bossman, I enjoyed this match.

The Undertaker vs. Kane

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

This match took place on March 29^th 1998. Wrestlemania 14

This match stemmed from the fact that when they were children, The Undertaker killed his brother Kane in a fire at the family funeral home. But Kane wasn’t dead, he was locked up in Paul Bearer’s basement. And he was only Undertaker’s half brother. That is as simple as I can make this back story.

A phenomenal entrance. One of Undertaker’s best and the best up to this point no doubt. Druids, torches. The crowd loved it. Paul Bearer accompanied Kane to the ring for this match. I do remember this match, as I watched it on VHS the next day.
The Bell

See The Verdict

The Verdict

The problem with this match is that both of these men, at times leading up to this feud, set each other ON FIRE. Yet not often in the match did it match the intensity of something I would do to someone who set me on fire. Kane did very well telling a story in this match of showing years of aggression. Undertaker did well fighting back. Kane broke up one of his own pinfalls to continue the beating. He followed it up with a headlock/chinlock but it was moving in the right direction. He used the steel steps early in the match to work over The Undertaker’s back. The occasional bouts of aggression worked but there wasn’t enough. After the match Kane left Undertaker laid out with a tombstone on a chair.

Kane’s closest moment of victory was hitting The Undertaker with his own move, a tombstone piledriver for a two count. Kane kicked out of two tombstones later in the match and that showed that he was something different than The Undertaker had faced. It was convincing that Kane was tough to beat but I believe Diesel had The Undertaker beaten better than Kane did.

The Undertaker vs. Sycho Sid

The Winner: The Undertaker

Background Noise

Courtesy of @WyzaNow on twitter

The main feud heading into WrestleMania 13 was between The Undertaker and Sycho Sid, with the two battling over the WWF Championship. At In Your House 13, Bret Hart last eliminated The Undertaker in a Four Corners Elimination match to win the vacant WWF Championship. Hart's reign, however, lasted only one day as he lost the title the next night on Raw to Sycho Sid after interference by Steve Austin. Due to being the runner-up to the title at Final Four, Undertaker was made the number one contender and was booked to challenge Sycho Sid for the title at WrestleMania. However, on the March 17 edition of Raw, Sid defended the title against Hart in a steel cage match, with the winner defending his title at WrestleMania. During the match, both Undertaker and Austin interfered. Undertaker came out to help Sid because he wanted to wrestle Sid for the title while Austin helped Hart because he wanted to make his scheduled no disqualification submission match with Hart a title match. Sid won the match and retained his title and as a result, Sid vs. Undertaker remained the main event of WrestleMania.

This match was the first time that Paul Bearer did not accompany The Undertaker to the ring at WrestleMania, turning on him approximately 7 months earlier. Shawn Michaels was on commentary for this. I do not remember watching this match, in fact I have never seen the match. But I do remember my mom telling me the result of the match at like 3 in the morning after the show. I don’t know why.

The Bell

Bret Hart, for some reason comes out to the ring, grabs a microphone and shouts at Shawn Michaels, then Undertaker, then Sid. Sid punches, then powerbombs Bret. I thought Sid was the villain in this match and was pretty sure that Bret was a hero at this point, yet the crowd cheers at this. The mat is dirty. I assume it is Steve Austin’s blood as he did bleed quite a bit earlier in the night. Sid is using a bearhug which would weaken the back and make it more difficult for Undertaker to hit a tombstone. He drops him ribs first on the guard rail. Puts him in the camel clutch.

This reminds me, apparently Sid shit his pants either before or during this match. That may be what is on the canvas. It does look like a rusty color. Sid got a near fall and after The Undertaker kicked out, Sid kept going back to the pin, under the belief that each kickout would wear out Taker more. Shawn Michaels does add a lot on commentary to this match. Giving his expertise as the best way to beat Sid (take out his legs). Undertaker does something I have noticed that he does in most of these WrestleMania matches, he tries for a running elbow drop and misses.

Sid does a great deal of attacks from the ropes, which given how his career would end a few years later (broken leg after a bad landing from the ropes) is kind of ominous. Undertaker even had to resort to go up top to try and fell the very large Sid. Sid reverses a tombstone piledriver on The Undertaker into one of his own. After The Undertaker kicked out, Sid tosses him out of the ring. During a brawl outside, Bret Hart runs in and hits Sid in the back with a chair in front of the referee. Undertaker takes advantage of this, tossing Sid, spine first into the ring post. He then hits a chokeslam, only gets a two count. Sid had an opening for a powerbomb but Bret Hart runs in AGAIN and this allows The Undertaker to hit a tombstone and get the win.

The Final Verdict

Bret Hart was obnoxious in this match. He came out 3 times and played too much into the finish. He could have cost The Undertaker his Streak just as it was picking up steam. The chair shot was right in front of the referee. I don’t know why it wouldn’t have been a disqualification but glad it wasn’t. I liked the story of Sid getting seemingly desperate later in the match, continually going up the ropes.
The match wasn’t as good as the Diesel match the year before but still a pretty good one. It would have made logical sense for Sid to win, he was the champion and albeit, not a long term one, if any match early in the streak were to have made sense for a loss, it would have been this one.

The Undertaker vs. Diesel

The Winner: The Undertaker

WrestleMania 12

Background Noise

Diesel flipped off The Undertaker at Royal Rumble 1996, costing him a WWF Title match. The Undertaker responded at the February 1996 ppv by dragging Diesel under the ring, costing him a WWF Title match. This was the first former World Champion that The Undertaker faced on the streak. Dare I say that Kevin Nash was more capable than Giant Gonzales and King Kong Bundy, thus this wouldn’t be as much of a drag to watch as those were. I remember watching this match when it happened but when listing “victims” on the streak, Diesel usually is one of the last ones that come to mind. Paul Bearer accompanies The Undertaker to the ring for this one.

The Bell

Undertaker got Diesel down first and much earlier in the match than he had in years. It took him a while to get Roberts and Bundy down and he didn’t get Gonzales down at WrestleMania IX at all. Undertaker almost hit a tombstone early, which would have been a first since WrestleMania 8 (Gonzales and Bundy were both very large). Undertaker did try a chair shot at one point but Diesel got out of the way. Diesel would be the heel in this match, so The Undertaker using a chair would be a little odd. Diesel posted Undertaker and then proceeded to block him from reentering the match. When he got back in, Undertaker was knocked down with a big boot. After a side slam, Diesel got a two count, which to my memory is the first near fall in the history of the streak. The two eventually hit a double big boot, knocking each other down. Diesel hit the jackknife at a point but postured instead of pinning, Undertaker sat up. Diesel hit him with a second one and taunted again but when he went for a pin, Taker fought up and out. Undertaker hits his first tombstone at WrestleMania since WrestleMania 8 to continue his streak.

The Final Verdict

Not only was the winning streak continued but the streak of dud matches was broken. It was, to this point, the longest and hardest fought match of The Streak. It was back and forth, which to this point, only the Jake Roberts match could be described as. Diesel’s bravado likely cost him the match. He was a much better opponent than the previous two that The Undertaker faced. Diesel left the company several months later, so it wouldn’t have made much sense for Undertaker to lose here. It put him back on track after a few years of underwhelming performances by The Undertaker.