How The Undertaker Inspired Current WWE Star

The Undertaker was an inspiration.

After signing with the WWF in late 1990, The Undertaker immediately took the company by storm. His dark and mysterious persona, mixed with his impressive athleticism and sheer size, made him a force to be reckoned with.

In early 1991, he linked up with the man who would become a close friend and long-time collaborator, Paul Bearer. The pair quickly got to work dispatching Jimmy Snuka before beginning a feud with The Ultimate Warrior shortly after WrestleMania VII.

As part of the storyline, ‘Taker and Bearer locked Warrior inside a coffin during a Funeral Parlour segment on WWF Superstars.

The segment is still fondly remembered by fans to this day and played a major role in the life and career of another World Champion.

During an appearance on Busted Open Radio, Damian Priest recalled coming across the show and segment while channel hopping while living in Puerto Rico.

“[It was] the funeral parlor. It was when Undertaker stuffed The Ultimate Warrior in a coffin and locked it, and everybody was fighting to open it because they were afraid he was going to suffocate and die. I was living in Puerto Rico, and it was on two different channels. It was on an English channel and a Spanish channel.

As a kid, I’m just flipping back between the channels because I think it’s cool that it’s the same thing on two different channels at the same time in two different languages.”

Priest added that from that moment on, he knew he wanted to become a pro wrestler.

“The superhero almost got got by the super villain, and immediately I fell in love with the business. I fell in love with the Undertaker character. That’s when I knew it was like, ‘I want to do this with my life.'”

The Undertaker Returns To NXT

Despite being officially retired, The Undertaker continues to be a regular presence around WWE and shows little sign of slowing down.

The Deadman made his most recent appearance on the July 22 edition of NXT where he confronted TNA World Champion Trick Williams. The veteran told Williams that he’d been slipping in recent weeks, but when Williams tried to get in a sucker punch, ‘Taker laid him out with a Chokeslam.

H/t to Wrestling Inc