The Undertaker Names WrestleMania Match He Shouldn’t Have Been In

The Undertaker has admitted he overstayed his welcome.

After losing to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 30 in one of the most shocking match endings in wrestling history, it appeared that The Undertaker might be done. The streak was over, and The Deadman had been defying father time for several years.

However, a year later, he was back at WrestleMania beating Bray Wyatt, before repeating the trick inside Hell In A Cell at WrestleMania 32 against Shane McMahon.

But despite his best efforts and willingness to perform, it was clear it was getting harder and harder for the legend to recapture the old magic.

The stark evidence for this struggle arrived at WrestleMania 33 when ‘Taker took on Roman Reigns. The veteran was far from his best physically and this hindered the match which was intended as something of a “passing of the torch” moment. Following Reigns’ victory, Undertaker left his hat and gloves in the ring, apparently ending his career.

The Undertaker Stayed Too Long

During a recent episode of his Six Feet Under podcast, The Undertaker looked back at his match with Reigns and admitted his performance still bothers him. He even went as far as to say he shouldn’t have been in the ring.

“That still bothers me. Not that I lost, but I was just…I stayed a little long. I stayed a little long. I didn’t have enough for him that I would have liked to have given him. At that point, my body was shutting down. Yeah, I shouldn’t have been in that match, but [shrugs], anyway,”

During a 2023 interview, The Undertaker said he knew months in advance he couldn’t deliver. The veteran explained that he knew he wouldn’t be ready, but he’d already committed to the match.

Shortly after the match Undertaker underwent hip surgery before returning to action on nine more occasions, eventually retiring in 2020.

H/t to Fightful