Who Else Could Have Broken The Undertaker’s Streak?

In April 2014, we witnessed one of the most stunning WrestleMania moments in wrestling history. For the first time in his two decade long career, The Undertaker’s shoulders were pinned to the mat for a 3 count on the Grandest Stage of Them All by Brock Lesnar. The wrestling world was sent into shock and awe, with many contemplating whether that was the intended result or if we were truly seeing the end of an era unfold before our eyes in New Orleans. Indeed, the legendary WrestleMania undefeated streak had finally been conquered.

That win over the most prolific WrestleMania star propelled Lesnar into one of the most dominant runs in WWE history, leading him to numerous WWE and Universal Championship reigns and a presence like no other superstar. Whether you like the guy or not, everyone must respect the fact that it was Brock Lesnar who was the 1 in 21-1.

Despite the everlasting tenure that the streak had throughout WrestleMania history, news has begun to circulate regarding other superstars that were once considered to reign supreme over ‘Taker on the big stage. ‘The Rated R Superstar’ has revealed that he was in fact chosen to be the one to bring The Deadman’s string of victories to an end at WrestleMania 24. Of course, we know that it didn’t quite go down that way, as Edge himself refused, claiming that it made no sense for him to end up being the one to beat the streak and, in hindsight, he was probably right in thinking so.

But let’s stop and consider who else from the list of Undertaker’s WrestleMania opponents could have been a viable contender for breaking the streak. ‘Taker has fought some of the best and brightest stars across generations, some of which could have benefited from the massive rub of being ‘The Conqueror’.

 

1. Kane

Arguably one of The Undertaker’s greatest WrestleMania battles and most defining feuds of the Attitude Era took place in Chicago against his monstrous sibling, Kane. ‘The Big Red Monster’ was presented in such a way that turned even the most die-hard Undertaker marks into doubters as ‘Taker made his way to finally meet Kane one-on-one.

Kane took everything his brother had to offer, including a total of three tombstone piledrivers before he was finally kept down for the three count. Although I’m sure if Kane happened to raise his shoulders one last time, he would have been in with a chance at putting ‘Taker away for the first time in WrestleMania history and I doubt wrestling historians would have complained for a second.

Kane was Undertaker’s equal. After all, he was flesh and blood. If Undertaker was ever going to meet his match at WrestleMania then it had to be Kane (pardon me, JR). Should Kane have walked away with Undertaker’s first defeat under his belt, then this would have surely led to him finding more success in the main event scene, perhaps a WWE Championship run that lasted a little longer than just a day.

In terms of backstage lore, I believe Kane breaking his brother’s WrestleMania streak would have made the most sense.

 

2. Jake Roberts

Before the streak became the beast that it was, Undertaker laid the foundations in his first couple of WrestleMania appearances, with his inaugural victory coming from Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka and the second from fellow man of mystery, Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts. The story heading into this match was Roberts’ attempts at manipulating Undertaker and trying to poison his soul like only a serpent can.

Perhaps if WWE were to have taken Roberts a little more seriously at the time, then maybe him pinning Undertaker to the mat for the first time would have led to an impressive run at the main event scene for both superstars. I’m thinking that it could be the early 90s, supernatural version of the JBL/Shawn Michaels storyline, where Roberts had a vice-like grip over ‘The Deadman’ because of his W at WrestleMania 8.

Using the Grave Digger as his big heater, ‘The Snake’ would finally capture the WWF Championship and solidify himself as one of their top guys. Of course, as with all of these storylines, this would then be the perfect chance for the babyface Undertaker to turn on his master and battle him for the championship down the line, making both men stars in the process.

Of course, if Jake did walk away with the victory in the Hoosier Dome, then the streak wouldn’t have even been a part of Undertaker’s legacy, possibly reducing his legendary career by several years. Regardless, it would have been a huge credit to ‘The Snake’ and set wrestling on a totally difference course.

 

3. Bray Wyatt

Let’s propose that Brock Lesnar wasn’t successful in conquering the streak at WrestleMania 30 and WWE continued with the annual token streak match for one more WrestleMania. Undertaker met with the meandering Bray Wyatt under the cloudy skies of California after being goaded by ‘The Eater of Worlds’ for several weeks prior. Wyatt was trying to get under his skin, claiming that he was the new spooky shepherd here to herd the WWE Universe into a new era of ghoulish antics.

Now, in order for Wyatt to set his career back on the right tracks, a win over The Undertaker was an absolute must. A reinvigorated Undertaker answered Wyatt’s challenge but walked away making him look like a bit of a chump, as was routine in Wyatt’s singles career. But what if Bray did manage to pull of the upset? I personally think that it was the right time for Undertaker to ‘pass the torch’ over to the budding star in this clash of generations.

Wyatt has always been on the verge of becoming a big star, and if it weren’t for his reinvention as ‘The Fiend’ then chances are we would have never seen it come to pass. If WWE were smart and gave him a big win at WrestleMania, let alone the chance at breaking the streak while it was still intact, then we could have seen wonderful things from him while he was still a hot prospect.

 

4. Randy Orton

One of the greatest feuds of 2005 stemmed from an inter-promotion encounter between ‘The Deadman’ and ‘The Legend Killer’ at WrestleMania. Randy Orton was hot off the heels of his own streak of victories over a plethora of WWE legends and alumni, The Undertaker was set to be the feather in Orton’s cap as he approached his first WrestleMania singles match in LA.

Rumours have suggested that this match was originally scheduled to be the end of the WrestleMania streak, with the young star walking away with one of the biggest wins in any superstar’s record to help propel him towards his destiny of becoming a main-event star. Even though ‘The Viper’ did go on to become one of the most iconic stars of his era anyway, perhaps he was indeed the right choice to dethrone The Undertaker in 2005?

‘The Legend Killer’ gimmick remains to this day one of Orton’s career highlights, the big win over Undertaker at WrestleMania would have truly capped it off as something special. Undertaker was still in a good fighting state at this point, so he could have easily gone on to put together more spectacular battles on the Grandest Stage but without the added pressures of yearly appearances.

 

5. Shawn Michaels

There’s no doubt that when you think of The Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak, you immediately think of his series of matches with both Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Spanning across four years worth of ‘Mania, this was truly an end of an era for three of the most prolific stars of the 90s and early 00s. Many consider the first of these matches, the encounter between Undertaker and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 25, to be an all-time classic and they’re absolutely right.

This match brought life back to both men’s careers and wrestling as a whole. The world remembered why these guys were at the very top of the business for the majority of their careers as they stole the show with an absolute barn-burner. It was tough for them to then follow it up with the main-event sequel at ‘Mania 26, but thanks to their continued efforts, Undertaker’s streak continued to be one of the headline attractions of WrestleMania.

Though it’s always crossed my mind if HBK did in fact manage to defeat The Undertaker during one of their two bouts. Michaels even went as far as putting his entire career on the line to have one last crack at breaking the streak, something that became an obsession throughout the twilight of his active run. Undertaker’s streak was presented as a trophy, something that many fans genuinely wanted to see broken for the first time in Taker’s career.

Considering that their matches were as epic as they were, I’m sure the added layer of drama of having Michaels actually break the streak might have been the cherry on top of a career-defining feud for both men. I’m sure Undertaker would have had no qualms with his Attitude Era colleague tying up the last loose end of his legendary career, allowing for both men to ride into the sunset victorious in leaving the bar too high for the current superstars to meet.

Although I’m sure the BSK would have something to say about The Kliq reigning supreme.