Undertaker pinning his opponent after a Tombstone PiledriverThe Undertaker is one of the greatest characters in the history of WWE. The Deadman, and his horror themed gothic character with a dynamic and dark presence, has always intimidated his opponents with his antics and mind games. He has always had a psychological advantage over his competitors, and that has been enough to get the upper hand in his matches. His legendary streak at Wrestlemania (21-1) will go down in the history books as one of the most exceptional records of all time.The Tombstone Piledriver, or the kneeling reverse piledriver, is the Undertaker’s most powerful weapon, which he uses to decimate his opponents and finish them off with. The move is usually followed by the Rest in Peace pin, and usually the Piledriver is enough to defeat his opponents. However, there have been a few wrestlers who have managed to kick out of the dreaded finisher. Let us now look at 5 wrestlers who did kick out of the Deadman’s finisher.
#5 Batista- Survivor Series 2007
Batista had recently won the World Heavyweight Championship from The Great Khali, and The Undertaker had made a return to WWE at that time. A match was made between the two at the Survivor Series PPV in 2007. It was a Hell in a Cell match, and the main event of Smackdown at the PPV.
The battle between these two wrestlers was very brutal and intense. At one point, Batista hit Undertaker with a Batista Bomb through a table. The most surprising moment of the match came when Undertaker hit Batista with a Tombstone Piledriver, but Batista kicked out at two. This was quite shocking, and the Undertaker went on to hit another Tombstone on top of the steel steps. This time he managed to put him down, but an interference caused by Edge led to Batista retaining the title.
#4 CM Punk- Wrestlemania 29
The Undertaker and CM Punk faced off at Wrestlemania 29, with the Undertaker defending his streak (20-0 at that time). Previous to the event, the Undertaker had made a return on an episode of Raw and challenged any wrestler to try to break his streak. CM Punk, Randy Orton, Big Show and Sheamus all wanted to face the Undertaker, and a Fatal 4 Way match was announced to decide the winner. CM Punk won the match and went on to face the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 29.
Both the wrestlers equally contested in the match to emerge victorious, with the Undertaker using all of his experience and CM Punk using his dynamic versatility to fight for the win. During the match, the Undertaker tried to hit a choke slam on CM Punk, which he reversed into Go to Sleep. The Undertaker immediately rebounded off the ropes and nailed a Tombstone Piledriver on Punk, but Punk somehow managed to kick out at 2. The match was eventually won by the Undertaker, but Punk earned his respect by kicking out of the move.
#3 Kane- Wrestlemania 14
The rivalry between Kane and the Undertaker, otherwise known as the Brothers of Destruction, has reached legendary status in WWE. It all started when a masked man interfered in the Undertaker and Shawn Michael’s Hell in a Cell match at Badd Blood in 1998. Their rivalry finally cumulated at Wrestlemania 14, n one of the earliest matches the brothers had against each other.
The match was well appreciated by both critics and fans alike. At one point in the match, the Undertaker tried to hit the Tombstone Piledriver on Kane, but Kane managed to reverse the move and hit the Tombstone himself. The Undertaker kicked out at 2, and hit Kane with a Tombstone after that, but to Taker’s dismay, Kane kicked out of the move too. It took the Undertaker three tombstones to be finally able to pin Kane, and win the match.
#2 Triple-H- Wrestlemania 28
Triple H and the Undertaker faced each other in the co-main event of Wrestlemania 28, in what was billed as the ‘end of an era’, in a Hell in a Cell match. Shawn Michaels was the special guest referee in the match. It was a rematch to their encounter at Wrestlemania 27, which was won by the Undertaker.
The match was initially dominated by the Undertaker, but got more intense as Triple H brought chairs and a sledgehammer in the ring, to use as weapons. The Undertaker was now at a disadvantage, as he was hit by quite a few Pedigrees, a Sweet Chin Music by Shawn Michaels, and multiple sledgehammer and chair shots. The Undertaker eventually managed to hit a Tombstone Piledriver, but Triple H kicked out at two. The Undertaker hit one more Piledriver, and this time he was able to pin Triple H and win the match, extending his streak to 20-0.
#1 Shawn Michaels- Wrestlemania 26
Undoubtedly the most anticipated match of all Wrestlemanias, Shawn Michaels and Undertaker, two legendary wrestlers who have received god-like status among the fans, faced against each other to determine the greatest wrestler in the history of Wrestlemania at Wrestlemania XXVI. Their match was a career vs streak match, with Shawn Michael’s career and the Undertaker’s streak on the line.
The Phenom and Mr.Wrestlemania had an amazing match, which had a lot of drama and emotion in it. Both men tried their best to put the other man down, and applied all of their signatures moves in the process. Shawn Michaels hit the Undertaker with three Sweet Chin Musics’, along with various submission manoeuvres like the Figure Four Lock, Crossface and Ankle Lock, but couldn’t put the Undertaker down. Michaels himself was the victim of three Tombstone Piledrivers, and the Undertaker won the match in the end after hitting the third and decisive Tombstone on Michaels.
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