WWE WrestleMania 32: 5 things you didn't know about the Undertaker's Streak

Concentration of powerIt has been referred to as the “greatest winning streak in sport”. Sky Sports likens it to Floyd Mayweather’s 49-0 record. When the sun has set on his in-ring career, the Undertaker’s streak will be immortalized as part of wrestling lore.It wouldn’t be an injustice in placing The Deadman’s revered legacy of twenty-one straight WrestleMania victories higher than Bruno Sammartino’s 2803-day WWE Championship reign, Ric Flair’s 16 WWE Championships or Stone Cold Steve Austin’s record for the most amount of beer elapsed in front of a live audience (read merchandise figures).Wrestling fans who have witnessed the tide change with each successive era can count the Phenom as the one constant in the chronology. But as with everything in life, there are subtler things which catch the eyes and the appreciation of those who love the understated:

#5 The Finishers

Weapon of choice

Of the Undertaker’s twenty-two WrestleMania victories, sixteen have come via pinfall after the Tombstone Piledriver, two have come via submission after Hell’s Gate (known in MMA as the Gogoplata or Shin Choke), one via pinfall with a flying clothesline (King Kong Bundy, WM 11), one via pinfall after the Last Ride (Triple H, WM 17) and one Casket Match win (Mark Henry, WM 22).

#4 And then there were three

End of an era

Only three men have faced the Undertaker on multiple occasions at WrestleMania – Kane, Triple H and Shawn Micheals. Kane, in his big red monster persona, lost to his “brother” at WrestleMania 14, but would lay waste to Taker after the match.

At WrestleMania 20, the Undertaker would dispose of the ‘American Badass’ character and revert to his Deadman gimmick, defeating a sans-mask Kane.

The Phenom’s first WrestleMania over Triple H was at WrestleMania 17, which was also the first time he appeared as the ‘American Badass’ at the event. Taker would go on to defeat Triple H at WrestleManias 27 and 28, with the latter considered one of the greatest Hell in a Cell matches of all time.

Undertaker’s first WrestleMania match with Shawn Michaels at the 25^th edition of the event witnessed a scary moment when Taker landed awkwardly on his neck, outside the ring after a botched Suicide Dive. He would connect with two Tombstone Piledrivers to win what many regard as the greatest match in WrestleMania history.

Mr. WrestleMania would hope to redeem himself next year and challenge Taker to a rematch, only to be denied. After costing him the WWE Heavyweight Championship, Michaels would get his wish. Undertaker’s victory would also enforce the match’s stipulation of Shawn Michaels retiring.

#3 The Hanging

Too much even for the Attitude Era?

WrestleMania 15 saw six of the seven active WWE Championships defended including the maiden defense of the Hardcore Championship. This mega event was held in the height of the tightrope-walking Attitude Era and the Undertaker's match with the Big Boss Man was an embodiment of the WWE's hubris.

In the midst of his memorable "Ministry of Darkness" gimmick, The Undertaker punched through every wall Vince McMahon put in front of him, winning over fans, but perhaps went a little too far with what he did in this match.

The Big Boss Man was Vince’s newest champion for this duel with the Undertaker and would quickly gain the upper hand by handcuffing Taker to the ring. After freeing himself, the Deadman would come back with a vengeance, eventually winning the match.

What came next is something that places quite high on every “10 Things the WWE wants you to forget” list. The Brood would descend on the cell, string Big Boss Man up and proceed to HANG HIM! Some sort of brace indubitably bore the load and Boss Man was stretchered off after the match. This was the first Hell in a Cell match at a WrestleMania.

#2 The DQ victory

The lone exception

There are very few instances of the Phenom being outsized in WWE history and just one of him being vanquished at WrestleMania. This match ticks one of those boxes. The “8-footer” Giant Gonzalez looked on course for a clean loss until former WWE Women’s Champion Harvey Wippleman slipped the Argentine Anomaly a chloroform-soaked cloth.

Gonzalez would gratefully (and mercifully) use it to put the Undertaker under, but not before the referee noticed and declared the Deadman the winner by Disqualification. Taker would come to and make Gonzalez pay the price for his treachery. This match marks the Undertaker’s only DQ win in the twenty-one and quite possibly, his least impressive match.

#1 BSK Pride

BSK Pride

The Undertaker’s aura of mystique extends beyond just his character. Everyone’s noticed how he bares his chest to show off the “B.S.K Pride” tattoo after he wins a match. This stands for the ‘Bone Street Krewe’, the Undertaker’s posse in the mid-90s.

The group consisted was reportedly founded by Yokozuna and Taker and included the likes of the Godfather, the Godwinns, Savio Vega and Paul Bearer. These guys were the locker room’s counter balance to the Kliq, made up of Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash.

All of the Bone Street Krew got tattoos of their own design that read ‘BSK’. While the Kliq’s are notorious for trying to turn the WWE into an oligarchy, the BSK are more abstruse. While the ‘locker room power balance’ theory is widely believed, this is what one of the group’s members, soon-to-be Hall of Famer the Godfather had to say: “We were a bunch of guys that hung out together, rode together, listened to the same type of music...”