5 Reasons why this is the perfect time for The Undertaker's biker gimmick to return to WWE

This past week on Monday Night's "go-home" edition of Raw we seemingly saw the return of a previous incarnation of The Undertaker character, the famous biker gimmick.

The Undertaker was dressed in a leather jacket and bandanna, all staples of the biker gimmick. The Phenom called out AJ Styles for The Phenomenal One's involvement of Michelle McCool in their WrestleMania feud, which will culminate this weekend at WrestleMania in a "Boneyard match".

The Deadman even used the catchphrase "try me, I'll make you famous", one which is synonymous with The Undertaker's biker persona used throughout the attitude era and ruthless aggression era in WWE.

For those unfamiliar, The biker character was a version of The Undertaker which debuted in WWE in May of 2000. In a drastic change to "The Deadman" version of The Undertaker that we had become accustomed to, The biker version rode to the ring on a motorcycle to Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit music. Gone were the druids, darkness and pyro of The Phenom. In its place were sunglasses, leather jackets and bandannas. The Undertaker would no longer cut promos in a dark, ominous tone telling his opponents to "Rest In Peace". Instead, The Undertaker embraced his Houston, Texas roots. The Biker gimmick was more of a reflection of the man behind the character of The Undertaker, Mark Calaway. This drastic character change was crucial in The Undertaker evolving to stay relevant in the ever-changing landscape of WWE's Attitude Era as we entered the new millennium.

So, why in 2020 is it the perfect time for The biker gimmick to return to WWE television screens during The Undertaker's feud with AJ Styles?

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#5 The Undertaker's age

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Mark Calaway recently turned 55 years of age in March of 2020. The Undertaker even admitted in his promo Monday Night on Raw that he has plenty more matches in his past than he does in his future. At 55 years old, how much longer can The Undertaker be seen as an all-conquering, unstoppable, destructive demon of the dark side?

AJ Styles mentioned in the build-up to the "Boneyard match" at WrestleMania, that Styles would have been hesitant about calling The Undertaker out 15 or 20 years ago. However, in 2020 The Undertaker just isn't all that intimidating anymore.

With his advancing age, The Undertaker just might not be able to pull off the character of The Deadman convincingly as he could have done a decade ago. The Undertaker has never been afraid of changing his character and evolving with the times. Perhaps the return of The the biker gimmick could be just another evolution of The Undertaker. An evolution that is perfect timing for Mark Calaway at 55 years old.

#4 Vulnerability

Credit = WWE

Moving away from The Deadman persona adds a completely different dimension to The Undertaker character. Gone is the air of invincibility of The Undertaker that is associated with The Deadman.

The Biker gimmick allows Taker to become a lot more vulnerable in his remaining feuds with WWE. The Deadman version, it is a lot more difficult to do "jobs" and "put guys over". The Undertaker has built up such a mystique and legend over the years as The Deadman that only the cream of the crop should be able to pin or submit The Deadman.

Whereas, The Biker version is more human. The Undertaker becomes a lot more vulnerable to defeat. At this stage in his career, The Phenom is certainly more focused on helping WWE Superstars "get the rub" and make it to the next level in WWE by working with The Undertaker and eventually defeating the future Hall Of Famer. The Biker version of the character, The Undertaker can easily be defeated by WWE Superstars without it hurting the mystique and legend of The Deadman.

#3 Keeping things fresh

Credit = WWE Trolls

The Undertaker is no stranger to evolving his character. 2020 marks the 30th year since he debuted in WWE at Survivor Series 1990. Mark Calaway wouldn't have survived and had the longevity he has had in WWE without constant evolution and redefinition of The Undertaker character.

The return of the Biker gimmick, or a hybrid of it with The Deadman persona could just be the next evolution of The Undertaker's character in 2020. The Undertaker has been using the previous "deadman" version of the character ever since he faced his brother Kane at WrestleMania XX, 16 years ago.

While i'm not suggesting that The Undertaker's persona has become stale by any means, Mark Calaway has a proven track record of having his finger firmly on the pulse of if and when The Undertaker character needs a change and needs to move with the times.

During a period of time in which many are questioning how much longer The Undertaker has left inside of a WWE ring, it would be just like Mark Calaway to try and prove the doubters wrong, completely redefine The Undertaker character and continue for a couple of more years.

#2 Social Media and breaking kayfabe

Credit = Undertaker Instagram

The Undertaker shocked the professional wrestling landscape when he began creating social media accounts in 2018. Fans of him would be even more shocked when The Undertaker began posting on such social media accounts.

The Undertaker would write posts about meeting celebrities such as Post Malone, shoutouts to brands and products, photos with his wife Michelle McCool, their family and much more. The Undertaker was slowly becoming more and more humanised. The mystique of The Undertaker was slowly being unraveled and Mark Calway was beginning to take his place.

This has even been discussed at length during The Undertaker's WrestleMania feud with AJ Styles. The Phenomenal One has talked about The Undertaker's wife Michelle McCool, The Undertaker's family and even referred to him by his real name Mark Calaway. With The Undertaker's social media use and presence ever-growing, the curtain is being more and more lifted behind the mystique of The Undertaker.

The return of his old gimmick allows Mark Calaway to continue to use social media and also evolve The Undertaker character at the same time. It's safe to say that nobody could have envisaged The Undertaker being a regular user of Social Media. But, in 2020 who doesn't use a social networking platform? Even The Undertaker has Instagram!

#1 The Undertaker's "Greatest Hits" request

Credit = WWE

Recent reports have suggested that The Undertaker wanted to do something different when it comes to his potential final run in the WWE. The return of The Biker version of The Undertaker character would certainly fit the criteria of being something different. The Undertaker has been using The Deadman persona ever since the character's return at WrestleMania XX in 2005.

2020 marks The Undertaker's 30th year in World Wrestling Entertainment, debuting at the 1990 WWE Survivor Series pay per view. If 2020 is indeed The Undertaker's final year competing in WWE, The Phenom may have requested to show off his "greatest hits" when it comes to The Undertaker character.

With the return of The Biker gimmick, could we also see the return of other versions of The Undertaker in 2020? Versions of The Undertaker that could return could be Big Evil, The Ministry, The Original Undertaker (purple gloves and all) among other versions.

The return of this gimmick could pave the way for the return of all of The Undertaker's "greatest hits".