5 things from the Undertaker vs Shane McMahon match that could have been better

Wrestlemania 32 has now come and gone, along with one of its most anticipated matches, Shane McMahon vs The Undertaker. Overall the hell in cell bout was an intense, epic encounter, but today will be nitpicking and exploring the negatives. So let's take a look now at five things that weren't quite right with the Undertaker vs Shane o Mac match/feud.

5. Position on the card

Taker and Shane should have closed the show

Let's start of with one of the biggest problems with the Shane v Taker match, which was its position on the Wrestlemania card. Discussions arose during the weeks leading into mania, as fans surmised which match would actually end up closing the show. The potential for HHH v Reigns to flop seemed too great, along with the Undertakers career being on the line against the future of the WWE, the hell in a cell match seemed more important and many assumed it would main event.

Unfortunately WWE went the standard route, having the world championship bout close the show, which in hindsight, was an even worse decision and Shane v Taker was clearly the superior match. Furthermore, had this match closed the show, fans would have bought into the idea more that Undertaker could actually lose and officially retire.

4. Coast to Coast awkward landing

Not a picture perfect coast to coast like usual

Shane McMahons incredible coast to coast on Vince at Wrestlemania 17 has become an iconic moment in WWE history, and since then has often been a staple of many Shane o Mac matches. His Wrestlemania 32 bout was no exception, as fans sat in anticipation while Shane placed a trash can in front of Taker before climbing the opposite corner. However, a minor mistake caused the move to not quite look as smooth as usual.

As Shane leaped, Undertaker shifted his arms slightly in preparation to take the impact, unfortunately this movement shifted the trash can ever so slightly, resulting in an awkward landing that saw the can get tangled in the Takers legs rather than driven into his skull. In the context of the match, the slight mishap wasn't a big deal at all, some could even argue that it looked stiffer and thus added some more realism, however when looking back at some of Shanes greatest coast to coasts, this will be towards the bottom of the list.

3. Michael Cole clearly seen reading script

Cole’s commentary failed to capture the essence of this astounding moment

One of the most memorable moments of Wrestlemania 32 and a stunt that will go down in history, Shane McMahons leap of faith from the very top of the cell. Following which Michael Cole proclaimed "For the love of mankind, Shane just exploded through our table". On paper, those words do justice to this incredible jump, along with a subtle reference to Mick Foley (Mankind) who infamously fell from the top of the cell many years ago.

However, when listening closely, the delivery of the line felt a little lackluster and almost forced. Even worse, is that Michael Cole can actually clearly be seen on camera staring intently to read from a script as he screams his line in a forced manner. This completely ruins the commentary for this epic moment and one must wonder why Cole couldn't memorize a simple line instead of needing to read the script during the immediate aftermath.

The jump from the cell by Shane was truly awe inspiring, but the commentary left a lot to be desired, and will not live on an infamy like JR's passionate calling of Foleys fall.

2. Awkward sharpshooter counter

An interesting counter but executed poorly

A minor mistake, that in the grand scheme of things, didn't matter too much, but was still rather significant. Undertaker had Shane locked securely in the devastating Hells Gate submission, before Shane was amazingly able to counter the move into a submission of his own, the sharpshooter.

The counter had the potential to be phenomenal. Unfortunately, Shane stumbled and struggled to execute the transition smoothly, thus resulting in a rather awkward looking counter. Luckily, they recovered rather quickly and the rest of the match more than made up for that minor mistake that would be largely forgotten.

1. Importance of stipulation diminished on Raw

Should Shane have won at mania?

The stipulations attached to this Hell in a cell bout held dire consequences and made the match incredibly important. If Shane were to win, not only would the Undertakers Wrestlemania career be over but Shane McMahon would gain control of Raw. So once Shane lost the match, it was assumed that he would be on his way back out of WWE. However the wasn't the case, as the next night on Raw, Vince ended up just giving Shane control for one night anyway.

This completely diminished the importance of the stipulation and almost made the epic mania bout feel pointless. Rumors are also suggesting that Shane will be sticking around even longer and may end up running either Raw or Smackdown anyways. Now while this will help to freshen up the WWE, it will further make the entire Undertaker match redundant. Leading one to think, perhaps the better booking decision would have been to simply have Shane beat Taker at mania.

Regardless of all these minor flaws, the Shane O Mac v Undertaker match was truly awe-inspiring and will likely be remembered as one of the most infamous mania bouts of all time, if only for Shanes legendary leap of faith.