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The Undertaker was widely viewed as WWE's locker-room leader for most of his 30 years with the company. In a recent YouTube video, former WWE duo Mace and Mansoor revealed how The New Day and The Usos stepped into The Deadman's backstage role.
The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods) will celebrate their 10th anniversary as a team in July 2024. Like the popular trio, The Usos (Jey and Jimmy Uso) are considered to be among the best tag teams of their generation.
Mace and Mansoor appeared on the latest episode of Maven Huffman's YouTube channel to discuss behind-the-scenes changes in WWE. Regarding locker-room leaders, Mace said The New Day suddenly realized during a European tour that they were all veterans now and should take on the responsibilities The Undertaker previously fulfilled.
"At the end of the tour, Xavier Woods and Kofi, they were talking to us over a game of Tekken, and they were like, 'Hey, we should probably be watching the shows.' We were like, 'Why?' and he [Kingston or Woods] was like, 'Because I think we're Undertaker now!' It's always been Undertaker. To those guys it was Undertaker, but all of a sudden those guys realized, 'Listen, we've been here for 10, 15 years. We're the vets. We're not the kids anymore," they said. [7:27 – 7:52]
In 2023, The Undertaker told Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter about his former role as WWE's locker-room leader. The wrestling icon said it was his responsibility to tell a co-worker if they stepped out of line or upset someone else backstage.
Mansoor on The Usos taking The Undertaker's role
Mace and Mansoor were released from WWE in 2023. During their run with the company, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins were sometimes absent from the locker room because they traveled on their own buses. As a result, The Usos were viewed as veterans alongside The New Day.
Mansoor added that Jimmy Uso once joked about wishing he could be as mean as another previous locker-room leader, John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL).
"I remember Jimmy Uso looking at me and being like, 'Man, you weren't around for JBL. God, I wish you were! (...) I wish I could be [as mean as] JBL, I wish I could, but I can't!'" recalled Mansoor. [7:53 – 8:07]
Maven Huffman worked for WWE between 2001 and 2005. He said the backstage atmosphere was different back then, especially with Bob Holly, JBL, and Ron Simmons serving as additional locker-room leaders.
Do you think WWE even needs a locker room leader to replace The Undertaker? Hit the discuss button and let us know.
Please credit Maven Huffman and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
