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The Undertaker is beyond the shadow of a doubt one of the most legendary performers in the history of professional wrestling. The revered Deadman has, for long, been a pillar of strength for the WWE--notably carrying the company on his back during the Monday night ratings war between WWE and WCW.
Admittedly, you simply can't deny the fact that several other preeminent performers such as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock also helped navigate the WWE ship toward glory opposite the then-mighty WCW organization--however, The Undertaker had been performing as a main-event Superstar for the WWE long before Austin or Rocky rose to fame.
Considering the fact that The Undertaker has been wrestling since 1984, and broke through in the WWE back in 1990; it's only logical that The Phenom has butted heads with a few co-workers along the way.
Now, the general consensus regarding The Undertaker is largely positive, with most performers and backstage executives singing praises of his professionalism, however, one simply cannot please everybody. Today, we take a look at 3 wrestlers The Undertaker is good friends with, and 2 he probably doesn't like -- with a couple of rather surprising names at that!
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#5: Friend: Kane
Well, this is perhaps one of the most beloved kayfabe duos of all time, as The Brothers of Destruction have always been known for being a force to be reckoned with in the WWE. Glenn Jacobs began working with the WWE back in 1995, however, it was only after he re-debuted on WWE TV as "Kane" that the big man's career truly took off.
Kane was introduced as The Undertaker's half-brother in 1997, and in ensuing years, the two giants engaged in several memorable feuds with one another. In addition, they went on to find great success as a tag team as well--with The Brothers of Destruction also having captured tag team gold in the WWE.
Much like their kayfabe portrayal of The Brothers of Destruction, The Undertaker and Kane share a great camaraderie in real-life as well. In fact, it was earlier this year that The Undertaker showed up at an event to proclaim his support for Kane aka Glenn Jacobs' mayoral campaign. The two legendary big men are known to have an honorable relation backstage--as evidenced by countless accounts from fellow wrestlers...
#4 Friend: Shane McMahon
The Undertaker and Shane McMahon were part of perhaps one of the most risky spots in recent memory, when the veteran performers faced off in a Hell In A Cell match at WrestleMania 32. McMahon stole the show by performing a death-defying leap of faith from atop the Hell In A Cell cage--crashing through the announcer's table, after The Undertaker moved away at the last moment.
The Undertaker proceeded to defeat Shane O'Mac, and the latter was then stretchered out the arena--with the crowd heaving a huge sigh of relief when he gave them the thumbs-up while being stretchered away. One of the biggest talking points coming out of WrestleMania 32, was the sheer amount of faith that both The Undertaker and McMahon had in each other to go forward with the potentially life-threatening Hell In A Cell spot.
Despite maintaining a relatively low profile over the years, The Undertaker often attends Mixed Martial Arts events--the UFC shows in particular--with the Deadman reiterating his love for the sport of MMA. Similarly, Shane McMahon is an incredibly disciplined BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) practitioner who also shares a great deal of passion for MMA. Moreover, The Undertaker and McMahon seem to undoubtedly share a ton of similarities outside the ring, and it probably wouldn't come as a surprise to many that the duo share a significant amount of respect and have maintained a long-standing friendship in real-life...
#3 Probably Doesn't Like: Diamond Dallas Page
Having gained global notoriety due to his work in WCW from 1991 to 2001, Diamond Dallas Page aka DDP entered the WWE in style--making a huge impact on the June 18th, 2001 episode of RAW; when DDP was revealed to be a stalker of the Deadman's wife at the time, Sara.
The forenamed angle didn't last for long in the WWE, as the entire feud between The Undertaker and Page was criticized by many in the business for being borderline absurd--with The Phenom proceeding to absolutely annihilate DDP almost every time the two faced off in the ring. This sent shock-waves throughout the professional wrestling world, since Page was expected to be used as a marquee star for the WWE after WWE's buyout of DDP's WCW contract from AOL Time Warner.
Bear in mind, that both The Undertaker and Diamond Dallas Page are widely-revered in the pro-wrestling community, however, at times, even two of the nicest individuals may happen to dislike each other due to a predicament they find themselves in. Veteran former WWE Superstar Hardcore Holly's book (The Hardcore Truth: The Bob Holly Story) reveals a few intricate details on the backstage heat which existed between 'Taker and DDP.
As noted in the forenamed book, DDP had a habit of planning out his matches in detail, and upon arriving in WWE, the former WCW Champion allegedly tried to make The Undertaker follow his method--Well, needless to say, the Deadman refused. Moreover, DDP is also said to have no-sold many of The Undertaker's moves at some of their WWE house show matches.
The backstage differences between the duo eventually resulted in DDP being absolutely 'buried' by The Undertaker in their feud--to the extent that his wife Sara pinned DDP on an episode of RAW! The feud ended when DDP sustained an injury, however, both The Undertaker and Page haven't been known to be particularly close with one another till date...
#2 Friend: Rikishi
The Undertaker's backstage clique--"Bone Street Krew"--was unquestionably one of the most influential real-life factions in professional wrestling history. Undertaker's BSK opposite the Shawn Michaels-led "Kliq" were notably involved in a power struggle behind-the-scenes--with both groups trying their level best to acquire and exercise political clout in the WWE through the mid-to-late 1990s as well as in the early-2000s.
Rikishi was an important member of the Bone Street Krew which was led by The Undertaker and Yokozuna--with the group also comprising , Charles Wight (who played The Godfather, Papa Shango and Kama), Savio Vega, Henry Godwinn, Mideon (Phineas Godwinn), Krush, Paul Bearer and Mr Fuji. Rikishi and The Undertaker are close friends outside the ring--something which may seem rather strange, given how intensely the pair has feuded over the course of their careers in WWE.
After all, it'd be nigh impossible to forget the scary bump Rikishi took at Armageddon 2000--when The Undertaker threw him off the top of the Hell In A Cell cage, right onto a truck which was carrying pine chips. Akin to the Deadman's WrestleMania 32 spot with Shane McMahon, the remarkable trust between the two Superstars is what allowed them to confidently agree upon and execute the dangerous spot--which once again proves, the Bone Street Krew has always housed fearless gentlemen...
#1 Probably Doesn't Like: CM Punk
The Undertaker is hailed by the large majority of the pro-wrestling community as a thorough professional and someone who is pretty straight-forward to work with. However, every individual is unique, and interactions between two distinct persons could, at times, result in a clash of personalities...irrespective of how easy-going they may be with most others.
Such was the case with The Undertaker and CM Punk--with their real-life heat being a hot topic of debate in pro-wrestling circles back in 2009, when the Deadman 'squashed' Punk to defeat the latter and win the World Heavyweight Championship. The aforesaid match, or rather should I say one-sided beat-down, took place at the Hell In A Cell PPV in '09.
The pro-wrestling world was rife with talk that Punk had allegedly disrespected The Undertaker, by paying absolutely no heed to the latter's advice--what with the Deadman advising Punk to dress like a champion in order to represent the WWE, particularly at the company's social and promotional events. Regardless, Punk accorded little-to-no attention to the veteran's advice, and The Undertaker was subsequently booked to dominate and destroy Punk in their match at Hell In A Cell 2009...
