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At WWE Extreme Rules 2019, The Undertaker and Roman Reigns successfully avoided a trainwreck as they defeated the team of Shane McMahon & Drew McIntyre, despite help from Elias.
Shane McMahon was obviously the one who got pinned but the fact of the matter is that it was made very clear that Drew McIntyre did not fear The Undertaker in any form. While Shane McMahon was hiding behind McIntyre, The Scottish Psychopath never blinked an eye, even in the face of The Phenom.
McIntyre was also well protected during the match and rightfully, didn't take the pin. But WWE heavily teased the fact that we're going to be getting a Drew McIntyre and Undertaker match in the near future - with SummerSlam being the closest obvious option.
So despite the Wrestling Observer Newsletter stating that the current plan is not McIntyre vs Undertaker, Extreme Rules proved otherwise. Here are a few reasons why The Undertaker will be facing Drew McIntyre at this year's edition of SummerSlam.
#5. The Undertaker 'hand-picked' Drew McIntyre as his opponent
There were multiple rumours in the past that The Undertaker had hand-picked Drew McIntyre as his opponent for WWE SummerSlam. This was particularly after WWE Super ShowDown and the disaster that seemingly lead to him returning prematurely.
It makes sense, since he probably wants to make the best out of his run. Apart from SummerSlam, the only other time that we'll likely see him wrestle this year is at the November Saudi Arabia show, where he usually performs.
Given that he has been open about wisely choosing his dates, he has to be selective of his opponents as well. If he has hand-picked Drew McIntyre as his next opponent, that likely means that he thinks very highly of him.
#4. It's a marquee SummerSlam match
With less than a month left till the biggest party of the summer, WWE needs marquee matches. After all, it is the second biggest PPV of the year. There were rumours that WWE is allowing Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff to have a fresh start with storylines prior to storylines.
But frankly, that's something that shouldn't happen. It makes no sense to build the second biggest PPV of the year over the course of a few weeks. Regardless, they have an easy match to set up in this situation.
Any Undertaker match at SummerSlam will always be a marquee match and this is no different. While The Undertaker is obviously the star attraction of the match, seeing him face McIntyre in itself is a draw. And Drew McIntyre has needed this kind of a marquee match-up for quite some time now.
#3. It's time to push Drew McIntyre big time
Ever since Drew McIntyre broke up with Dolph Ziggler on-screen, the focus was taken off him a bit. He had joined the three-man faction consisting of himself, Baron Corbin and Bobby Lashley - a trio that...didn't exactly set the world on fire, to put it kindly.
While he was in an important WrestleMania 35 match, it felt as though the company had already given up on him again, but that was never the case. With WWE, getting pushed is often cyclical and that period was simply not when the focus on McIntyre was meant to be.
Now, it's time to push Drew McIntyre again. He was always meant to be pushed as a legitimate main event star and the time has come for him to get that long-awaited push that he was destined for.
#2. To set McIntyre up for a future face turn
Drew McIntyre has been pushed big as a heel on the RAW brand, but it's highly possible that the plans in the future don't call for McIntyre to be a long-term heel. Given his alliance with Shane McMahon, it only makes sense that they turn on each other or implode at some point of time.
McIntyre would be the biggest benefactor out of that and it's very unlikely that coming out of it, Shane McMahon will be the face. Given how hated Shane McMahon has become, fans will only want to see McIntyre turn on him more by the week.
It's not something that will happen soon, however. It's something that WWE might play up and build over the course of the next few months. Beating The Undertaker is just the start of it.
#1. The Undertaker is long overdue to face a younger opponent
The last time that The Undertaker faced a younger opponent was over two years ago, when he was defeated by Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania 33. Ever since then, he's been utilized primarily in the Saudi Arabia shows and has been facing other part-timers.
Normally, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing because he wasn't having bad matches with younger superstars, but with fellow veterans who also proved to be pretty much past their prime.
It seems like he's long overdue to have a match with a younger superstar and there are very few you can pick who are as worthy of facing him or present a fresh, exciting match-up for him. Sure, The Undertaker vs AJ Styles would be better but that's a ship that sailed quite a while ago
