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What's the story?
WWE has released the rare footage of a Casket Match between The Undertaker and Vader from 1997, fought at Madison Square Garden in New York, on the WWE Network. They have also uploaded a highlight of the match on their YouTube channel.
In case you didn’t know…
The Undertaker and Mankind were involved in a long-term feud for the better part of 1996 which saw many gimmick matches between the two including the Boiler Room Brawl, which saw Paul Bearer turn on the Deadman and join Mankind. Later, the two competed in a Buried Alive match in which The Undertaker emerged victorious after chokeslamming Mankind into a grave. After the match, The Undertaker was buried alive after an interference by The Executioner.
After returning, The Undertaker entered into a feud with Vader, leading to a clash at the 1997 Royal Rumble. Vader emerged victorious after yet another interference by Bearer. It was during this feud that the two men clashed in a Casket Match at MSG.
The heart of the matter
This particular match aired exclusively on the MSG network, hence only those in New York who had access to the MSG Network were able to watch the match. A few blurry versions of the match were previously available on YouTube, but now, WWE have uploaded the match in the WWE Network Old School category.
In the match, Paul Bearer can be seen at ringside filling in as Vader's manager. The two men went back and forth in a pretty brutal encounter before The Undertaker hit the Tombstone Piledriver on Vader. As it turned out, Mankind would be hiding inside the casket the entire time and attacked Taker just as he was about to roll Vader inside.
After applying the Mandible Claw on Taker, the Lord of Darkness is pushed inside the casket, thus giving a victory to Vader. After the match, The Undertaker would emerge out of the casket to attack Mankind and hit him with a Tombstone Piledriver as well.
What's next?
This might be WWE's subtle way of preparing the fans for the return of the Deadman to WWE television, en route the road to WrestleMania.
It is widely believed that The Undertaker will take on John Cena at WrestleMania 34, and the match will probably be made official in the weeks to come.
Author's take
The WWE Network is nothing short of a treasure trove for all WWE fans and definitely worth the money, considering it gives away all PPVs old and new, and a ton of other shows and matches, including ones from WCW and ECW.
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