Report: Undertaker Hospitalized

[Jack-Hammer]

According to a report at prowrestling.net, The Undertaker was genuinely taken way in an ambulance after his match with Brock Lesnar last night. As of right now, at least based on the report, it seems as though he's suffered a concussion and the report mentions nothing else as far as other injuries go. As it's still very early, there probably won't be any updates on Taker until much later today.

There've been other wrestlers who've suffered concussions in WWE the past several months, but this is the first I've read about any of them being taken away in an ambulance. If it's a concussion, then it may be an extremely bad one if the WWE medical staff thought it necessary for him to be taken to a hospital. This is exactly why I was concerned about him going against Lesnar. You could tell that Lesnar was very much holding back during the match and, at times, looked like he was hesitating. Taker may have suffered this early on in the match because, looking back on it in light of this report, Lesnar's hesitations at times may have been due to Taker not able to respond to spots originally planned out.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

Ah well, I guess if he has a serious concussion then my prediction of Sting/'Taker happening at Extreme Rules won't come to fruition. I think I can actually live with that.

 

[Trail_Blazin]

Part of me wonders if Taker didn't kick out because of his concussion.

Another part of me wonders if it was booked that way for the WM 31 rumored match with Sting. Could be a case where Sting would only sign if he went over Taker. And there is NO way that Vince is going to let a WCW guy go over the Undertaker at Mania and end the streak.

We'll see what happens tonight.

 

[TootsieBear]

Part of me wonders if Taker didn't kick out because of his concussion.

Another part of me wonders if it was booked that way for the WM 31 rumored match with Sting. Could be a case where Sting would only sign if he went over Taker. And there is NO way that Vince is going to let a WCW guy go over the Undertaker at Mania and end the streak.

We'll see what happens tonight.

Who knows? I hope Taker is alright. I recall during the match it seemed that both Taker and Brock were talking to each other more than usual. Do you think they messed up somehow? Yes, they're both professionals. But that doesn't mean they can make mistakes. Even at Wrestlemania.

 

[BigGreen73]

That would explain a lot. The match wan't that good and Taker just looked off. Definitely showed his age. I think I need to rewatch WMXXX again to pay more attention to the little things in that match.

Wouldn't it be something to find out that the outcome was a mistake and Taker was actually supposed to go over. Brock, Heyman, and IMO even the ref look surprised at that 3 count. Took Taker awhile to get to his feet and get himself together to walk out. He just looked out of it, didn't react to the crowd at all either. It was odd.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

There are a few reports buzzing about from some dirtsheet writers in attendance saying that Taker was moving very gingerly and seemed to be favoring one of his hips. He's had hip issues for several years and there are some rumors floating about that Taker may have been injured at some point this weekend or during the week. As a result, there are also some rumors that Taker made the call to end the streak rather than extend it. Several reports over the years have mentioned Taker becoming concerned with his workrate and that he wanted to end the streak if he felt he was no longer able to compete at the level he felt he should.

 

[Trail_Blazin]

There are a few reports buzzing about from some dirtsheet writers in attendance saying that Taker was moving very gingerly and seemed to be favoring one of his hips. He's had hip issues for several years and there are some rumors floating about that Taker may have been injured at some point this weekend or during the week. As a result, there are also some rumors that Taker made the call to end the streak rather than extend it. Several reports over the years have mentioned Taker becoming concerned with his workrate and that he wanted to end the streak if he felt he was no longer able to compete at the level he felt he should.

This is most likely the case. The plan was all along that Lesnar would end the streak (by all along, I mean at some point prior to Mania, not just within the match).

But man, did Heyman, Lesnar AND the ref sell that. Heyman seemed like he had a, "uhhh... what?" moment when it happened. But that's the beauty of Heyman... He sells everything with a vengeance.

Still, I could see a concussion rendering Taker's brain to not process what was going on when the ref's hand hit the mat for three.

And if you're the ref, you can't just stop the count. That 100% taints the streak, which is worse than ending it, to be honest.

Still, I think Jack Hammer is probably right. The call was made ahead of time. Why is still a question... Taker's injuries/work rate? Because of Sting? I guess we'll find out in the next year...

 

[Catacomb]

i said this during mania, right before taker lifts brock for the tombstone he makes the call for brock to reverse it and end the streak. i am certain taker is retired and taker is old school, the old school way to go out is on your back, just like hbk, austin, flair, rock, hogan

 

[Kahuna Cowboy]

I don't see how a concussion is even possible. The entire match was literally Taker getting kicked in the stomach or clubbed on his back. He wasn't taking bumps except for the F5's and a pair of the most lame German suplexes Brock has ever given, which was obvious he was trying to be as gentle as possible.

 

[bigblue7609]

This loss was for the future. Undertaker looked defeated last night. The announce team played to the emotion this was his last match. Tonight he comes out, talks about the streak is the only thing he had, his career is over and he has nothing else to fight for. Cue Sting's music and we have a Wrestlemania 31 match

 

[BigGreen73]

I don't see how a concussion is even possible. The entire match was literally Taker getting kicked in the stomach or clubbed on his back. He wasn't taking bumps except for the F5's and a pair of the most lame German suplexes Brock has ever given, which was obvious he was trying to be as gentle as possible.

It looks like it happened when Brock and Taker were outside the ring toward the beginning of the match. Brock had Takers leg and just lifted up and Taker fell back on his head on the floor.

I though those Germans were pretty weak too, but now I know why. They were easy so that Taker wouldn't land on his head and neck.

 

[TheEgo74]

I would say it was the early suplex that did the damage. Taker landed awkwardly on his head/shoulder. Go take a look. Also just before the final F5 I'm sure I can here taker say "here's your mainia moment" take a listen.

If it was genuinely planned that way then Heyman and Lesnar did a brilliant job at selling it. I personally think it was cut short due to injury.

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

All of this makes it sad, IMO. For what could be Undertaker's final match, he wasn't able to deliver the kind of match that I'm sure he would've wanted. Honestly, there was just something about the whole build up to WM30 that made me wonder how much Taker had in the tank. I certainly know many had fears about whether he could take a match with Lesnar.

 

[The Perfect Max]

Yeah, the reports are saying the match finished as planned, but still, you've gotta feel bad for the Undertaker. The guys legacy has culminated at WrestleMania XXX, and I don't think he was best pleased with the match, and I would imagine this newly found injury was partly to blame. I hope the guy's alright, and apparently he has to stay in hospital for the night. Does this then mean we don't get the Undertaker tonight on Raw? I hope he is, just because I don't think he should go out like this.

Does anyone else feel that, as the match was getting closer to the end, it seemed like something was going on? By that, I mean the vibe of the whole match was off. Maybe it was just me, and I know I've heard the reports that Lesnar was always going over, but there was a point about a minute before the three count I just thought "I actually think he's had it", referring to Taker of course, and the whole ending sequence seemed quickly orchestrated. As for the reason as to why the music didn't come on and Justin Roberts didn't announce the winner, either it was a great way to sell the surprise, or because no one was aware. I wouldn't be surprised if the Undertaker, Brock, Vince, Triple H and the ref were the only guys aware of the outcome.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

I wouldn't be surprised to find out there are other injuries. I think it was pretty obvious his hip was giving him issues. At one point, when Brock whipped him into the barricade, you could see him turn awkwardly at the last minute to avoid going into the barricade hip first, and when he took the F5 he landed on his hip. When he went for that second Old School he could barely do it. He had to stall a couple seconds before rising to the top rope and he looked super off balance. Hell he even fell down during the big boot he gave Lesnar.

I hope it is nothing serious, and I hope this is what finally pushes him to hang up the boots. This is a guy I have literally watched my entire life, it was painful to see him as he was last night.

 

[JJ15776]

Wouldn't it be something to find out that the outcome was a mistake and Taker was actually supposed to go over. Brock, Heyman, and IMO even the ref look surprised at that 3 count. Took Taker awhile to get to his feet and get himself together to walk out. He just looked out of it, didn't react to the crowd at all either. It was odd.

Well, yeah. How would you expect them to be scripted to react to Undertaker's streak ending? It'd kind of take away from the moment if they were all acting like nothing unusual happened. There's no chance in hell it was a mistake. If it was, you would've seen the ref stop the count.

And if you're the ref, you can't just stop the count. That 100% taints the streak, which is worse than ending it, to be honest.

Still, I think Jack Hammer is probably right. The call was made ahead of time. Why is still a question... Taker's injuries/work rate? Because of Sting? I guess we'll find out in the next year...

Of course you can. As the ref, you would expect Undertaker to kick out, even if just a fraction of a second after you stop your count. What happens if he counts to three and the Undertaker is kicking out right as his hits the mat for the third time? What does the ref do then? We've seen plenty of times where the ref stops the count milliseconds before a guy kicks out because they wait to long. I'm sure there have been countless other times, including in Undertaker WrestleMania matches, where the ref started to slow his hand down before he saw the kick out, but it was so close you couldn't tell. There's just no way in hell a ref is going to count to three without knowing the match ends, especially a match of this magnitude.

i said this during mania, right before taker lifts brock for the tombstone he makes the call for brock to reverse it and end the streak. i am certain taker is retired and taker is old school, the old school way to go out is on your back, just like hbk, austin, flair, rock, hogan

Clearly Undertaker is retired, yes. But come on now. There's no way in hell that was a decision he made on the fly. When did he tell the ref? Again, the ref had to be in on it. Undertaker made the decision in advance, hand picked Lesnar to end it - probably several years ago - and it was simply a very good performance by everybody involved to act shocked. Which is exactly how you'd expect them to react, if they're halfway competent actors.

 

[KitsuneDreamer]

They mentioned that leg take down by Brock on the outside is what contributed to the most of Taker's problems. Hope he is OK.

The people's reactions were priceless last night, I held my own mouth open for at least 20 seconds, even after the finish was spoiled for me. I couldn't believe it.

Hopefully we get a match with Sting, but if it doesn't work that way, you can't say he didn't have a hell of a run. 21-1 ain't bad.

 

[aaronmb]

I would say it was the early suplex that did the damage. Taker landed awkwardly on his head/shoulder. Go take a look. Also just before the final F5 I'm sure I can here taker say "here's your mainia moment" take a listen.

If it was genuinely planned that way then Heyman and Lesnar did a brilliant job at selling it. I personally think it was cut short due to injury.

I watched that part and he did say it. Right before Taker picks him up for the tombstone to get it reversed.

 

[TootsieBear]

They mentioned that leg take down by Brock on the outside is what contributed to the most of Taker's problems. Hope he is OK.

The people's reactions were priceless last night, I held my own mouth open for at least 20 seconds, even after the finish was spoiled for me. I couldn't believe it.

Hopefully we get a match with Sting, but if it doesn't work that way, you can't say he didn't have a hell of a run. 21-1 ain't bad.

The Undertaker is one of the greatest performers of all time. I just hate that the streak has become bigger than his own career. Yes, I love the streak. But there is more to the Undertaker than Wrestlemania.

 

[Kahuna Cowboy]

It looks like it happened when Brock and Taker were outside the ring toward the beginning of the match. Brock had Takers leg and just lifted up and Taker fell back on his head on the floor.

I though those Germans were pretty weak too, but now I know why. They were easy so that Taker wouldn't land on his head and neck.

You're right. I just watched the match again and that awkward leg grab and being pushed onto his back by Brock is where Taker got that thousand yard stare and had no balance for the rest of the match. I didn't see Taker's head snap back on the floor, but it was such an awkward move on an already tattered body.....

 

[Kahuna Cowboy]

The Undertaker is one of the greatest performers of all time. I just hate that the streak has become bigger than his own career. Yes, I love the streak. But there is more to the Undertaker than Wrestlemania.

I think where the disconnect is for the last 5 years his career was solely Wrestlemania. His career is far more as a whole of course, but lately it's been all about the streak.

In the end the streak ending will not mean much. When he takes his place in the HOF, no one is going to say he doesn't deserve to be there because he lost last night.

 

[Pedigree1]

I thought he looked a little bit off last night early on,but in no way did i think he was hurt.. Looking back though on the match,through the network of course he did have sort of a far away look in his eyes.. Undertaker from what i have read not only suffered a bad concussion but some sort of neck injury as well.. Overall though,against Lesnar i thought Brock did a great job taking care of him in the ring..

Brock works a very stiff style,and considering takers condition i thought he did the best he could..

 

[RedRegan1005]

A lot of people were worried that a match with Lesnar would get Undertaker hurt. This didn't sound like Lesnars fault. Just a bad fall and freak accident, I also heard they were worried about a possible neck injury. The match definitely broke the the streak of show stealing matches at Mania for the Deadman, but it wasn't horrible. He did seem a tad off during the match, but everything that's been reported has said that despite the concussion, everything in the match went as planned.

 

[Dream]

I don't know if I"m the only one who noticed this, but did anyone else see Taker's left arm fly up as the count was hitting 3? It's the only thing that moved..his arm.

P.s., don't flag this for spam. I'm at work and in a hurry, but I just wanted to see if anyone else noticed it because I haven't seen it being discussed anywhere!

 

[The Perfect Max]

I don't know if I"m the only one who noticed this, but did anyone else see Taker's left arm fly up as the count was hitting 3? It's the only thing that moved..his arm.

P.s., don't flag this for spam. I'm at work and in a hurry, but I just wanted to see if anyone else noticed it because I haven't seen it being discussed anywhere!

Thank you for noticing this, as I too was sure it moved. Perhaps we are looking too much into this, at the end of the day, the report stands, The Undertaker was always going to lose to Brock Lesnar. Perhaps the injury he suffered caused him to go a little off, and the movement of the arm was nothing more than him keeping himself going. Good point though.