Your Favorite Taker' Mania' Opponent....

[Domo Nation]

My Favorite Taker Wrestlemania moment has not happened yet.

It will be when the streak is finally broken.

Of all the things in the history of WWE that didn't make sense (storylines, random pushes, strange releases, pointless swerves), the Streak is at the top of the list. Not only is it a lame concept, designed to squash and bury main-event caliber talent, it has gone to one of the most undeserving superstars I can think of, Undertaker, who is a complete stiff in the ring with a ridiculously corny gimmick and no mic skills to speak of. A talent such as HBK could have done SO much more with the Streak than Taker could have.

So my favorite moment will be when Taker's streak is broken. Hopefully by a Diva since it would be a fitting end after all the truly great wrestlers he has squashed and buried throughout the years.

 

[Dagger Dias]

The Undertaker's streak victims range from one end of the talent spectrum to the other. He has faced legends, stars on the rise, and even a few guys who sucked so bad they are better off forgotten. The early years of the streak weren't all that impressive. The first victims included Jimmy Snuka, Jake Roberts, Giant Gonzales, King Kong Bundy, Diesel, and Sycho Sid. Of all the first victims, the worst by far was Giant Gonzales who put on one of the worst matches I have ever seen, with Taker. The others in that list were nothing to write home about either. It's a miracle Taker's streak even exists, any of these early victories could have been a loss.

Then we have the first great opponent in Kane at Wrestlemania 14. Followed immediately by a massive drop in quality of opponent and match with Big Boss Man the following year. Triple H was next, at Wrestlemania 17, although WWE refused to let us remember that match a year ago, who was one of the stronger opponents. Flair was next, then Big Show & A-Train. Kane got a rematch, then a rising star named Randy Orton got a shot at the streak. Mark Henry, Batista, Edge, Shawn Michaels twice, and then two rematches with Triple H complete the list as of this year.

It is rather easy to narrow it down to who the better opponents were. Kane, Michaels, and Triple H were the best streak victims. They make up the top tier. Kane can be eliminated beyond that, as his match at Wrestlemania 20 was nowhere near as good as the Wrestlemania 14 encounter. That brings it down to Trips and Shawn. I enjoyed both of Trips' attempts at ending the streak, and I don't know if he will be able to top last year's match this time around. I doubt my answer will end up changing though. Shawn Michaels wins by a small margin. He put on two of the best matches in pro wrestling history with the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 25 and 26. Not only did he deliver amazing matches, but both matches had incredible builds as well, WWE did such a good job of trying to convince us that Mr Wrestlemania would end the streak. The announcers might have you think otherwise with Trips this year, but Shawn was the one who in my opinion put the streak in the most significant danger of ending while also entertaining the most along the way.

 

[Dagger Dias]

My Favorite Taker Wrestlemania moment has not happened yet.

It will be when the streak is finally broken.

Hate to break it to you, but that is probably not happening. WWE are not going to end the streak unless they find someone who they can trust with such a push. They would need to know that this person will be committed to playing a hated heel forever, as the streak ending would unleash a barrage of anger towards the person who ends it. I don't see that happening. How would WWE know that this person would stick around without pulling a Lesnar?

Of all the things in the history of WWE that didn't make sense (storylines, random pushes, strange releases, pointless swerves), the Streak is at the top of the list. Not only is it a lame concept, designed to squash and bury main-event caliber talent, it has gone to one of the most undeserving superstars I can think of, Undertaker, who is a complete stiff in the ring with a ridiculously corny gimmick and no mic skills to speak of. A talent such as HBK could have done SO much more with the Streak than Taker could have.

Are you serious? This has to be trolling. You can't possibly tell me that you think the streak doesn't make sense. It's a once in a lifetime achievement by a once in a lifetime wrestler. The Undertaker EARNED this. He has been a leader and a loyal worker who WWE have been able to trust for longer two decades. That's a VERY long time. The streak doesn't "bury" anybody. Give me a list of guys who supposedly got "buried" by the Undertaker.

Then you go on to say that Taker is stiff in the ring and no mic skills? Do you even WATCH his matches and promos? Taker's promos are amazing. He is able to bring people in beyond all the layers of cheesiness in his gimmick when he does a promo or is working a match. He is a surviving throwback to the days of true gimmicks. Granted this is not the same product that it was 20 years ago and had his character debuted today it might get laughed out of the arena, but the fact of the matter is that The Undertaker has proven what he can do and that he is one of the best of all time.

So my favorite moment will be when Taker's streak is broken. Hopefully by a Diva since it would be a fitting end after all the truly great wrestlers he has squashed and buried throughout the years.

A DIVA? Stop trolling and tell us what you seriously think. Assuming that you truly are being serious, I'll humor you. If a diva ended the streak she better run for her life. Death threats would likely ensue and WWE would have to fight off riots by fans who would then boycott the product forever. This booking decision would be the single greatest mistake since the Fingerpoke of Doom. Nothing could ever live up to that level of stupidity. A DIVA ENDING THE STREAK!? You've GOT to be kidding. Even Hornswoggle would make more sense.

In closing, the streak is not going to end, not unless they can find a guy worthy of giving the ultimate heel turn to and that they know will stick around for many years. There is no one on the roster other than MAYBE Cena next year who could do that and be trusted with the push. Therefore, it is never going to happen, and you will forever be disappointed. Perhaps you should find something else to watch until you can learn to appreciate the work that the living legend Mark William Calaway has put in over the years to entertain ungrateful fans like you.

 

[Wrestlemania 20-0]

if Undertaker win at WM 28, he become officially like the MOST bigger superstars of all time and sit his name for an future HOF.
When you see this guy out of wrestling he was amazing with all fans who meet him.

 

[Diet Soda]

I'm going to go with Kane at Mania 14.

Like the right honourable Dagger said, Kane was the Undertaker's first great Wrestlemania opponent, and especially at an incredibly important stage of transition in the history of the WWF.

The build for the match was perfect, and I cannot recall another time when the characters of Kane and the Undertaker were so huge. Of course, the Kane character had only been around a relatively short time in 1998, but the storyline surrounding the emergence of a long lost brother, the Undertaker's shady past, and Paul Bearer's betrayal created some damn entertaining television.

Furthermore, Kane was put over as an unstoppable force after his debut, and this is reflected in the match itself. The Undertaker was brutalised almost from start to finish - steel steps, announce table, tombstones - it looked as if Kane had the match won at several points, and it would take 3 Tombstone Piledrivers to put him away.

And the Undertaker's entrance. That entrance. The one which set the bar for Wrestlemanias to come, and still gets your hairs standing up well over a decade later...

[YOUTUBE]lf0lWkUqpOs[/YOUTUBE]

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Taking out the Michaels matches (which are clearly the best matches) there are two moments that stick out for me.

WM13: After a good match against Sid with some great interference from Bret and commentary from Shawn (all great pre attitude era stuff and good foreshadowing) Undertaker recaptures the title that he first won over 5 years ago and goes into his most famous pose.

WM14: At the time Kane was built to be Undertakers equal and quite possibly even more powerful. Loved how they had Kane run through Mankind at the prior Survivor Series and the short semi face turn where it looked like he and Taker were together only to screw him at the Rumble was a great move. So the stage was set for the match and it was a good one. Even though Taker wins it takes 3 tombstones which still makes Kane look strong in the process.

 

[jsn_since89]

I'm gonna have to say Edge, 'mania 24, when he hit the spear i was on the edge of my seat (no pun intended) then when Undertaker locked in the hells gate....i nearly had a heart attack.

Agreed... I really thought it would be Edge to end it at 24!

Really good match and felt at that point WWE Officials really wanted to cerment Edge as a top player! Great Match, Great Mania!

 

[Jmarks]

Shawn Michaels. The matches those two had WM25 and 26 represented everything that was good about wrestling. It reminded me just why I fell in love with this stuff in the first place. I was fortunate enough to be there for their WM25 encounter, at Reliant Stadium and experience this match first hand. Going into the match, I just knew Taker would win. But witnessing the match, there were parts where I thought "Damn, HBK might just do this" The spot where Taker almost got counted out almost gave me a heart attack. The storytelling/psychology in both matches were nothing short of amazing. I still say that The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels at WM25 is the greatest match in WM history.

As for who he should face in the future...IMO he has to face John Cena. Its a match that just has to happen. And if or when they do face off, it could very well be this generation's Hogan vs. Andre.

 

[Latinoeddy]

Undertaker vs. Triple H at Wrestlemania 28.

At first, I was on the fence about seeing this match for a third time at Wrestlemania. I was also on the fence about how they would book Shawn Michaels in the match. But by the end of the match, I was glad they did have a third match and Shawn was involved. This was about Undertaker getting revenge on Triple H after being carted out of Wrestlemania last year, and trust me Undertaker doing a revenge angle > Undertaker being beaten up. Undertaker's hair was badass, as was the cell coming down with Metallica. Shawn's facials throughout added to the match and his involvement did not hurt the match at all. In fact, he added to the match. The superkick/pedigree nearfall was crazy. For a moment, you thought the streak may be over. And the finish, it brings it all back. Undertaker gets his revenge and they give a shout out to the WM 26 match with Triple H doing the crotch chop before hit with a sledgehammer and Tombstoned. The aftermath is THE Wrestlemania moment for this Wrestlemania. The three men embracing on the stage. Classic moment and the perfect end to an era.

 

[DetectiveZelix]

Im going to have to Choose Kane at Mania XIV. the fued itself was amazing. Yes the concept was silly. The story was completely cinematic but you could feel Takers frustration and Kanes desire to destroy and embarass his brother by simply imitating him and matching him move for move. It's amazing how it took 3 Tombstones to lay the monster to rest. The fued was something you'd see out of Halloween as Kane was the Michael Myers like character and taker was more of a Jason. I tell ya it was amazing and Paul Bearer had some of his greatest moments during this fued. I'll be honest and tell you the match wasnt anythimg to brag about. well until the last Tombstone and the nail on the concrete of KANE. and their future fueds and matches were all decent too though continuity was a thing lost in thier countless fueds. Just my opinion. Thank You

 

[King Patrick Star]

My top 3 favorite Undertaker WM matches are:

1. WM 23 vs. Batista for the World Heavyweight Championship
2. WM XXIV vs. Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship
3. WM 13 vs. Sycho Sid for the WWE Championship

In these three matches, going in, the Undertaker was the challenger. Walking out as the WWE / World Champion at WrestleMania is icing on the cake for the Streak.

 

[TheHeartbreakPunk]

I'm gonna have to go with wrestlemania 25 against shawn michaels, it was an amazing match, and the buildup was so good. Thats my favorite undertaker match at wmania, and also my favorite match at wrestlemania ever.

Honourable mentions: HHH 28
Edge 24
Lesnar 29

 

[OptimusReim]

I would say 24, personnally i thought his match with Edge was better then his matches with shawn, and i thought it was the best match of 24, but it gets forgotten a bit because of Shawn and flair. But i thought Edge was one of his best rivalries, and the match was just great, and was one of the 2 times i thought taker was about to lose (other being randy at 21) then i, or anybody didnt see that hells gate out of nowhere and was a awesome finish to mania.

 

[Terry Gyimah]

My favorite Taker opponent was WrestleMania 21 with Randy Orton being his Mania opponent and I thought that Orton was going to be the man to finally end the streak, and he came as close as anybody did at that time to ending it, and if he had, he would still be the Legend Killer right now but he's in his Viper gimmick

 

[TBK]

Call me unoriginal, but for me, the choice is Shawn Michaels. Taker's had many terrific opponents. Jake Roberts, Kane, Orton, Edge, Triple H and Shawn are, in my opinion, the best of the best when it came to Taker opponents. For Roberts and Kane, it wasn't even so much the match itself, as the matches themselves weren't the best, but the build-up was always amazing. On the other hand, all 3 Triple H matches had really lackluster build up, but they ended up all being impressive matches. From there it just comes down to which had the best match, and while I'd say Edge comes so very, very close, my vote for best of the best is Shawn Michaels. Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels at 25, I have never been as hype about an Undertaker match in my life and it lived up to it. It still seems bullshit to me it's not considered a 5 star match.

 

[rge2010]

My favourite match was Wrestlemania 18 against Lord Tensai and The Big Show. It was a handicap match at first, but then Nathan Jones came down to save the day and Taker picked up the win!

I fully believe that Undertaker owes his Wrestlemania streak to that of Nathan Jones. Without him he would have lost.

 

[avriltt234]

I think it was Triple H at WrestleMania 27 Last Year, that match was by far the best match out of all of them. Triple H and Undertaker gave each other all they had and they kept coming back, Triple H hit Undertaker with chair shots (some protected and some not) and he still came back in the end and beat the game.

 

[Kitten Cutter]

As much as I loved Wrestlemania 28, and loudly cursing "YOU SON OF A BITCH!" at my TV when Shawn Michaels hit the Sweet Chin Music into HHH's pedigree, I have to say HHH at Wrestlemania 27.

Every year since Orton I have been at the edge of my seat at every finisher that Taker was hit with and subsequently kick out of, but watching HHH actually hit the Tombstone on Taker at WM 27 and pin him with his trademark pin had me freakin' the frig' out. I thought Trips had used his backstage power to finish off Taker and get his revenge for Shawn. That was the one match that I had no idea how it would end until the absolute end when HHH FINALLY tapped out after dropping the hammer.

 

[Dagger Dias]

This year's match with Trips wasn't the very best streak match, but it was definitely up there among the best. The best of all was Wrestlemania 25 against Shawn Michaels. That match had everything a wrestling fan could ever ask for. A great build, awesome entrances, tons of two counts, both legends going through their whole arsenal of skills, a finish that made sense, and a rematch the following year. That was my favorite Undertaker Wrestlemania match and without a shadow of a doubt his best one. The rematch the following year lived up to the hype and delivered a fantastic farewell for Shawn. It too had just about anything a fan could ask for.

Other great ones include Wrestlemania 14 against Kane, 17 against Trips the first time, 21 against Orton, 23 against Batista, 24 against Edge, as well as the rematches at 27 and 28 against Trips. It comes down to Trips and Michaels easily. Kane got a rematch too but it was nowhere near the Trips or HBK matches. Those matches, especially the two Michaels matches, were in a league of their own. I went with HBK as my answer to the question. His matches with Taker at Wrestlemania are the types of matches that remind you why you are a wrestling fan in the first place.

 

[The ShIT Factor]

I say Shawn Michaels was his best opponent at Wrestlemania, he put emotion and struggle in the matches and their storylines. With Shawn it wasn't just a match it was THE match, the matches had all the great elements and were just epic to watch. None of his other opponents even come close.