For decades, The Undertaker captivated the wrestling world with his terrifying persona, but in this interview, he showed that there’s more to ‘The Phenom’ than just a menacing alter ego.
On February 18, the WWE finally confirmed that ‘The Deadman’ will receive his long-awaited induction into the Hall of Fame. And there arguably isn’t a superstar more deserving of that honour.
To put it simply, The Undertaker is one of the greatest of all time. His in-ring performances were dynamic, his WrestleMania streak was the stuff of legend, and his ability on the mic chilled the soul. Not to mention the fact that he picked up seven world titles and emerged the victor at the 2007 Royal Rumble.
He’s one of the few athletes who’ve managed to resonate with the WWE Universe in several different personas. In 2000, the popular wrestler reintroduced himself as ‘The American Badass’. And this entertaining variation of himself went down a storm.
Read: The Undertaker net worth: How much money has ‘The Dead Man’ earned throughout his career
This Undertaker interview highlights his intelligence
During his stint in this role, he provided fans with one of the greatest entrances of all time. All while looking as suave as can be, He would drive towards the ring on a motorbike before, most of the time, dismantling whichever unfortunate victim had the displeasure of facing him.
During this era, he sat down with The Sports Network in 2002 to do a rare out of character interview. In this candid conversation, he revealed how The Undertaker was born.
He said: “The original Undertaker was the brainchild of Vince McMahon. It was kind of a collaboration between Vince and myself. He had this idea that he always liked the image of that old western-style Undertaker with the long black coat and the big black hat. He bestowed the name on me and let me take the ball and run with it.”
There’s a reason why McMahon has the most successful wrestling company on the planet. His innate ability to spot and nurture talent while coming up with inventive ideas himself is the reason why his promotion keeps delivering. But in this case, we have to credit ‘The Deadman’ himself.
The Undertaker took an idea and made it his own. He used his athletic ability and combined it with his ferocious striking and natural talent to create a fearsome presence of the likes we’ll never see again.
Nothing in the sport compares to when his infamous music plays and the arena descends into darkness. Then suddenly, he’s in the ring looking down on his innocent prey. Usually, you know what is about to come next.
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