Who Was The Undertaker’s Greatest Rival In Wwe/wwf History?

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It’s hard to name only one because he got so many, so here’s the top 3:
3. Undertaker vs Mankind (1996-1998)
I don’t think any feud could be as brutal as this one. The deranged Mankind first roared in the WWE after Wrestlemania 12 and feuded with The Undertaker which lead to one of the biggest betrayals in the history of WWE. After a Boiler Room Brawl, Paul Bearer, who has been with The Undertaker in his entire career, betrayed The Undertaker and maimed him with the urn. The feud was carried into the first ever Buried alive match which The Undertaker won, although Executioner came out and helped Mankind buried The Undertaker alive in what would become WWE Feud of The Year 1996. The legendary feud was carried in 1997 and 1998, finally ended in what many would say as the most brutal stunt in the history of WWE, when The Undertaker threw Mankind from the top of Hell In A Cell at King of The Ring 1998. Even Mark Calaway himself has stated, that Mankind brought the best of The Undertaker. But the same with his feud against Austin, this feud will never make it to the top because they never faced each other at Wrestlemania.
2. Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels (1997 & 2009)
Although Michaels vowed to call the match fairly, but after confusing circumstances he ended up nailing the Undertaker in a match with Bret Hart at Summerslam 1997 with a chair and costing him the WWE title. A few short months later, the Undertaker was looking for revenge and he introduced his newest match creation, the Hell in a Cell, to settle the WWE Feud of The Year 1997. These two become bloodied quick and Shawn Michaels was even knocked off the top of the cell and onto an announcer’s table. The match ended when Undertaker’s brother Kane made his debut, tore through the cell door and tombstoned the Undertaker. By the 1998 Royal Rumble, the Undertaker was ready for another shot at Shawn Michaels and the WWE Championship. The Undertaker was out numbered once again though and after being placed into the casket and lit on fire, the feud ended until 10 years later. The Undertaker was on another quest for WWE gold at the 2007 Royal Rumble. When these two were the last ones remaining, they gave it everything they had until the Undertaker finally overcame Shawn Michaels and eliminated him from the ring to earn his first Royal Rumble victory.
Shawn Michaels let that win go, but in 2009, the two would meet again in the biggest match they have ever had. In a feud that built up for weeks, Shawn Michaels defended his “Mr. Wrestlemania” title against the Undertaker’s undefeated Wrestlemania streak in a timeless battle, a match for ages, one of the best Wrestlemania classics of all time. I’ve heard that many fans claim that perhaps this is the best match they have ever seen in their lives. These two wrestlers pawned the show in a match that extended 30 minutes and featured multiple shocking moments, including Taker botching his Suicide Dive and Shawn Michaels’ kicked out from the Tombstone Piledriver. The Undertaker got the final notch on their feuds and went 17-0 by defeating Shawn Michaels with a Tombstone in a definite Match of The Year.
Two of the greatest wrestlers of all time are bound to create a classic whenever they meet.
1. Undertaker vs Kane (1997-Present)
Unquestionably one of the greatest storylines WWE have ever created. The relationship between The Undertaker and Kane has been a mystery for some time, and their history together is even more mysterious – and hard to decipher. Paul Bearer attempted to blackmail him by threatening to expose his darkest secret: he killed his family. According to Paul Bearer, he was employed in a family business run by The Undertaker’s parents, a funeral home. He said that The Undertaker had been playing with matches, and in a stroke of bad luck, caught the house on fire, killing his parents and his younger brother. His younger brother, he revealed, was not actually dead – he survived but was badly scarred. Paul Bearer raised him privately, locking him in a room for many years. The Undertaker disputed this claim and said that his brother, Kane, started the fire and couldn’t be alive.
On October 5 1997 just like stated in feud number 2, Kane debuted. He proceeded to literally tear the cage door off its hinges, disposed of the referee & then summoned fire from the ringposts. Kane picked Undertaker up & planted him on the canvas with his version of the Tombstone. A blood-soaked Shawn Michaels made the cover & Kane wandered off from wherever he came from. For the next month or so, Kane & Bearer made regular appearances on WWF television trying to talk The Undertaker into a match. When The Undertaker continued to refuse on the grounds that he wouldn’t fight a family member, Kane went on a mission to destroy every WWF superstar until only his (screen) brother was left. For the next month or so, Kane continued to demolish opponents in an attempt to force The Undertaker into a one-on-one match. He finally succeeded at the 1998 Royal Rumble, when he interfered in the world title match between his brother & Shawn Michaels. It was a Casket match that The Undertaker was expected to win, but when Kane choke-slammed the challenger & set the casket alight, it was the final straw for WWE Feud of The Year 1998. The long-anticipated meeting was set down for March-29 at WrestleMania 14 in Boston. It was a very good match considering the size & styles of the 2 wrestlers, which ended in a win to the face. But it was the way in which Kane was defeated which actually gave The Big Red Machine, as he was now dubbed, the impetus for further success. It needed a 3rd piledriver to get the three count. To add to Kane’s persona, he quickly recovered after the match & gave his brother a tombstone of his own, on a chair. The next month at the Unforgiven pay-per-view, the 2 locked horns again in an Inferno match, where the winner had to set his opponent on fire. Undertaker prevailed again as Kane’s arm was set ablaze.
During 2000-2001 they had another small rivalry but ended up being The Brothers of Destruction and winning the WWE & WCW Tag Team Titles at Summerslam 2001. They met again when Kane helped Vince McMahon to bury The Undertaker alive at Survivor Series 2003. After months of terror, The Undertaker returned as The Legendary Deadman at Wrestlemania XX and pawned Kane for the second time at Wrestlemania. Although now they seem to be at peace, it is no secret among the Creature of The Nights that Undertaker and Kane rivalry is yet to finish. There’s a possibility of Kane brining back his monstrous persona and tried to devour The Undertaker one last time at Wrestlemania, which may be The Undertaker’s last feud. Until that day comes, the true survivor of this feud remains unknown.

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7 Responses to “Who Was The Undertaker’s Greatest Rival In Wwe/wwf History?”

  1. The Clown Prince of Crime on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    Mankind because Mick Foley took so much from the deadman including his manger
    Mankind debuted the day after WrestleMania XII, quickly moving into a feud with The Undertaker. This feud continued through King of the Ring, Mankind’s WWF pay-per-view debut. During the match, Undertaker’s manager, Paul Bearer, “accidentally” struck him with the urn, allowing Mankind to apply the mandible claw for the win. The two then began interfering in each other’s matches until they were booked in the first ever Boiler Room brawl, in which the goal was to escape the arena’s boiler room and reach the ring to take the urn from Paul Bearer. The Undertaker appeared to have won, but Paul Bearer refused to hand him the urn, allowing Mankind to win, thus (for the time being) ending the relationship between Paul and the Undertaker. While Mankind was managed by Paul Bearer, he referred to him as “Uncle Paul.”
    Mankind then earned the number one contendership to face the then WWF Champion Shawn Michaels at In Your House: Mind Games. Michaels won by disqualification via interference by Vader and The Undertaker. For several years, Foley considered this match his best ever, saying “Sure, at 280 pounds I still looked like hell, but after a brutal cardiovascular training regimen, I was able to go full-tilt for twenty-seven minutes with a smaller, quicker, better athlete than me.”[31]
    The Mankind-Undertaker feud continued with the first ever Buried Alive match at In Your House: Buried Alive. Undertaker won the match, but Paul Bearer, Terry Gordy (as the Executioner), Mankind and other heels attacked ‘Taker and buried him alive. Afterward, he challenged Mankind to a match at Survivor Series, which he won. The feud ended after one more match at In Your House: Revenge of the Taker for the WWF Championship, which Undertaker had won at WrestleMania 13. Undertaker won the match and Bearer took a leave of absence, ending the feud.

  2. Mickie James Had The Worst Week on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    Mankind in ’96 and ’97
    Untill that time, NOONE took Undertaker to the limit like Foley did, and both of their characters were similiar in the fact that they were both ‘dark’. Not to mention, Foley got THREE PPV victories over the Undertaker, which was unheard of at the time (and still is today)

  3. Tony Schiavone on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    Shawn Michaels hands down. Back in 1997 they had great promos and great matches fast foward 10 years later and in age and they can put on a match that when 30 mins at there age and perform like that. they work great together!

  4. Radar on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    HBK. First HIAC match together, classic WM25 match. 2 of the best in the biz.

  5. ThaPhenom88™ !@#$%^&* on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    randy orton
    lets face it, i cant remember taker having another great feud after that

  6. ask that boy with the glasses on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    Mankind, Randy Orton, and Kane

  7. The Real Diva™ on February 1st, 2010 4:03 pm

    It’ll have to be between Hulk Hogan and Shawn Michaels.

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