Undertaker’s WrestleMania 22 Casket Match Haunts Mark Henry

The Undertaker returns to SmackDown on November 15th's show. (WWE.com)

The internet has been buzzing. Rumor has it that The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels will go head-to-head at a future WWE pay-per-view.

A Michaels and Undertaker reunion at this month’s Survivor Sereies or next year’s WrestleMania 35 on April 7 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ would be plausible.

Michaels and The Undertaker faced off last week in a tag team match via WWE’s Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia. In the match, Michaels teamed with Triple H, with Undertaker teamed with Kane. Michaels and Triple H won. 

Another swirling rumor has been that Undertaker will retire after WrestleMania 35 and the WWE will give him a farewell tribute at WrestleMania 35.

If true, the timing would make sense! Honor your legends while they’re living.

A living wrestling legend, Undertaker won multiple WWE and World Heavyweight Championship titles, was a six-time tag team titleholder and won the WWE’s Royal Rumble in 2007.

Heck, his ring entrances with Paul Bearer were legendary, too!

If he were to retire at WrestleMania 35, a retirement rollout is a no-brainer.

Quite frankly, it mirrors the NBA’s Dwyane Wade, who will retire at the end of this NBA season. Wade is on a “retirement tour,” which garners ceremonial video tributes, gifts and warm words from contemporaries of opposing teams.

Retired New York Yankees shortstop, Derek Jeter had a similar send-off during his final season with the Bronx Bombers.

While all of the rumored talk of retirement has taken place, The Undertaker is legendary for ONE MORE BIG REASON: The Streak!

If you’re tardy to the party, “The Streak,” is the Undertaker’s consecutive wins at WrestleMania, the Super Bowl of Wresting. ‘Taker’s streak began at WrestleMania VII and ended at WrestleMania 30.

During The Streak, Undertaker defeated 18 wrestlers during including household names like Shawn Michaels, as well as Kane, The Big Show, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Psycho Sid, The Big Boss Man, Randy Orton, Ric Flair, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, Mark Henry and Triple H.

Some argue that beating Undertaker’s streak was bigger than any championship belt won in the WWE.

One underrated match during Undertaker’s streak was his casket match in 2006 against WWE Hall of Famer, Mark Henry at WrestleMania 22. 

The two’s feud began when Henry interfered in a World Heavyweight Championship title match between Undertaker and Kurt Angle on a March ’06 episode of WWE Smackdown. Seconds away from winning the title belt, Undertaker hit Angle with his Tombstone piledriver, finishing move.

The match shifted when Henry interfered in the match by attacking Undertaker. The referee ended the match and Undertaker won the match via disqualification.

A ticked off Undertaker challenged Henry to a casket match a month later at WrestleMania 22.

Their Wrestlemani 22 casket match, an undercard at Rosemont, IL’s All-State Arena, was dominated early by Henry, “The World’s Most Strongest Man.” 

Risking his WrestleMania streak, Undertaker rose to the occasion in the final stretch of the match. As a matter of fact, he reached into his wrestling archives and pulled out his patented over-the-top-rope dive.

‘Taker also shocked the world when he lifted Henry, a near-400 pounder Henry and executed the Tombstone piledriver.

In the end, Undertaker won the match and extended his illustrious WrestleMania win streak to 14-0.  “I would’ve loved to put the Undertaker in the coffin in WrestleMania 22,” Mark Henry told me.

“But that wasn’t gonna happen, cause I never thought the streak was gonna be broken.”

Many have tried to beat the streak. ONLY ONE wrestler prevailed! Brock Lesnar ended Undertaker’s consecutive streak at WrestleMania XXX at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana in 2014. Lesnar survived an Undertaker chokeslam and a Tombstomb piledriver to end The Undertaker’s consecutive win streak at 21-1. “It got broken and that ruined the whole thought process about it,” said Mark Henry.

“But, nonetheless, to have a main event in Wrestlemania is really damn special and I still hold that up there with every match-up I had.”

What if the rumors of Michaels and Undertaker at Wrestlemania 35 are true?  Their matches at Wrestlemania 25 and Wrestlemania 26 were legendary!

What if Undertaker’s retirment is true? Then 2019 will be a year of nostalgia.

Mark Henry lists Undertaker on his list wrestling Mount Rushmore. “Undertaker, The Rock, Rick Flair, and Hulk Hogan,” he told  me.

Henry credits The Rock’s knowledge of his craft and the wrestlers that came before him.

But Henry said of the Undertaker: 

“He’s a legend.”