The Undertaker was never scheduled to step into The Boneyard for his final WWE match.
Looking to bring his in-ring career to a close at WrestleMania 36, Taker wanted AJ Styles to have the honour of being his final opponent. The match was scheduled for The Show of Shows and everything looked to be ready until plans changed in a way that even WWE were not prepared for.
In March 2020, the world went into lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, WWE held all shows behind closed doors, including WrestleMania. Not wanting the legendary career of Undertaker to end in an empty gym, the company pivoted to move the match to a cemetery for The Boneyard match. The cinematic match was praised by fans for its creativity at a time when there was limited content and many felt that the Hall of Famer put on a great final performance. However, according to The Deadman, the original plan was much more straightforward.
Speaking on Six Feet Under, the former World Champion named his Mount Rushmore of undersized wrestlers. When discussing Styles, Taker stated how fortunate enough he was to have that final match against him and confirmed that the original plan was for a standard in-ring match to take place.
“Coming in at number four I am gonna put in AJ Styles, I just, I have always been a fan of AJ Styles. Somebody that I always wanted to work with, I was fortunate enough to have my last match with AJ Styles and that was because I thought that much of his work…Originally, you know, we finished up, my last match was a Boneyard Match but originally that match was supposed to take place in a wrestling ring and I was really looking forward to that because again, AJ Styles, I’ve never seen him have a bad match.
Like I said I was always a fan and I was so excited when he came to the WWE, so just a phenomenal talent, he is what he says he is, he is The Phenomenal One. He brings his A game every single time.”
As was seen in The Last Ride docuseries, Undertaker was very critical of his in-ring performances towards the end of his run, in particular his original retirement match against Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33. Although Styles is a phenomenal wrestler, there were no guarantees that the standard match would have been as good as the cinematic match that was presented to the fans in 2020.
During the same episode, The Undertaker gave some advice to Logan Paul.
The Undertaker Sets The Record Straight Regarding Long-Running Rumour
Now speaking to the fans out of character on his podcast, Undertaker has given his side on multiple rumours and folklore stories that have been told by his peers over the years. One such story concerned an infamous piece of ring gear that the Hall of Famer wore back in 2000. In a separate episode, The Undertaker debunked the rumour regarding his WWE Survivor Series gear.
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