For The Record 8.23.09: Cena Vs. Undertaker at Wrestlemania

The Undertaker’s streak is impressive. In professional wrestling, there are few awe-inspiring records. There’s Bruno Sammartino’s 7-year WWE Title reign. There’s Wrestlemania III’s indoor attendance record of 93,173. There’s Ric Flair’s 16+ world title reigns. And now there’s “17-0”, the Undertaker’s Wrestlemania record.

The streak is an integral part of the Deadman’s legacy. Yes, he’s got a great gimmick. Yes, he puts on entertaining matches. But it’s the streak that makes him unique. Stone Cold and Hulk Hogan triggered wrestling revolutions. Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart modernized main event wrestling. Ric Flair was THE showman of the 1980s. The Undertaker was never one to carry a company or alter the culture of wrestling. He’s always been a steady, stabilizing, consistent presence. But like I said, the one thing that makes him unique among the aforementioned legends is his amazing Wrestlemania streak.

Should his streak come to an end? That’s a tough question. We understand the consequences and fallout of an Undertaker loss. First of all, it would tarnish wrestling’s greatest streak. It would also glaringly blemish Taker’s claim to fame. On the other hand, the person who defeats The Undertaker would score one of the most significant victories in wrestling history. It would catapult a midcarder into main event status. It would launch a main eventer into icon status. IF the streak is ever broken, there’s one thing that I hope happens…

I hope a veteran breaks the streak. It doesn’t have to be a main eventer. But it has to be someone who won’t be too star struck by the victory. Imagine if Brock Lesnar or Bobby Lashley were given that win. It would have been disastrous.

With that said… who should get the nod? In my view, Kane would be an ideal candidate. The Big Red Monster has been around forever, and his history with The Undertaker has been well-documented. It would be an amazing moment to see Kane one-up his “brother.”

There are other big time veterans who could end the streak. Shawn Michaels brought Taker to the limit at Wrestlemania XXV. I think the fans would be happy to see the two square off one more time. I suppose Triple H could end the streak, though that would probably leave a sour taste in many mouths. Imagine if it was Triple H who beat Flair’s world title record AND ended The Undertaker’s streak. The IWC would riot!

Edge would be an acceptable choice. He had a MOTYC with Taker at Wrestlemania XXIV. They could certainly replicate or exceed that effort in a rematch. Defeating The Undertaker would be Edge’s signature moment.

We all know, however… Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Kane, and Edge have virtually no chance of ending the streak. They’ve had their shots. It’s hard to imagine any of them, besides HBK, getting a rematch. And with the exception of Triple H, all of them will probably be gone before 2015.

There is one wrestler, however, who could benefit in the long term from the victory. There is one wrestler who could help recreate the Hogan-Andre atmosphere from Wrestlemania III. This wrestler would be pushed from headliner to “icon” by defeating The Undertaker. The name: John Cena.

Virtually everybody expects The Undertaker’s streak to endure forever. It’s the same feeling fans got with Andre The Giant. The thought of big Andre getting bodyslammed and pinned was almost beyond comprehension. Andre was unstoppable. However, at Wrestlemania III, Hogan did the unthinkable. He slammed and pinned Andre The Giant right in the middle of the ring. The giant was slained, and Hogan became a wrestling icon. He was already a big star, but Hogan took a quantum leap into a level of infamy that only such guys as Stone Cold and Ric Flair have reached.

The similarities between Cena and Hogan are striking. Like the pre-Wrestlemania III Hulk Hogan, Cena is a major star in his own right. However, like Hogan before Wrestlemania III, Cena has not had that one signature moment that changes his relationship with the fans. Hogan did something that nobody thought was even possible. He beat Andre. If Cena challenged Taker at Wrestlemania, he would also seek to do what most consider to be impossible. And that’s beat The Deadman.

Why would it be a bigger deal for Cena to beat The Undertaker than for Michaels, Kane, Triple H, or Edge? Because of all of those wrestlers, Cena is the closest prototype to Hogan. WWE would love to have another Hulk Hogan. They tried with Lex Luger, but that experiment went totally wrong. Then they gave up for a while. Now, with WWE revisiting the “PG” or “cartoonish” era, a person with Hogan’s appeal would be perfect. John Cena is the closest WWE can get to Hogan in the foreseeable future. What made Hogan into a megastar? Defeating Andre The Giant. Cena is a major wrestling star. But he’s not a living legend. If WWE wants to turn Cena into a Hoganesque living legend, a Wrestlemania victory over The Undertaker would accomplish that.

And can you imagine the atmosphere for a Cena-Undertaker Wrestlemania match? The fans wouldn’t be as one-sided as you think. Most smarks probably assume the fans would cheer unanimously for Taker. I disagree. John Cena is more popular today than he’s ever been in his career. He is the most popular wrestler among the youth, and those fans are quite vocal. The Undertaker will always have his cheering section. But Cena has amassed a major following in his own right.

In my view, Cena vs. Undertaker is one of the few dream matches left. It would indeed be a spectacle. An Undertaker victory would be great and fun. But a Cena victory would be something special for the wrestling industry. Either way, I hope it goes down. It would be the biggest match in 20+ years.

Closing Time

That’s it for this week. Below are the latter parts of the Hogan/Andre Wrestlemania III match.