13-1: When The Undertaker agreed to let AEW star beat him at WrestleMania – eight years before Brock Lesnar conquered The Streak
After 21 consecutive wins, The Undertaker's legendary WrestleMania undefeated streak was finally broken by Brock Lesnar in 2014. The defeat was a long time coming for the man behind The Deadman persona, Mark Calaway, who previously agreed to lose at a different WrestleMania.
In late 2005, Mark Henry returned to WWE's main roster after an absence of almost two years due to injury. He quickly became involved in a major angle with The Undertaker, leading to a Casket match at WrestleMania 22.
WWE creative team member Bruce Prichard discussed the storyline on his Something to Wrestle With podcast in 2019. He revealed that former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon wanted Henry to win the bout, ending The Undertaker's WrestleMania streak after 13 victories:
"I was sitting at my desk in Houston and Vince calls me and says, 'I've got an idea. What do you think about ending Undertaker's streak?'" Prichard recalled. "I said, 'Well, with the right guy he's made.' He says, 'Goddam, that big b*****d Mark Henry - he's ready!' There was silence." [H/T Wrestling Inc.]
Prichard added that everyone seemed to be on board with the idea until McMahon changed his mind:
“[Mark Calaway] came back and said, 'OK, if that's what you guys want to do – if that's really what Vince wants.' Vince, as we got closer to it, got cold feet, I guess, and just realized that maybe Mark wasn't ready at that time for it."
4/2/2006
The Undertaker defeated Mark Henry in a Casket Match at #Wrestlemania XXII from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois
#TheUndertaker #Undertaker #ThePhenom #TheDeadMan #DeadManInc #LordOfDarkness #TheStreak #MarkHenry #WorldsStrongestMan #HallOfPain #WWE #WWEHistory https://t.co/yVDWscuBSF
The Deadman ended up defeating Henry in a nine-minute match. In the process, his WrestleMania undefeated run extended to 14 wins.
The Undertaker's WrestleMania undefeated streak: What happened next?
Victories over Batista (WrestleMania 23) and Edge (WrestleMania 24) followed before The Undertaker feuded with Shawn Michaels at consecutive WrestleMania events.
The 2022 Hall of Famer defeated Michaels at WrestleMania 25 in a match that many view as the best WWE encounter of all time. A year later, he beat The Heartbreak Kid again at WrestleMania 26 to end his opponent's career.
The Phenom defeated Triple H at WrestleMania 27 and WrestleMania 28 before securing another big win over CM Punk at WrestleMania 29. The following year, Brock Lesnar was chosen as the man to finally conquer The Streak at WrestleMania 30.
21-1
The Undertaker's WrestleMania record read 25-2 when he retired in 2020. His only other loss came in 2017 against Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33.
Do you think Brock Lesnar was the right man to defeat The Deadman? Let us know in the comments section below.