The Rock tells a story about the Undertaker
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Will we ever see these two share the ring again?[/caption]
The Rock Says: There was a very specific incident that demonstrated to me exactly what kind of a man the Undertaker is.
It was while I was teetering at the upper edge of the second tier, getting ready to leap to the top tier. The Rock was on the border of super-stardom, within a breath of reaching a level of success that only a handful of wrestlers attain. The Undertaker, of course, was already there, and he was my opponent on this particular edition of Raw.
We were in Detroit, at Cobo Arena, and the decision had been made that I was going to win the match. So, in essence, my fate was in the hands of the Undertaker. He had the opportunity , all by himself, to propel me to the next level...to reach down and pull me up alongside him. He also had the power to make me look mediocre.
The Undertaker would never deliberately go out and make someone look like complete shit, because he's too much of a consummate professional. He's too smart a businessman to do something like that, which is one reason he's been so successful. But he did have other options.
He could easily have said, 'Have The Rock beat me via disqualification.'
He could have said, 'Have The Rock hit me with a chair, knock me out cold.'
That way everyone would have said, 'The Rock had to use a chair to beat the Undertaker.' It was entirely up to him.
All that had been determined was the outcome: The Rock would win, the Undertaker would lose. How we would arrive at that point was up to the Undertaker.
His decision was to put me over clean - one-two-three! - in the middle of the ring. Not only that, but he decided it would be best if the Undertaker was beaten by The Rock's signature move, The Rock Bottom. That would ensure maximum exposure for The Rock and maximum entertainment for the crowd. It made me realize what a true professional this guy is.
I will never forget meeting the Undertaker before the match and saying, 'Man, I just heard it's going to be a clean finish. Are you comfortable with that? Are you sure you want to do that?'
He looked at me and said, without hesitation, 'Absolutely. It's your turn and it's your time.'
Having grown up in the business, and having seen business conducted that way...and not conducted that way...I couldn't help but be moved by such an impressive gesture. It really wasn't possible for me to thank him enough, but I tried anyway.
'Somewhere down the road I'll have the opportunity to do the same for you,' I said. 'And I want you to know...I'll do it in a heartbeat.'"
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Source: 'The Rock Says...' By Dwayne Johnson, with Joe Layden, 2000)