Undertaker

WWE legend The Undertaker is reportedly expected to be in attendance at the 2022 Royal Rumble event next weekend in St. Louis.

According to PWInsider (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Taker will be in St. Louis primarily for the purpose of watching his wife, Michelle McCool, compete in the Women's Royal Rumble match.

PWInsider noted that The Undertaker could also be present to shoot material for Peacock since WWE will be shooting content during Royal Rumble weekend.

The 56-year-old Undertaker has not competed in a match since WrestleMania 36, which was nearly two years ago.

The Deadman defeated AJ Styles in the much-celebrated Boneyard Match, and during the ensuing summer, Taker announced during the final episode of the Undertaker: The Last Ride docu-series that he was retiring from in-ring competition.

While The Phenom had said he was retiring in the past only to return, he has remained true to his retirement this time around.

It may not be impossible that he gets physically involved somehow and even competes in the Men's Royal Rumble match, but there are many other reasons for him to be in St. Louis besides that.

In addition to McCool competing and possibly filming Peacock content, The Undertaker could do some things related to the upcoming WWE 2K22 video game.

Taker is part of the pre-order bonus, as those who pre-order the game will receive three different versions of The Undertaker as playable characters.

WWE 2K22 will be released to all on March 11, while Royal Rumble will take place at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis on Jan. 29.

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WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg reflected on his disastrous 2019 match against The Undertaker in Saudi Arabia during an interview with SmackDown announcer Pat McAfee this week.

Appearing on the Pat McAfee Show (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Matthew Wilkinson), Goldberg explained why things went wrong during his clash with Taker at WWE Super ShowDown:

"I'd been out for a while and everybody's got a routine, and I kind of forgot my routine. But I remembered the headbutt. So, on the way out, I headbutt the door. And I don't know where I am after that, I've got no idea what's going on.

"I'm kind of getting to the ring and then we've got the spot where he moves and I hit the turnbuckle. Well, I didn't go out and look at the turnbuckle beforehand, and it was a different setup from what we normally would have at Raw or SmackDown. I took that one. I try to take things as realistic as possible and I took it wrong. So, let's just say I got another concussion right there and opened myself up pretty good."

Goldberg noted that he finished the match despite being concussed, but he realizes now that he should have handled the situation differently:

"It's the referee and the booker's responsibility to call what's going on in there. You know, they're on the mic and the headset and everything. The referee, I remember he came up to me 10, 15 times during that match, 'How're you doing?' And I'm like, 'I'm good, I'm good.' And by the time he'd walk away, I'd go, 'I don't know what's going on.'

"It was a different answer every time and the fact is, I never should've done what I did. But I did, I tried to go through with it but unfortunately, it turned out to be a debacle. It's a wonder that we both didn't get smashed during that match. It was a very bad missed opportunity. But hey, at the end of the day, I was just trying to provide a better show for everybody else."

The Goldberg vs. Undertaker match is widely considered one of the worst matches in recent memory because of its clunky nature and the fact that Goldberg nearly dropped The Phenom on his head while attempting a Jackhammer.

Taker won the match, which was Goldberg's first in over two years and a first-time-ever attraction that had fans excited going in.

Neither performer delivered to expectations, but they both managed to bounce back in the months and years that followed.

Goldberg won a fun squash match against Dolph Ziggler two months later at SummerSlam 2019, and most recently, he redeemed himself in Saudi Arabia by beating Bobby Lashley in an entertaining Falls Count Anywhere match at Crown Jewel in October.

Meanwhile, The Undertaker took part in an enjoyable match the month after Super ShowDown, as he and Roman Reigns beat Drew McIntyre and Shane McMahon at Extreme Rules.

He later had the final match of his illustrious career at WrestleMania 36, beating AJ Styles in the critically acclaimed Boneyard Match.

While Taker's in-ring career is over, the 55-year-old Goldberg has confirmed on multiple occasions that there is one match remaining on his own WWE contract.

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The Undertaker would likely make the WWE Mount Rushmore for every wrestling fan, but who would crack the Dead Man's all-time top four?

Appearing on Kevin Hart's YouTube show, Cold as Balls, the Undertaker answered that very question (around the 11-minute mark) by putting Andre the Giant, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock and Shawn Michaels on his personal Mount Rushmore. 

The most interesting name on that list is Michaels, only because it shows how much The Undertaker's opinion of The Heartbreak Kid has changed over the years. 

Undertaker once said on WWE Untold (h/t Gary Stonehouse of The Sun) that in the 1990s he "probably wouldn't piss on him to put him out" if Michaels was on fire.

The Dead Man has been open about changing his opinion of Michaels over the years, culminating with their two-match series at WrestleMania in 2009 and 2010. 

“I think Shawn Michaels probably is the greatest in-ring wrestler of all time, Undertaker told Vipin Raghuwanshi of ITN in May. 

One of The Undertaker's final matches in WWE came against John Cena at WrestleMania 34. 

According to Taker, one of the people who wasn't a fan of the match was his daughter. 

"My daughter loves Cena," he explained around the 6:30 mark of the video. "You know, eventually, we have a match, right? She's sitting front row with her mom. It was a real quick deal, I squash him in like five minutes. I just kick the s--t out of him, drop him on his head and pin him. And I'm looking at my daughter, looking for that 'Yay, dad,' right? And she's giving me this (thumbs-down gesture)."

The build for the match saw Cena call out The Undertaker on television for weeks. Even though the bout was never officially advertised by the company as happening, the result on the night was disappointing to some because of the stature of both men as WWE legends. 

Undertaker's final match wound up taking place at WrestleMania 36 in a Boneyard Match against A.J. Styles. 

"In my mind, I wanted to do it," he said around the 2:45 mark of the video about continuing to perform in the ring. "In my heart, I still wanted to do it. But I realized, my body couldn't do what it used to do."

WWE gave Undertaker a proper send-off at the 2020 Survivor Series to commemorate the 30th anniversary of his debut with the company. 

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Rising WWE star Omos responded Thursday to praise he recently received from WWE legend The Undertaker.

Omos tweeting the following in response to Taker's analysis of the massive Superstar:

On Wednesday, The Undertaker appeared on WWE's The Bump and expressed his belief that Omos is a special talent with a bright future:

The Phenom said he feels Omos is "as close as we've come" to a wrestler who is comparable to Andre the Giant in terms of size and aura since Andre died in 1993.

Taker called Omos "special" and "different from everybody else" and stressed the importance of Omos embracing those facts in order for him to reach his full potential.

Omos is a former collegiate basketball player at Morgan State and South Florida who is listed at 7'3" and appears to be every bit that height in reality.

He has been under a WWE contract for less than three years, but it is already apparent that WWE has huge plans in place for Omos moving forward.

It took less than a year-and-a-half after signing with WWE for Omos to make his first appearance on the main roster, and he has been teaming with AJ Styles since October 2020.

In his first match on the main roster, Omos teamed with Styles to beat The New Day for the Raw Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania in April.

Omos and Styles eventually dropped the titles to RK-Bro at SummerSlam, but WWE has been careful about protecting the 27-year-old and making him look like a dominant force.

At Survivor Series on Sunday, Omos won a 25-man interbrand battle royal, marking the biggest singles win of his career and perhaps signaling the start of WWE's attempt to have him shine more on his own apart from Styles.

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Undertaker Compares Omos to Andre the Giant

The Undertaker knows what it takes to be a successful big man in WWE, and he sees something special in Omos.

During an appearance on WWE's The Bump, Taker heaped praise on the imposing tag team partner of AJ Styles:

The Phenom noted that while there will never be another Andre the Giant, he believes Omos is the closest thing to the legendary WWE Hall of Famer. He also called Omos "special" because of his size and ability.

The 7'3" mountain of a man played college basketball at Morgan State and South Florida before signing a developmental deal with WWE in 2019. It wasn't long before Omos got the call to the main roster in 2020.

Omos has been Styles' bodyguard and tag team partner, and he even held the Raw Tag Team Championships with The Phenomenal One.

Lately, Omos has enjoyed some success on his own, including on Sunday at Survivor Series when he won the 25-man interbrand battle royal.

It seems inevitable that Omos and Styles will eventually go their separate ways, and once that happens, WWE figures to give Omos a huge push individually since his stature makes him stand out from the rest of the roster.

While it remains to be seen if Omos has the personality and wrestling ability needed to be a star on his own, his size undoubtedly gives him an advantage.

Gargano Reportedly Signs 1-Week WWE Extension

Johnny Gargano has reportedly signed a short-term contract extension with WWE to ensure he will be able to work the Dec. 5 NXT WarGames pay-per-view.

According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select, Gargano signed a one-week extension with WWE, meaning his contract will now expire on Dec. 10 rather than Dec. 3.

Sapp also reported that Gargano and WWE continue to hold negotiations for a potential long-term extension if the two sides can reach a deal.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Marc Middleton) recently reported that WWE made a "strong" contract offer and was pushing "very hard" to sign him to a long-term deal.

Gargano's situation seems similar to the one Adam Cole was involved with in August and September before he made his All Elite Wrestling debut at All Out on Sept. 5.

Cole also reportedly signed a short-term extension with WWE in August, which allowed him to finish his feud with Kyle O'Reilly and put O'Reilly over at NXT TakeOver 36.

Once the extension ended, Cole decided to leave WWE in favor of AEW, and he is now a part of The Elite with Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks.

It is possible Gargano could take a similar route, although he has long been considered the heart and soul of NXT. He also could make an impact on WWE's main roster if given the opportunity.

For now, the final match scheduled for Gargano under a WWE contract will be a WarGames match at NXT WarGames with Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Pete Dunne and L.A. Knight facing Bron Breakker, Carmelo Hayes, Tony D'Angelo and Grayson Waller.

Top Dolla Talks Possible Reasons for Hit Row's Release

Following the shocking release of Hit Row last week, Top Dolla explained some potential reasons why the decision was made by WWE.

Appearing on Busted Open Radio (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Matthew Wilkinson), Top Dolla recounted placing a call after WWE released B-Fab from the group and the company a few weeks ago:

"They got mad when Briana got released that I called up to the office. I was like, 'I don't understand why you'd release Briana when we are a foursome group.' You take Briana out of the group and yeah, we're still cool, and yeah, we can still do all the same things, but we are just every three-man wrestling group."

Top Dolla also said he felt WWE higher-ups weren't happy when he, Isaiah "Swerve" Scott and Ashante Thee Adonis took it upon themselves to record a new theme song following B-Fab's departure:

"They were upset because when they took Briana out of the group, they wanted to re-do the song. So they did like a remix of the song, but the song doesn't sound the same without her part of it. So what we did was, we went in the studio and made a new song. I guess they were upset that we made a new song, but we are a rap group. How are we a rap group if we can't make a song? Then we are just wrestlers."

The release of Hit Row came as a huge shock since they were a red-hot group in NXT before getting called up as part of the WWE draft.

Hit Row only made a few appearances on SmackDown before their release from the company, meaning they never got a legitimate chance to show what they were made of on the main roster.

Hit Row was a group unlike any WWE had ever had before, and they seemingly had the ability to accomplish a great deal thanks to their varied skill set as a stable.

Instead, all four members of Hit Row are now free agents, meaning they could try to reprise the act elsewhere once their 90-day non-compete clauses are up.

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If the Undertaker had his way, his WrestleMania streak wouldn't have been broken by Brock Lesnar. 

Speaking to Joey Hayden of the Dallas Morning News, the Phenom explained why he thinks Roman Reigns should have been the first superstar to defeat him at WWE's biggest show:

I don’t know that Brock needed that win. Brock was a bona fide superstar at that point. So, I don’t know that he needed it. Roman [Reigns defeating Undertaker at WM33] definitely, that was the right call. I just wish he may have been first. I wish I could have reversed them, you know what I’m saying? If Roman would have been able to do it, I think it would have increased the value.

Lesnar's win over the Undertaker at WrestleMania 30 remains one of the most stunning results in WWE history. "The Streak" had gotten so big by that point that the Dead Man's matches would often be more anticipated than whatever the main event bout was. 

Undertaker won each of his first 21 matches on the grandest stage of them all, but Lesnar's pinfall victory in 2014 was such a surprise that one fan's reaction was used for years on social media as shorthand for a stunning result. 

The result made sense at the time, because WWE was building Lesnar up to win the championship before dropping the title to Reigns at WrestleMania 31, establishing him as the new top superstar. 

But the negative fan response to Reigns starting at the 2015 Royal Rumble led to WWE adding Seth Rollins, who held the Money in the Bank briefcase at the time, into the WrestleMania main event. 

Rollins wound up pinning Reigns to win the title. 

Three years after Undertaker's loss to Lesnar, he eventually got to main event WrestleMania with Reigns. The Head of the Table won the match with a spear. 

Things have worked out just fine for Reigns. He's currently the top star in WWE and has held the universal championship since beating Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman in a triple-threat match at Payback on Aug. 30, 2020. 

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