flyonthewall2983 Posted August 5, 2011 Report Share Posted August 5, 2011 I've heard some speculation that went along with the "bald" picture that he's hung up his spurs and is done. Seeing him wheeled out of WM was pretty harsh to watch, and it certainly went through my mind I may have been watching his last one out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 Wouldn't they have announced it if this was true? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kidd Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 Wouldn't they have announced it if this was true? I don't think they will ever officially announce Taker as retired as i think they will bring him out at least annually at Mania of another couple years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Kersey Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 I was hoping he'd just do WrestleManias now, but I thought I read WWE magazine is running Taker-themed stuff for a fall ppv (I don't rmemebr what. doofy kayfabe articles? print ads?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rovert Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 Nelson Knight aka Mabel said he Taker was DONE due to his shoulder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Dog Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 There were rumors floating at Mania that his injuries were to the point that he was probably going to have to retire after the match. I tend to agree though, I think the Taker character would be better off disappearing into the night rather than having an official retirement announcement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 The point is, even if they didn't announce it on TV, I think we would know. It would be in the WON, wrestlers would be tweeting thanks for the memories type stuff ... something. Even if they let him just fade away in storyline terms, I just think we would know if it was the end. Â Undertaker retirement rumors have been happening for at least 10 years, and they are never really founded in anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLIK Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 Yeah i'm with Loss, barring an injury similar to Edge whear it's so bad that it'd be pure insanity to do anything but quit immediatly I don't think he'd just quietly fade away with nothing being made of it. Â They give him enough time off that he can heal up enough to fight through 1 or 2 matches per year atleast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artDDP Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 WWE would probably promote it somehow. And, being that Taker has been loyal to them he'll win it in spectacular fashion, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cm funk Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 Yeah, even if he's in really bad shape right now.....I think they'd still wait till January/February to make the call. They'll want to get to 20-0 with the streak, and I'm sure they'd like him at WM30 if possible  The biggest problem IMO is I'm not sure what they can do to top his last 3 WM matches. It's been built up to such epic heights that anybody shy of an HBK/HHH level opponent would be a letdown, and there's nobody left out there who's on that level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NintendoLogic Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 Yeah, even if he's in really bad shape right now.....I think they'd still wait till January/February to make the call. They'll want to get to 20-0 with the streak, and I'm sure they'd like him at WM30 if possible  The biggest problem IMO is I'm not sure what they can do to top his last 3 WM matches. It's been built up to such epic heights that anybody shy of an HBK/HHH level opponent would be a letdown, and there's nobody left out there who's on that level. Cena. It's obviously not happening next year, but it's the only dream match they have left.  On a somewhat related note, does anyone else find it somewhat alarming that in the past year, the WWE has lost so many tippy-top guys (HBK, Batista, Edge, HHH and Taker as full-timers) and not even attempted to use them to elevate anyone on the way out? Though I suppose that if they knew they were going to lose Edge, they probably would have had Del Rio go over at Wrestlemania. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cm funk Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 The most alarming aspect to me is how when an established guy is on his way out, they never have guys built up and ready to take those spots, due to the way they book everybody but the very top guys. When you look at it like that you can see why they make the decisions they do.  I'll use Cena and Batista last year as an example. They used that program to carry them for 4 months, thru WM season. They really had no credible up and comer to get the rub of Batista's last matches, and if they had, they wouldn't have had a credible championship opponent for John Cena. It's their own fault, and even they realized this when they tried (and ultimately failed) to elevate an entire group of new talent at once immediately after this with the Nexus angle. But I can understand why they would do what they did when faced with the options of A) the first major program between two of the biggest stars in the company to carry you through the biggest period of the year, or trying to rush elevating two midcarders during the most important part of the year  I think they made a sincere attempt to make Sheamus via HHH. I assume the original plan was for HHH to come back and get his heat back at WM well after Sheamus was established as a major player. Then the plans for Taker fall through for various reasons (Nexus angle died, Brock wasn't happening) so HHH is the fallback plan, and Sheamus (who's already been depushed for stupid reasons) is a casuality of that.  They tried to elevate Legacy in one of HBK's last programs, with them even beating him and HHH on PPV in a submission match, and main eventing the first Hell in a Cell PPV, but it was one of those cases of not having people in a proper position to be elevated, where so much damage had already been done to those guys' credibility that the fans never really bought it.  Jericho getting punted out by Orton seemed like one of those deals where he wanted big picture continuity with his character. When he came back in 07, Orton was the guy he faced off with. I can appreciate the attention to detail, and he'd already put over Barrett, Slater, Bourne, Morrison, Kofi and I'm sure some others in his last year.  Edge you already touched on, but I believe he had already consulted with doctors before Mania and knew there was a chance he'd have to take time off or worse, so they really should have elevated Del Rio there.  The one time they really nailed a homerun on this was with CM Punk and Jeff Hardy.......then they almost immediately dropped the ball (a program involving Taker ironically) and it took Punk 2 full years to get back to that level.....where they appear to be dropping the ball yet again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJH Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 Edge you already touched on, but I believe he had already consulted with doctors before Mania and knew there was a chance he'd have to take time off or worse, so they really should have elevated Del Rio there. Given Edge was tearing up before the bell, I'd wager he knew it was very likely to be his last big match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Dog Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 Has the WWF ever been good at building up stars to take the place of established ones? It seems to me that they get a core group of main eventers, ride those guys into the ground and then have to scramble for 2-3 years after those guys all start leaving and they realize they don't have guys ready to take their spots. Â Early to mid 90s. Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Diesel and Yokozuna step in for Hogan, Warrior and Savage. None of them were really built up to be main eventers except for Yokozuna who beat Hogan on the way out after looking stupid at Wrestlemania. He also eliminated Savage from the Royal Rumble last and got some rub for that. Hart and Michaels never got any kind of a big win over the established guard before heading out. Â Late 90s. Austin beats Michaels. Rock, Mankind and HHH climb to the top without any real wins over the old guard as they headed out of the company. Â Early 00s. Cena and Batista got wins over HHH. It was meaningless for Cena since he was past HHH when it happened. Orton lost to HHH in meaningful situations for a long time. None of them really got a win over one of the guys from the previous generation. Edge pushed his way into the main event despite not really beating anyone of importance other than Foley after it was meaningless. Â Now. Too early to tell but Batista and Edge exited without putting a next gen guy over. Cena and Orton are still there and I imagine Cena will be the one to put some guys over on the way out. Â So there you have it. The post Hulkamania WWE and how it's transitioned between main eventers. As annoying as today is, the WWE has never really used the old main eventers to usher in the next group of main eventers. The WWE approach is to just wait for someone to get hot and ride them until they don't draw anymore, suffer through some lean years and then find the next hot guy to carry them for 3-5 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Death From Above Posted August 7, 2011 Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 By wrestling standards of "retirement" hasn't he been retired for a couple years now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyonthewall2983 Posted August 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2011 I was about to make that point, actually. He hasn't done a regular road schedule for awhile so he practically is already. But the purpose of the thread is to speculate if he's entirely done by now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smkelly Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 I doubt that he is entirely done, yet. If they only have Taker work one match a year, I suspect he can maintain that schedule for a long time unless his sustained injuries are that severe. Â Which makes me think - What does the Undertaker's medical records look like? Â I mean, Mick Foley's major bumps and bruises are documented. What are some of Taker's? Â * Fucked up shoulder. Rotary cuff injury. * Probably several concussions. * Broken ankle in the Hell in a Cell match. * Hip/sternum problems in early 2000. * Injured his bicep - torn IIRC. * Had his orbital bone broken. * Broken ribs. ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJH Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 Didn't Michelle leave to essentially be his full-time carer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 The point is, even if they didn't announce it on TV, I think we would know. It would be in the WON, wrestlers would be tweeting thanks for the memories type stuff ... something. Even if they let him just fade away in storyline terms, I just think we would know if it was the end. Â Undertaker retirement rumors have been happening for at least 10 years, and they are never really founded in anything. It's possible it might be through the WON or Twitter, but they handle the Undertaker character very differently than they handle everyone else. This is a guy they keep out of the public eye as much as possible and who they keep out of things like their HOF ceremonies and such. Fuck, Kane is treated with way more of a human side. When he does go, it wouldn't shock me at all if it's very quietly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Log Posted August 8, 2011 Report Share Posted August 8, 2011 By wrestling standards of "retirement" hasn't he been retired for a couple years now? Shit, I bet Terry Funk has had more matches than Taker in the last three years or so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Morris Posted August 16, 2011 Report Share Posted August 16, 2011 I suspect when Taker is ready to retire, he'll get his HOF induction ceremony at that point. That may be the only time they have him come close to "breaking character," although I suspect it will be done carefully. He'll probably limit his speech to his work with fellow WWE wrestlers and it'll be either Kane or Paul Bearer inducting him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khawk20 Posted August 16, 2011 Report Share Posted August 16, 2011 When Undertaker goes into the HOF, they won't worry about him breaking character one bit. Â As such, it'll be after whenever his last match is. He'll wait until the next year to go in officially, with all the bells and whistles, so as not to take away from the last match of "the streak". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted August 18, 2011 Report Share Posted August 18, 2011 At this point, Taker is retired already by wrestling standarts and really only is the yearly WM attraction people come to see. If they don't make the biggest deal ever of him finally disapearing, they're idiots. Taker's last match should be the biggest thing ever in the company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted August 18, 2011 Report Share Posted August 18, 2011 then he should be the anonymous GM Â "By God, King! The Undertaker has learned how to possess the internet!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted August 18, 2011 Report Share Posted August 18, 2011 "It was me all along." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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