On the latest episode of Six Feet Under, The Undertaker talked about the challenges of accepting retirement before having his last bout in 2020 at WWE WrestleMania 36 in a Boneyard match against AJ Styles. You can check out some highlights below:
On struggles of coming to grips with retirement: “A lot of the things that you were saying really resonates with me as far as cutting it off. And it took me a long time to figure that out, because I was Undertaker all the time. It really took my wife and my kids to be able to like, ‘Okay, this is where I really want to be now at this part of my life.’ And it helped me shut that door, because everyone had always expected me to be Undertaker. I had always expected to be — like, I knew it was going to come one day, but I really didn’t.”
On listening to yourself when you think it’s time to retire: “Well, that’s — once those feelings started creeping in, you gotta listen to them… Once you start getting that — not that self-doubt, but you have to crave what you do. I think you have to crave to be in there to prove that you’re the best fighter at your weight division. For me, the decision was made for me just, like I said when we talked earlier. Father Time, my body just couldn’t deliver what I wanted it to do anymore. Like I said, in my mind and in my heart, I still wanted to be out there doing it.”
On chasing the perfect ending: “I was looking for that perfect ending… John Elway ending, wins two Super Bowls, rides off into the sunset. And like for me, I was looking for the match. I was looking for that match where I could hang my hat on… It was just, I was at the point where my body just couldn’t deliver what my mind’s eye saw. So I listened to my body, but my mind and my heart weren’t there yet. So there was a time I had to catch up and figure out how to fill that void.”
On his role in WWE changing: “Yeah, it kinda — in a different way. Again, there was that time period where we had an influx of old talent moving out and new talent that was coming up. So I kind of went from like — you know, I had stopped having to chase, right? I was the guy. And then now it went right into me grooming these guys before my day was up. Yeah, there was really nobody that could push me. So it was like, ‘Okay, I’m cool here. Now let me reach back and pull as many guys up as I could.”
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Six Feet Under an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.
