In the final episode of The Last Ride, the WWE Network series chronicling the past few years of The Undertaker‘s 30-year career with WWE, Mark Callaway – the man under the hat of the Undertaker – revealed that the Boneyard Match against AJ Styles at this year’s WrestleMania was most likely his swan song with an industry that has earned him a paycheck since he first debuted with World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) in his native Texas in 1987 as Texas Red. WWE even acknowledged Callaway’s statements on Social Media with a #ThankYouTaker hashtag that has taken Twitter by storm.
#ThankYouTaker for… pic.twitter.com/otUvugelL3
— WWE (@WWE) June 21, 2020
In the finale for the series, Undertaker reflected on his Boneyard Match at this year’s WrestleMania and stated that it was the perfect scenario for him to walk away from the ring. As seen in the series, every planned final match never met Undertaker’s personal standards and he continuously sought a true moment to leave the business, but they continued to fall short. It wasn’t until he rode away from AJ Styles on his motorcycle that he felt the peace required. “I believe I’m at a place now, post-Boneyard, which was a hellacious battle against one of the best in the business,” Mark Callaway said. “Here you are, climbing on your motorcycle and taking off. There was a lot of thought and a lot of emotion, one of those being ‘are you happy enough with that?’ It was a powerful moment. You don’t necessarily always get those. If there was ever a perfect ending to a career, that right there was it…I’m at a point, it’s time this cowboy really rides away. There’s nothing left for me to conquer or accomplish. The game has changed. It’s time for new guys to come up. The time just seems right. This documentary has helped me discover that and opened my eyes to the bigger picture and not judge myself as harshly these last few years.”
While he definitely seemed to give the indication that he was now officially done with WWE and pro wrestling, he did give a “break glass” comment about helping WWE – specifically Vince McMahon – should the call arise, saying that if “Vince was in a pinch, would I come back? I guess time would only tell there. In case of emergency, break glass, you pull out The Undertaker. I would consider it. At this point in my career, I have no desire to get back in the ring.”
Mark Callaway made his WWE debut in November of 1990 at Survivor Series as The Undertaker and has become one of the most iconic characters or gimmicks of all time, not only in WWE history but pro wrestling history as well.
You can check out our comprehensive coverage of Undertaker’s career in the links below:
Five Decades of the Deadman: Part 1, The 1980s
Five Decades of the Deadman: Part 2, The 1990s
Five Decades of the Deadman: Part 3, The 2000s
Five Decades of the Deadman: Part 4, The 2010s
Five Decades of the Deadman: Part 5, The 2020s
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. WWE fan? You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the WWE Network.
