5 WWE Superstars who have tried to tempt The Undertaker out of retirement

Following a 32-year career in the wrestling business, WWE legend The Undertaker all but confirmed his retirement from in-ring competition on the final episode of his WWE Network docuseries ‘Undertaker: The Last Ride’.

“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.”

Given the number of WWE Superstars who have returned to the ring after retirement, it is only natural that some fans have questioned whether The Undertaker really is retired or whether he could return for one more match when WWE is allowed to welcome fans back into arenas.

The man himself clarified that, while he does not see himself competing again, he would at least listen to an offer if WWE Chairman Vince McMahon ever needs him.

“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.”

As The Undertaker said, only time will tell if he really has retired. One thing is for sure, though, and that is that plenty of people are queuing up to face the WrestleMania icon if he ever decides to compete again.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at five WWE Superstars who have tried to tempt The Undertaker into having one more match.

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#5 Elias wants to face The Undertaker

One of the most disappointing matches of The Undertaker’s legendary career came in June 2019 when he faced Goldberg at the Super ShowDown event in Saudi Arabia.

The first-time-ever encounter got off to a promising start, with both men hitting their trademark moves in the opening stages of the match, but things quickly went downhill when Goldberg knocked himself out after inadvertently colliding with the ring post whilst trying to execute a spear.

Following The Undertaker’s victory, many WWE fans took to social media to question why WWE booked “The Deadman” in a match with another veteran when he could have faced a younger member of the roster instead.

Well, as it turns out, The Undertaker was supposed to take on the man he confronted after WrestleMania 35, Elias, but WWE’s plans changed.

“Elias v Undertaker was set to happen in Saudi shortly after this segment. Everything about this night was electric. THINGS CHANGED. Myself and The Deadman have crossed paths multiple times since I’ve been here, and I hope it’s not the last. There is a great story to be told both on screen & behind the curtain. He’s one of the greatest to ever do it.” [Via Elias’ Instagram]

Instead of facing The Undertaker, Elias lasted until the final two in the 51-man Battle Royal before being eliminated by Mansoor.

#4 AJ Styles wants to face The Undertaker

It was revealed during The Undertaker’s ‘Last Ride’ series that AJ Styles thought of the idea to face “The Deadman” at WrestleMania 36 after watching his out-of-character interview with Steve Austin on WWE Network show Broken Skull Sessions.

The Undertaker received a phone call from Styles and agreed to take part in the match, which was originally supposed to be held in front of over 70,000 fans at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WWE’s decision-makers drastically altered plans for WrestleMania and opted to turn The Undertaker vs. Styles into a modern-day Buried Alive match (aka Boneyard match).

Following the overwhelming success of the cinematic match, Styles told Vincente Beltran in July 2020 that he would be prepared to go one-on-one with The Undertaker one more time when fans are allowed to be in attendance.

"If I thought that would get him in the ring with me, in front of thousands of people, I would definitely put up the Intercontinental Championship. Will that happen, will he take the bait? Probably not. If he's decided that he's done, I respect that. He's definitely done enough in his career to say, 'That's it, I'm done.' Trust me, I know what it's like.” [H/T Comic Book]

Styles added that The Undertaker has earned the right to call time on his career and he does not expect a rematch to ever take place.

#3 Sting wants to face The Undertaker

Sting once faced The Undertaker’s pre-WWE persona, Mark Callous, in an NWA World Heavyweight Championship match in 1990, but the two men have never competed against each other using the gimmicks that they are most famous for.

WWE has repeatedly teased a possible match between the two legends over the last couple of years, including in 2019 when the company posted a ‘WWE Reimagined’ video (see above) on YouTube.

Speaking to Sports Illustrated in December 2019, Sting made it clear that he is still willing to face The Undertaker if WWE approaches him.

“If there was a ‘Taker situation at WrestleMania, I would listen to that phone call. I could get in condition and I could pull it off... I think my career is done. I still think about the ‘Taker situation every year, but I don’t think it’s going to happen.”

Sting took to Twitter in July 2020 to tease the possibility of a match against The Undertaker. He retweeted a picture of himself on a bike, accompanied by the caption, “Who wants to take a ‘last’ ride with Sting?”

Who wants to take a “last” ride with Sting? https://t.co/6JT1EC3mbx

— Sting (@Sting) July 2, 2020

In June 2020, The Undertaker addressed speculation about a match against Sting by claiming that a long-awaited encounter with the WCW icon cannot live up to the hype, which is why he is not keen on the idea.

#2 Shane McMahon wants to face The Undertaker

After making a surprise return to WWE in February 2016, Shane McMahon immediately became involved in a storyline with Vince McMahon’s “instrument of destruction”, The Undertaker.

The story saw The Undertaker defeat Shane in a Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania 32, which included the famous spot where the former SmackDown Commissioner jumped from the top of the cell and through the announce desk.

The two men met again in 2019 when The Undertaker teamed with Roman Reigns to defeat Shane and Drew McIntyre at Extreme Rules, but the storyline was less about the Shane vs. The Undertaker rivalry and more about Shane vs. Reigns.

Speaking on an episode of WWE Network show ‘Last Ride: Post Mortem’ in 2020, Shane tried to tempt The Undertaker into having one more match against him.

“I know I got one more with him. I’m ready. I’ll challenge him now, and I’ll throw it out there now. I got one more. I know I got one more. I know I got one big one, and I want a rematch.”

In storyline, Shane’s WWE career came to an end when he lost a ladder match against Kevin Owens on the first episode of SmackDown on FOX in October 2019. But, sports entertainment being sports entertainment, we would be foolish to rule out a return for either him or The Undertaker.

#1 Drew McIntyre wants to face The Undertaker

Around the same time that The Undertaker returned to in-ring action against John Cena at WrestleMania 34, Drew McIntyre began to establish himself as one of the top heel Superstars in WWE after rejoining the main roster as an ally of Dolph Ziggler in April 2018.

One year later, the Scot formed another alliance with Shane McMahon and Elias, leading to the aforementioned No Holds Barred tag team match at Extreme Rules between McIntyre & McMahon and The Undertaker & Roman Reigns.

It had been rumored that the match could lead to a one-on-one encounter between McIntyre and The Undertaker at SummerSlam 2019, but that never came to fruition.

Speaking to the Daily Star in 2020, McIntyre discussed the Extreme Rules tag team match and said the history that he has with The Undertaker is a story worth revisiting.

“The crowd started rumbling when he started doing the throat-cut and I rose up behind him and Roman saved him from the Claymore kick... and afterwards he seemed pretty happy. I really think, given the right circumstances and considering our history and the fact he gave me my first official defeat, there's a good story there. I know the match would absolutely deliver.”

McIntyre also noted that The Undertaker handed him one of his first defeats as a WWE Superstar in 2010, which is something he believes could be used in a possible storyline.