It’s another week and another “Best of the Streak” as the newly-minted WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker takes on class of 2011 and 2017 Hall of Famer, Shawn Michaels. This match took place at WrestleMania 26 on March 28, 2010, in Glendale, Arizona. It’s WrestleMania Weekend, so let’s dive into this one!
The Road to WrestleMania 26
Honestly, the Road to WrestleMania for this one is better than the last one purely because HBK lost at WM25 and was putting a button on his in-ring career. The story here is that he needed that win over Taker at WrestleMania to really cap off his career. He planted the seeds for a rematch at the 2009 Slammy Awards in December after their WrestleMania 25 match won “Match of the Year.”
Taker was World Champion and pretty much at his pick of opponents. He turned down HBK’s challenge to run it back. After all, he’d already beaten him in a convincing fashion.
Obviously, Shawn Michaels wasn’t having it and stuck his nose in The Undertaker’s affairs. After failing to get a title shot in both the 2010 Royal Rumble bout and in that year’s RAW Elimination Chamber qualifier, he cost the Deadman his title in the SmackDown Elimination Chamber.
Chris Jericho was now champion and The Undertaker was beltless. He had time on his hands and he was going to use those hands to lump up on HBK. However, he had a big condition.
If Michaels really wanted the match and the Streak that badly, he’d have to put his career on the line. Obviously, HBK wanted the match and agreed.
No Disqualification Match: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels II
With the back story out of the way, let’s get into the match itself. This was an interesting tale of two approaches. The Undertaker came in as a grizzled veteran who was defending his streak at WWE’s biggest event the same as always.
He had a more measured approach in trying to put Michaels away as soon as possible. HBK was a grizzled veteran who was blinded by the desire to end the Streak and the added pressure of having to retire if he didn’t.
This resulted in a pace that seemed impossible for both men at this time. I’d say it was a faster, more intense version of the first WrestleMania encounter as the outside was legal and used well.
There were moonsaults through the announce table, Tombstones Piledrivers on the outside, reversed submissions, Sweet Chin Musics, more Tombstones—this match was exciting and exhausting to watch.
The near-falls were perfect and made it seem like Shawn Michaels might just get it done this time. There was a real investment in this bout.
Taker had pummeled HBK so much that he had to tell him to stay down. Ever rebellious, Michaels refused and even slapped The Phenom—only to receive some doomsday for the skull via a final Tombstone Piledriver. The Streak extends to 18-0 with another convincing victory over Mr. WrestleMania.
If you’re a WWE fan or a fan of these two, this is definitely a match to watch. It’s at the perfect place on the card—the final match—and it has all the thrills, spills, and chills you’d want from the ultimate WrestleMania bout.
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