The Undertaker retires from WWE after nearly 27 years

I went through a phase of watching American wrestling back in the 90s when I first got satellite TV and remember The Undertaker from back then along with Junk Yard Dog and the others , imagine my surprise when I read this morning that The Undertaker had finally retired after 27 years at the age of 52.

His retirement came after a defeat by Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33 last night , The Undertaker placed his gloves, hat and trenchcoat in the center of the ring and left for what seems to be the last time.


I'm not a wrestling fan but am in awe and full of respect for Mark Calaway , 27 years in a sport like that must take its toll on the body and the fact he managed to do it for so long and into his fifties is extraordinary.

I wish Mr Calaway a happy and pain free retirement , what a great athlete.

I don't watch wrestling myself anymore, the undertaker was one of my best wrestler's ​when i was a kid.

I'm sure he'll have a brilliant retirement, maybe even be on tv talk shows as an ex wrestler. who knows.

wow this man been wrestling almost since I was alive. I watched him from elementary school until after high school. Didn't his show brother Kane retire sometime back I think?

I assume he had already retired, haven't really watched WWE for few years. All I hear now is John Cena.

I remember him before his undertaker days.
Damn I'm getting old.

Lots of respect for the dead man.

a reply to: gortex

I cannot respect WWE... characters, unless I think of them as nothing more than circus clowns. They are not athletes, because performance art is not an athletic discipline. They are not warriors, because the fights are not real. They are not fighters, and actually, are not even wrestlers, because they do not wrestle. They play act.

But as clowns, the nearest to a correct assessment of their abilities, part gymnast, part pratfaller, tumbler, and showperson, yes, they have merit in that field at least.

And for THAT, and that alone, I commend The Undertaker on his retirement from the world of professional clowning.

a reply to: TrueBrit

An athlete is

" : a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina."

Pro wrestlers are surely athletes.

a reply to: Bluntone22

They are damn huge too, Beasts of men! But they are entertainers, and I for one usually find it entertaining. Hell if we looking for real fighters, thats we have MMA. But I like them both!

I used to always get pissed though because Undertaker would always #ing lose!!! And it would happen like very cheap sometimes too. It's all good though. I always loved hearing the bells tolls during his entrance.

a reply to: worldstarcountry

The internet ruined wrestling coupled with the extreme garbage.
The whole reason wrestling was popular was the illusion that these guys were really trying to beat each other. That has been lost.

a reply to: TrueBrit

Of course they're athletes.
You or I may not be followers of what they do but there are many who enjoy American wrestling and the show associated with it , they work hard to get where they are and suffer injuries and pain for their art.

Clowns they most certainly are not.

They are athletes, and entertainers, actors that play clowns sometimes, but they do their own stunts.
I don't think you can be in this sport and not be athletic. ...unless you are playing the loud mouth manager.
Sure it's all scripted, but how many regular people can grab a 300 plus pound man over their head for and then throw them 10 feet?
If anyone still believes it's real just hasn't reached puberty yet.

Clowns that make six figures, wish I was a clown....Bill Goldberg is the big fish at present....he's 52 years old. I'm 54 and one choke slam would put me in traction for months. We all know it's a pre-determined outcome to the match's, but it's sports entertainment. If my mom was still alive, she'd tell you to kiss her grits, if she could get close enough she would probaly assault you. The woman drug me to more wrasslin match's that one young boy could stand. I went cause I knew how much she loved it. a reply to: TrueBrit

a reply to: openyourmind1262

Fair enough.

I just happen to believe that if you are in a ring, then you ought to be fighting, not working to a script. I have massive respect for the fact that these men can perform the dance they do, but it does not mean anything more to me than a movie fight scene.

a reply to: TrueBrit

Consider WWE, Mens Ballet...

But they are most definitely athletes... Most of those guys are crushers...

Ye don't get that way sitting around

a reply to: gortex

I wonder if he will now try to enter politics as his 'brother of destruction' has?
His scripted half brother is running for mayor of Knoxville TN.
My youngest daughter got caught up in watching wrestling when she was younger.
My parents watched it every Saturday when I was young back in the days of Chief Jay Strongbow, Andre the Giant, Blackjack Mulligan (who I wound up buying a car from in Florida LOL) and the like.
I think Mom had a major crush on more than a few of them
WE were desperate for entertainment in the early years!

a reply to: TrueBrit

To claim that professional wrestlers are not athletes is pretty ignorant. Is the ending scripted? Yes but that doesn't change the fact that a lot of the bumps they take are real.

Even then, most come in to the field from other sports. Obviously amateur wrestling is a big one. You've got guys like Dolph Ziggler, just inducted in to Kent State's Hall of Fame for being the greatest amateur wrestler they ever produced, Brock Lesnar, the most dominant NCAA wrestler of all time, Chad Gable, wrestled at the Olympics, and of course Kurt Angle, gold medal winner at the 1996 Olympics.

Many wrestlers have crossed over into the world of MMA. Brock Lesnar, once again, Lashley, Shinsuke Nakamura, Katsuyori Shibata, Dan Severn, and Kazushi Sakuraba have all successfully made the transition.

Guys like The Rock, Roman Reigns, Bill Goldberg, and Mojo Rawley were all football players before becoming wrestlers.

Wrestling also has a long history of picking up talent from the world of weight lifting. John Cena, Braun Strowman, and Mark Henry (another Olympian) all got their start there. Even current female talents Dana Brooke and Alexa Bliss had successful bodybuilding careers before coming in to the WWE.

The list can go on and on. Then of course there's also guys like Ricochet and Will Ospreay.

Besides athletics and that argument.... he is the greatest family man youll ever meet.

a reply to: Xcalibur254

I would not say Brock had a successful transition into MMA. He was hyped up and the company made a lot of money in ratings but he didn't last long at all . I believe he is back in the wwe now.

Respectfully,
~meathead

It sure was something to see. The Undertaker is part of pop culture. Even people who don`t watch wrestling know who he is. Over the years he was been involved in some of the biggest matches in wrestling history. I`ll never forget Undertake vs. Mankind Hell In A Cell Match. Mic Foley got slammed though the top of the cage and landed right in the middle of the ring. I was stunned when I saw that. In an interview Undertaker said he thought he had just killed Mic Foley and was shocked that Mic started moving after a few minutes and actually finished the match.