Now that The Undertaker has defeated Shane McMahon, the threat of WrestleMania 32 being his last is null and void. While that still may be the case due to any number of circumstances such as injuries and the direction the company will want to go with, along with rumors that he’s telling people this is the case, history has shown that it’s more likely that he’ll be returning rather than that he’s finished his career.
If The Undertaker is going to be participating once again at WrestleMania 33, who should he face, though? There aren’t a lot of big matches left for The Deadman, but there are still some names that stand out to me as choices that could make for some interesting feuds.
John Cena
No matter who the champion is, no matter who wins the matches on a particular show, and no matter who is being cheered the most, there is no doubt that the biggest star in the company is still John Cena. This is without a doubt the most monumental match that WWE can do with The Undertaker (and John Cena for that matter) and it was supposedly the plan for this year before Cena went down with an injury.
Since it didn’t happen at 32, why not just roll the dice again and do it for 33? There practically doesn’t even need to be a feud for this match to sell out the arena. All WWE needs to do is announce that these two will have a match together and fans will go nuts in anticipation. Of course, it doesn’t mean as much as when the streak was still going on, but we’ve now had two non-streak matches that were still considered big deals. Compared to Shane McMahon and Bray Wyatt, John Cena is a whole different level, and if there’s any lesson to be learned with Sting’s retirement and WWE failing to capitalize on his match with The Undertaker, it’s that they should stop stalling and get some of these big matches out of the way while they’re still possible. If John Cena vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania doesn’t happen this next year, it will be a major disappointment.
Roman Reigns
Let’s say John Cena’s not available for one reason or another. In that scenario, the go-to guy to take his place is the man who everybody under the sun complains is “the next Super Cena”, Roman Reigns. He is now a 3-time WWE World Heavyweight champion and the top dog in the company, so he has more than the required credibility to be able to challenge someone like The Undertaker at WrestleMania and for it to be considered a big enough match to put on the card.
Don’t sleep on the idea of a Roman Reigns heel turn, too. Within one day of his big win over Triple H at WrestleMania 32, we’ve already seen a more heelish side of Reigns as well as his next opponent being one of the biggest babyfaces in WWE right now. If that’s not a sign that there could be a dark road ahead for the Samoan Badass, then I don’t know what is. A full-blown heel Roman Reigns could be the perfect opponent for The Undertaker in Orlando, as many of The Phenom’s opponents were unstoppable powerhouses who needed to be put in their place.
Dean Ambrose
The Lunatic Fringe may seem to never win any important matches, but he’s clearly still one of the top stars in the company right now. Having just had his match with Brock Lesnar at this year’s event, that proves that Ambrose is viewed as a big enough star to hang with the featured stars that sparingly show up, so a match with The Undertaker is very well within the realm of possibility.
I don’t think a pairing of these two makes as much sense within the corporate structure as John Cena or Roman Reigns for The Undertaker’s next opponent, but then again, who’s to say that we don’t have a headlining main event of John Cena vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33? If that were to happen, those two are out, and Dean Ambrose could be moved into this role. We’ve seen Undertaker against Lesnar, Triple H, and many other stars on that caliber, so Ambrose by default becomes the next in line on the food chain.
Plus, with the running theme for Ambrose’s character being that he’s crazy, you’d have to be nuts to challenge The Undertaker and think you can win.
Finn Balor
This one is so simple that I don’t even feel as though I need to elaborate on it, as I’m sure most of you reading this article assumed Finn Balor would be on this list. You can’t have a character that plays in the slightest bit in the field of the supernatural without drawing some kind of association to The Undertaker. The Wyatt Family wasn’t immune to this and as long as Finn Balor keeps coming out dressed up as a demon, he falls into the same category.
The trouble with this pick is that Balor is still in NXT right now and we just had a flurry of call-ups. The likelihood that he’ll be making his main roster debut any time soon seems to have gone out the window. While it’s not an impossibility for him to be wrestling on Raw and SmackDown by WrestleMania 33, the longer he stays in NXT, the more it seems that this match could be saved for further down the line if it ever happens at all.
Many fans would love it, but don’t be too hopeful, as there are bigger fish to fry and a lot of things have to fall into place for Balor vs Undertaker to be booked.
Kevin Owens
If the rumors are true, the potential for a Kevin Owens and Undertaker match was stirring earlier this year. Naturally, that didn’t come to pass, but if at any point WWE’s creative team was batting the idea around, then there’s a chance it resurfaces in a few months when the company starts planning for the next event.
It’s clear that Kevin Owens is someone who will continue to improve and rise the ranks on the roster, so having him go up against someone like The Undertaker or Brock Lesnar (another heavily reported rumor) makes sense to solidify him as an important star the fans will be looking to see at WrestleMania. As far as his character goes, Owens could easily be booked against The Undertaker just by having him call The Phenom out, looking for a means to prove how amazing he is. Owens has always maintained a perspective of thinking he’s better than everyone else and looking for the prize fights, so who better of an opponent (other than the champion) than The Undertaker?
Sheamus
There was a point in time where Sheamus seemed like the perfect fit for someone to fall victim to The Undertaker’s undefeated streak, possibly around the WrestleMania 28 mark instead of having two matches with Shawn Michaels and two with Triple H. Back during that time frame, Sheamus was a bigger deal, had a much more imposing character, and was being positioned as one of the true stars of the future.
Now, this isn’t quite the case, but that doesn’t mean the next 12 months can’t be kind to The Celtic Warrior. With The League of Nations excommunicating King Barrett in the interest of eliminating their weakest link, there could be a renewed push for the brute. If WWE still values him as much as they used to, he could be one of the lesser possible opponents for The Undertaker to face, although at this point, I would render it nowhere near as likely as those mentioned above.
Baron Corbin
By all means, I would be shocked if Baron Corbin makes enough waves over the course of the next few months to be able to get this coveted spot, but stranger things have happened. In 2015, he went from a guy who could barely work a 30-second match to someone who was one of the top heels in NXT, moving onto the main roster and winning an important match at WrestleMania this year. That’s a lot of ground in a relatively short time, meaning The Lone Wolf could do the same again before 2017 comes to us.
While some would argue that Samoa Joe makes more sense for another NXT guy to fight The Undertaker, keep in mind that WWE’s mentality is to look out for the future. Joe has the pedigree much more than Corbin, but he also has several years on him in age and wasn’t a WWE-bred star. That type of favoritism simply happens from time to time and it could apply to a situation like this. If Corbin is someone that WWE wants to make out to be a huge deal, then we could have Biker Taker make somewhat of a return to face off against Corbin, who could be stepping in Big Evil’s yard.
Who would you like to see The Undertaker face next year at WrestleMania? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
