The Undertaker was a recent guest on Mike Tyson’s Hotboxin’ podcast, and the 7-time World Champion recalled his first match against Bruiser Brody in a June 1987 bout for WCCW.
Performing under a mask as Texas Red, The Undertaker wrestled his first match on June 26, 1987 for WCCW, losing to Bruiser Brody in singles action.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On facing Brody in his first match: “My first match was with Bruiser Brody. Oh my god, bro… so I get there, and I’m all excited. And they say, ‘Okay, you’re going to work with Bruiser Brody. And I’m like, ‘Brody? Okay…’ So you know I’m a young man, I know how the business works a little bit in the sense like, ‘Okay just shut up, get in there and do what you got to do,’ you know? It was strictly to get Brody a win, because he was getting ready to work with Abdullah the Butcher.”
On being in the ring with Brody: “So I know the score, know what’s going to happen. And I get in the ring and I lose my freaking mind. Like, I’m standing here now, I’m six foot eight now. And by this time I’m 300-something pounds. And I’m looking at Brody and I’m like, ‘Hmm, I’m bigger than he is.’ That was the worst thought that ever come to my mind! Because I’m like, ‘Okay.’ Because Brody was like this bigger than life character, when you see him and he’s got that — like I said, you got the hair and [I thought] ‘I’m bigger than this son of — okay!’ Oh God that was the worst, you know?
So we lock up in the ring. And you know, he’s trying to help me. He’s like ‘Kid, relax kid.’ I’m like angling, you couldn’t have moved me. I’m just locked on to him, right? He’s like, ‘Alright kid, relax kid.’ And I’m like, ‘Eh.’ So I back him up into it, I push him back into a corner. And we’re kind of you know we’re kind of just hand checking each other. Amd I go to shove him off and somehow or another — and I meant to hit him in the chest, but I somehow because our hands are up, I hit him in the face. And man, his whole demeanor just changes on me. And I’m like, ‘Okay.’ So we go, we’re in the match again and I lock up with him, I’m going to try and throw him off. And he turns it around and out of nowhere he come up with that big furry boot of his, kicked me in the head. I’m like, ‘Holy s**t. I’m in a whole different world right now.’ It was time for me to get one of my first lessons in, ‘Don’t f**k with the old guys because they don’t play.’”
On Brody standing up for him later on:
“They were trying to ship me off somewhere else to a different territory. And Brody actually stood up for me. He said, ‘You know, what you need to keep this kid and get rid of some of these other [guys].’ In a locker room full of crusty veterans, right? And he says that, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘Well, that’s kind of cool that Brody just stood up for me. But he’s about to walk out of this room and I got to look at all these old dudes.’ They’re like, ‘Screw this kid, man. Who the [hell] does he think he is?’”