Undertaker Reportedly Questionable for WWE WrestleMania 29
By Bleachersreport, January 30, 2013
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As much as The Undertaker has become one of the biggest attractions at WWE’s annual WrestleMania events, the phenom is reportedly questionable for this year’s edition of the show.
According to PWInsider, there are conflicting reports about when and if Undertaker will return to WWE for the road to WrestleMania 29:
There was talk at Monday's RAW that one of the reasons The Undertaker didn't make an appearance at the Royal Rumble is because he's not so sure that he will work WrestleMania 29 now.
The plan had been for Taker to wrestle CM Punk, but WWE officials are still waiting on Taker's decision. There's a feeling among some within WWE that Taker will end up wrestling but the discussion at RAW was they may have to come up with another WrestleMania storyline for Punk.
While this is terrible news for the members of the WWE Universe who have fallen in love with The Undertaker over the years and expect to see him at every WrestleMania, don’t discount The Deadman yet.
If there is an ounce of fight left in The Undertaker’s body when the final stretch to WrestleMania 29 begins, he’ll muster up enough intestinal fortitude to work one more match.
What It Means
If The Undertaker truly does miss the 2013 WrestleMania as reported, it will be a sad day for the sport of wrestling, as one of the greatest streaks (20-0 at WrestleMania) goes undefended. There is no question that the veteran could return for WrestleMania 30 and defend the streak once again, but the fact that the WrestleMania 29 card would be missing The Undertaker makes it feel less important.
While the WWE would undoubtedly supplement the lack of an Undertaker match with other huge stars and feuds, nothing could fully make up for the possibility that the Deadman might miss this year’s premier event.
What’s Next?
The report states that the initial plan was to have The Undertaker square off against CM Punk, but now the company must reconsider the long-term booking of the former WWE champion if Undertaker is not coming back. If Vince McMahon and The Undertaker are 100-percent confirmed he will not be at WrestleMania 29, now is the time to make the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania a three-way battle between defending champion The Rock, Royal Rumble winner John Cena and Punk.
There is a strong contingent of fans that don’t believe this report and will stick by the idea that it will be Punk unsuccessfully trying to end The Undertaker’s streak at WrestleMania 29, and that is still a very real possibility.
No matter what you believe, it’s easy to see that WrestleMania wouldn’t be the same without The Undertaker.