The Undertaker has once again given his thoughts on how the in-ring style has evolved over the years, noting that he still wants to see storytelling over constant high spots in matches.
With the way that pro wrestling has changed over the years, there is a lot more emphasis on fast-paced, high-action matches along with more finisher kickouts and at times a lack of selling. Although newer fans enjoy the exciting style, the more old school fans believe that the change is not for the better. The Hall of Famer definitely falls into the latter camp when it comes to this, stating that he still wants to see a good story as opposed to flashy moves.
While appearing on Ken Anderson’s Mic Check podcast, Undertaker first spoke about how he liked to move in the ring, stating that he learned to adapt with how the crowd reacted and was ready to call things on the fly if need be:
“You never know how your audience is going to take something, or how they’re going to receive it,” he said. “And if you can’t move on the fly, you know, you kind of get, sometimes you get pigeonholed into like, ‘Oh my god, they’re not buying any of this.’ And it just gets progressively worse. I think that really is kind of a lost… art. If you allow yourself to just live in the moment, I always, always just felt like your best matches [happen].”
The Undertaker Gives His Thoughts On “Flippy Dudes”
Later in the podcast, The Phenom spoke further on how matches have evolved, and how he wants to see more believability instead of flips:
“I’m constantly saying, ‘Man, I don’t care. I don’t need to see flippy dues. I don’t need to see this. What I need you to do is tell me a story,’” The Undertaker stated. “Go out there and feel this, feel like you’re kicking somebody’s ass, feel like you’re getting your ass kicked. And make it organic.”
Having retired in 2020, Undertaker still makes the occaisional appearance on WWE TV, along with serving as one of the mentors on the show WWE LFG.
H/t to Wrestling News.co for the use of transcription.
Featured image: WWE
