10 Famous Wrestling Conspiracy Theories

Conspiracy theories have been around since the dawn of time, most of them taking root because of the human need to explain and rationalise things that appear random and chaotic.

Like governmental bodies and exclusive cults, wrestling promotions are shrouded in secrecy and lies, making them just as likely to attract apocryphal (and, on occasion, perhaps accurate) stories about what is happening on the inside.

Some of them are obviously unbelievable, of course, like the one that says that Mr. America was being played by Hulk Hogan, or - perhaps most ridiculously - that professional wrestling in general is fake, and Shane McMahon's punches aren't real after all.

But others make you think. Mainly, they make you think: this is kind of out there, but sometimes they appear to carry a whiff of truth about them, so much so that with time they become widely - or at least to some extent - believed by fans.

While we're not exactly convinced that any of them are true (such is the nature of conspiracy theories), there's no harm in taking a closer looking at them to see what all the fuss is about.

The shocking end to Undertaker's fabled WrestleMania streak three years ago took us all by surprise, and some fans still aren't prepared to let it go.

They suggest that the powers that be never actually signed off on Lesnar going over, and the ending was somehow called on the fly - either through forced improvisation or one or both parties deciding to go rogue at the last minute.

The reason this holds at least a little bit of weight is because we know that the Deadman was seriously hurt in his match with Lesnar, requiring immediate medical attention the second he was taken behind the Mercedes-Benz SuperDome curtain.

Throw in the fact that the Beast Incarnate is often portrayed as selfish and essentially indifferent to wrestling tradition, and you've got the perfect storm: he pinned 'Taker while he was legitimately knocked out (or at least dazed) for personal glory.

Problem with this theory is that WWE obviously had the "21-1" graphic prepared for the Titantron. Someone in the back knew what was going to happen too.