The dream is over. Well, at least for those dreaming of seeing The Undertaker and John Cena going one-on-one at WrestleMania. The match was rumored to finally go down at this year's event, but with Cenas recent injury, its incredibly unlikely to come to fruition. The man has appeared superhuman in the past, but it looks like even he can't bounce back from this one in time. The odds of us never seeing them fight have gone up significantly, as Undertaker will be 52-years-old by the time Mania 33 rolls around. But for the immediate future, this puts the company in a bit of a bind. Who will Vince McMahon now choose to fight The Undertaker? Theres only a handful of Taker matches left, meaning each one is a big event that nearly every wrestler would feel honored to be a part of. Will they go with a top star? Or will they put someone new in the role who could use the rub? Whoever it is, WWE needs to decide on it soon, as the plans for Mania are beginning to take shape. This list isnt ranked based on who Takers biggest match would be against (otherwise wed just call in Steve Austin for the night), but how likely they are to happen. From longtime veterans, to part-time acts, to an NXT mainstay, here are the 12 most likely opponents for The Undertaker at WrestleMania 32.
12. Sting
Sting could be one hell of a consolation prize to take over for John Cena at WrestleMania. However, we dont know what kind of shape hes in. We know hes injured, but dont know how severely. Its not clear if hed be ready to wrestle in a few months, or if hell even wrestle again, which is why hes holding on to the bottom of the list. At 56-years-old, weve seen that Sting probably shouldnt be main-eventing pay-per-views anymore. But a match with Taker could hide some of his weaknesses. The two wouldnt have to have a 30 minute classic, and take a bunch of crazy bumps. Any sort of brawl would suffice. Just the aura of seeing them together face-to-face would be enough to get the match incredibly over, like Rock vs. Hulk Hogan, at WrestleMania 18. Hurting the idea of the feud is that Sting is 0-2 in WWE singles matches, and its highly unlikely that anyone would believe he would pick up the victory this time around. If the man is healthy enough to compete once more, then the weekend he goes into the Hall of Fame would be the perfect time to have that long awaited showdown with The Dead Man.
As Rust Cohle from True Detective said "Life's barely long enough to get good at one thing. So be careful what you're good at."
Sadly, I can't solve a murder like Rust...or change a tire, or even tie a tie. But I do know all the lyrics to Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme song and can easily name every Natural Born Thriller from the dying days of WCW. I was once ranked 21st in the United States in Tetris...on the Playstation 3 version...for about a week.
Follow along @AndrewSoucek and check out my podcast at wrestlingwithfriends.com
