WWE: 11 Reasons Brock Lesnar Breaking The Streak Is Justified
6. The Streak Was Losing Its Lustre
The buildup towards the climactic showdown was undoubtedly met with mixed reactions, and for logical reasons. Every year Undertaker is worked into a feud with a big name, we speculate the chances of the streak actually being broken - which are slim to none - and Taker defeats them in dramatic fashion. Essentially, what is arguably the biggest draw of WrestleMania was losing its appeal simply because Taker winning was an outcome you could bet the house on stress-free. Not only did this put some steep pressure on the creative team, they clearly just didn't know what to do with the feud. How do you sell a monumental clash between icons when no amount of drama added to the feud could sway public opinion on who the victor will be? Sure, Brock shocked the world and won, but only in hindsight does it add flavour to the Raws leading up to WrestleMania 30. Another interesting yet unexplored aspect is that ever since the streak became a mainstream phenomenon publicly acknowledged on television by WWE themselves, belief that the streak could be broken slowly dwindled before evaporating entirely with the second defeat of Shawn Michaels. To most knowledgeable wrestling fans, it simply became a marketing tool to reel in more potential viewers. Simply put, WWE backed themselves into a corner where the only time the streak was truly in danger was back when there was no streak, and Taker's undefeated run was an organic progression and inside fact between knowledgeable wrestling fans. The closest thing to Taker's undefeated streak is currently Rob Van Dam's running of 4-0, and while WWE will never acknowledge it, it's going to be pretty tense watching his WrestleMania matches from now on, similar to how knowledgeable fans treated Miz matches before his streak was broken this year in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. When something is natural and free from the shackles of marketing and business it is at its most vulnerable, and therefore most exciting.
