During the latest edition of his Grilling JR podcast, AEW analyst Jim Ross talked about The Undertaker defeating Batista at WrestleMania 23 (2007), and whether or not Batista should’ve gone over to end the streak at that time.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
Jim Ross on whether Batista was considered to end The Undertaker’s WrestleMania streak at WrestleMania 23: “Casual talk but not dead serious. That Undertaker streak was always perceived as something extraordinarily special and unduplicatable, and so, you’re always going to have that question at every WrestleMania. Is this going to be the WrestleMania that Taker’s streak ends? So, I know that Dave was in the conversation, but I don’t know how seriously that conversation was. Vince was very protective of that streak until Lesnar broke it, and that helped Brock immensely, quite frankly. And I couldn’t believe it when I saw it because I was not one for bidding for ending the steak. I believe the streak should still be intact to this very day. That’s just me being an old-school guy who likes those kinds of things. It’s solid, and it’s real. I’m a big believer in things like that. So when Undertaker lost the streak, I was a little disappointed. But I don’t think Dave was ever seriously considered, but he was in the conversation.”
On his reaction to their match: “Yeah, they were out to prove it, and they did it too. The pace of the match was what made it. We were all thinking it was gonna be a deliberately paced match with two heavyweight guys that we knew had the other gear, but they were not put in positions that regularly to expose that other gear. So, I think the pace was the difference in that matchup. Those guys, again, they wanted to go on last and they didn’t get that opportunity, but they delivered like they were going on last and then had that attitude of ‘follow this, boys, and let’s see what you’ve got in your tank.’ So, it was a pleasant surprise but not one I was shocked about. Both guys could do it, they just brought a little bit extra, especially with that pace. The speed of the match, they brought a little bit extra, and it made the difference in that presentation.”
