Ranking All Of The Undertaker’s WrestleMania Matches
By Tim Sherry
credit: wwe.com
21. Jake Roberts – WrestleMania VIII
Three years before the 6 minute and 36 second destruction of Bundy, Taker battled Jake Roberts at WM VIII, and believe it or not, he defeated “The Snake” in that exact same amount of time. The match itself wasn’t much better than the bout with Bundy which was disappointing. With two supremely talented superstars such as Taker and Roberts, most feel that this should have been a bit better. But although the match was underwhelming, it was an important turning point in the career of The Deadman because it marked the first time that he would turn baby face and the fans support of him grew rapidly.
Just about two months before this installment of WrestleMania, Roberts attempted to assault Randy Savage’s wife, Elizabeth, with a steel chair. Taker intervened and stopped Roberts, and the turn in character was warmly accepted by the WWE universe. This led to their bout at Mania in Indianapolis and although Roberts had his moments including two of his huge patented DDT’s, Taker got the better of him after a tombstone on the floor. The loss sent Roberts packing as he wouldn’t be seen in the company for another four years.
As much as this match failed to live up to expectations, it introduced a different side to “The Deadman” one that he would use to move up the ranks and eventually become one of the greatest superstars in company history. With only his second Mania win in his pocket, it was still very early on for Taker. But one thing was very clear after this match, his star was rising and then some.