Paul Heyman believes Brock Lesnar ending The Undertaker’s undefeated WrestleMania streak stands as the defining moment of its generation.
Lesnar shocked the wrestling world at WrestleMania 30 in 2014 when he defeated The Undertaker, bringing his legendary WrestleMania record to an end at 21-1.
During an appearance on Undertaker’s Six Feet Under podcast (see video below), Heyman reflected on the match and the reaction to its finish. While Undertaker suffered a concussion during the bout, Heyman believes what has endured more than a decade later is the emotion surrounding the streak finally being broken.
“No one remembers the match; they remember the finish. They remember the crowd reaction. To me, the moment was when the scoreboard changed. The audience knew at that moment, ‘Oh my God, this is really happening.’ Then you feel the rumble in the crowd. ‘We’re witnessing something we never thought we’d get to witness.’”
Heyman said the lasting reaction to the finish illustrates how wrestling is often remembered more for its biggest moments and the emotions they create than the matches themselves.
“That tells a lot about our industry in that it’s not about everything; it’s about the moment. People remember the finish, the moment, and the emotion. They don’t have to really remember the match itself. If the moment is what you’re building towards and you deliver, that’s the memory.”
More than 12 years later, Heyman noted that the decision to end the streak remains a sensitive subject among some fans. He compared its significance to Hulk Hogan facing Andre the Giant at WrestleMania 3 and the Steve Austin-Mike Tyson angle during the Attitude Era.
“12 years later, it’s still a sore spot because of that, not because people are saying, ‘During the match, I was expecting this.’ As much as Hogan and Andre from WrestleMania 3 is the WrestleMania moment of the early days or Steve Austin and Mike Tyson being the Attitude Era moment. To me, this generation, that’s the moment,” he said.
Also during the Six Feet Under podcast episode, The Undertaker reflected on “full circle” Brock Lesnar phone call before his WWE retirement.
