The Undertaker

[Rock Bottom]

TLDR post incoming.

Originally Posted by Noid Orton's character would really take no hits from beating The Undertaker at Mania clean.

That's true, but I don't know if people will forget Orton's clean losses to Henry being followed with a win over The Undertaker. I might read into this a little too much, but I don't think it makes much sense.

As far as how this thing may be booked, it's my understanding right now that The Undertaker is on top of the booking "totem pole." Meaning there isn't anyone on the roster that will/should beat him in a "straight fight" at Wrestlemania. I don't even think John Cena would get that honor (already being booked against The Rock aside), so the list of people that would realistically win seems pretty short or even nonexistent.

The line has been blurred over the years with the Undertaker's place in the totem pole. He's lost to a lot of the people he's beaten cleanly at different points in his and his opponents' respective careers. But with the hype of his Wrestlemania record, it seems that not even a Steve Austin or Rock should take him down at this point.

If I were to illustrate my perception of this hypothetical totem pole of the current roster, it might look something (not exactly) like this:

Undertaker at WM > John Cena = CM Punk > Mark Henry = Triple H > Randy Orton > Top Heels > Midcarders = Midcard heels

The Orton part is debatable, but this is just for the sake of the topic.

The problem with beating the Undertaker is that unless it's a complete nobody, or a really fresh guy (Del Rio, who is new, or CM Punk, who just turned face) who still has plenty of people to feud with and a future in leading the company, there will be nothing left to do. Nothing else is going to matter much because the steam from such a victory wouldn't carry them into anything that they haven't done before. Beating the Undertaker would eclipse any title victory, any heated rivalry, or any other circumstance in today's wrestling environment.

If I were to pick one superstar from the roster to beat him, it would be CM Punk. But it's tough to justify. Anyone beating the Undertaker at Wrestlemania (or at all anymore, for that matter) is tough to justify at this point.

I think it stands to reason that Triple H will go again with the Undertaker. He's the only guy who isn't going to lose face by giving him another victory while being a significant casualty to the streak. He can also put on a decent match with him (even though they could never touch Michaels/Taker). It might not be the coolest idea in the world, but I think it's the best and most likely option. They have to feed him if he wins, and you don't want to feed him somebody you want to build up, nor do you want to feed him a last match in which his opponent is some mid carder.

If someone beats him, that's great. He'll have broken the streak. But his opponents would fail to matter after that, especially if this guy's already on top while Taker rests up off of TV.