By: Chris Kenner
Staff Writer, ‘12

There are two senior performers who are active wrestlers on the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) roster presently, they are The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels. Both of them performed on the very first episode of Monday Night Raw, WWE’s flagship show in 1993. Now nearing twenty years later, they are both still active competitors. They both are also synonymous with WWE’s biggest pay-per-view event of the year, Wrestlemania. When professional wrestling fans mention the greatest matches in Wrestlemania history, it’s hard to do that without utter the name of one man, “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels. While Shawn Michaels is in some of Wrestlemania’s most memorable matches, it’s hard to ignore the streak of “The Deadman“, The Undertaker, who is 16-0 at the event.
It is unmistakable that Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker have made names for themselves with their consistent performances at what some call “the Super bowl of the WWE“, Wrestlemania. The stats speak for themselves, looking at total wins in Wrestlemania history, The Undertaker is first with 16, while Shawn Michaels follows in close second with 12. The difference between the two is that The Undertaker is undefeated at the event, he has won all 16 of his matches without suffering a loss. Shawn Michaels on the other hand, has been defeated at Wrestlemania. Though Michaels is not undefeated at Wrestlemania, each year that he is on the card, he delivers a unforgettable performance. Some would say that he is the go-to-guy when it comes to five-star Wrestlemania matches resulting in his nickname of “Mr. Wrestlemania.”
When professional wrestling fans look to Wrestlemania, they think about either Shawn Michaels or The Undertaker performing in an all-star match against their respective opponents. Their individual annual “roads to Wrestlemania” have never allowed them to cross paths. This has caused fans to believe that a match between the two was out of reach. It is not like they haven’t crossed paths before, it just has not happened at Wrestlemania. These two aren’t strangers to each other at all. They have previously battled in various matches like Casket matches and Hell in a Cell, and their rivalry carried the latter half of 1996. Though he is undefeated at Wrestlemania, The Undertaker never defeated Michaels at any of these events. On the other hand, though The Undertaker has never defeated Michaels, Shawn Michaels has been defeated at Wrestlemania. It seems that Wrestlemania 25, will be the stage for the timeless battle between these two WWE icons.
Professional wrestling fans everywhere have had a hard time attempting to distinguish who is the better of the two. This year’s Wrestlemania is shaping up to provide an end to that. At Wrestlemania 25, there will be an epic match between the two men that some might call the “two pillars” that have held the WWE atop of the world of sports-entertainment. Professional wrestling fans that are separated by language, borders, and distances will all enjoy an unforgettable match that will add a page in the history of Wrestlemania. On April 5, 2009, the man who has come to be known “Mr. Wrestlemania” Shawn Michaels will attempt to break the undefeated streak of the best pure striker in the history of the WWE, The Undertaker.