The two heavyweights of the grappling world collided for a high-profile match at WrestleMania 27 in 2011.

The Undertaker added Triple H to his WrestleMania undefeated streak but both paid the price

The Undertaker added Triple H to his WrestleMania undefeated streak but both paid the priceCredit: WWE
Taker toppled Triple H in a bout that saw pretty much anything go – or so they thought.

The outing came after WWE had, in the interests of talent safety, slapped a ban on the use of direct chair shots in the wake of the tragic case of Chris Benoit in 2007.

Benoit took his own life after killing his wife and son, with some of the blame placed at the door of the many years of brain and head trauma sustained during his lengthy wrestling career.

WWE would introduce the policy of essentially refining the use of steel chairs in matches as an indirect result – particularly unprotected head shots – with wrestlers given strict instructions of how they could be handled.

Undertaker and Triple H would use chairs, sledgehammers and more in their brutal No Holds Barred match – the first of two meetings at the annual spectacle – with the former since revealing the pair had hoped they might get some leeway on the edict.

Triple H is of course the son-in-law to then WWE boss Vince McMahon, while Taker had racked up more than 20 years’ service by that point.

Speaking on his podcast, the veteran phenom admitted they had no such luck in the clash, getting a nasty shock when their payments for the show landed.

Of the curtailing of the use of chairs, he explained: “At first, as old school guys, we were like ‘Ah, we’re getting soft,’ and you’re trying to fight it.

Company bosses were left less than impressed by the use of chairs in the match

“Even after they banned chair shots… I’m wrestling Triple H and we’re figuring like: ‘I’m the most tenured guy here, and you’re his son-in-law, surely we can get away with it?!’

“He fined our a****! I remember getting my cheque for WrestleMania and there was a big minus on there.

“I was like: ‘You son a b****!’ I called up [Triple H] and said: ‘Did you get fined?’ and he was like ‘Yeah I got fined, too!’

“I was like: ‘What good is it to be his son it law or his most tenured guy and you still get fined?!’

“But [Vince] had to set an example and that’s what he did.”

If there was any uncertainty for Undertaker on the dangers of concussions and head injuries in wrestling, he was very much brought up to speed three years later after a chilling encounter with Brock Lesnar.

In a bout that saw the end of the Texan’s legendary WrestleMania undefeated streak ended by Lesnar, he sustained severe concussion that left him hospitalised.

Revealing the extent of his confused state at the time, ad added: “My last memory of the day was about three o’clock in the afternoon.

Triple H and Undertaker traded expletives after being hit hard in the pocket

Taker has no memory of his Mania match with Brock Lesnar

“The last thing I remember was having a discussion with my wife backstage, [and] the next thing I remember, I’m in the hospital and they’re asking me every five minutes: ‘What’s your name?’, ‘when were you born?’, ‘where are you?’

“I had no clue. It was crazy, because I knew who [my wife] was, but I didn’t know who I was!

“It got to the point where they’d leave and [I’d say to her] ‘Hey… what’s my name?’

“I’d say: ‘I have to go and wrestle!’ and she’s like: ‘You already did, it’s all over!”

The Undertaker continued wrestling for WWE until 2020, his retirement calling time on a phenomenal career that spanned three decades.

He featured sporadically thereafter, including a cameo at WrestleMania earlier this year, but has said he’s now at peace with not being an active wrestler.