Earlier today, I mentioned Undertaker’s interview at The Joe Rogan Experience, where Dead Man criticized the WWE product for being too soft. He said there is “a lot of beauty and little substance”, before adding that many fighters pay attention to what the internet is saying about them, instead of following the advice of the previous generation.
It seemed like a situation in which Undertaker raised some interesting points, but in the end he was blaming the fighters a little too much.
What I didn’t mention in that previous post is that Undertaker also talked about how the changing room culture has changed over the years. In discussing the infamous moment when David Schultz slapped a rude reporter in 1984, Undertaker talked about how he preferred that time when the locker room was full of men who were men:
“… those were the guys too, they were men. You go to a dressing room today, it’s quite different. I remember going into my first real dressing room and all I saw were some damn grumpy men. Right? Half of them had guns and knives in their bags. The shit was treated at that time, you know? Now that you enter, there are guys playing video games and making sure they look good. “
“It’s evolution, I think. I don’t know what it is, but I prefer … when men were men. “
It makes sense that Undertaker prefers the kind of dressing room atmosphere that he witnessed when he was created in the wrestling world in the 1980s. This is what he is most familiar with and most comfortable with.
But it is also worth pointing out that the dressing room culture of that time helped to contribute to a dark period in pro wrestling that shortened many careers and ruined many lives.
Xavier Woods posted the following tweet, which does not mention the Undertaker’s name, but definitely looks like a response to the Undertaker’s opinion:
I would not be the person I am without the guidance and lessons of some important people from the previous generation of wrestling. They taught me about the business, to save my money and that having video games in the locker room is healthier than having [redacted]. Thank you guys
– Austin # Creed4G4 – Future king of the ring (@AustinCreedWins) January 21, 2021
Woods finds a clever way to thank the previous generation for their help, while noting that the dressing room culture is in a much better place now. The fact that today’s fighters have changed the culture of the locker room to a healthier, safer and more welcoming culture is one of the best changes that the professional wrestling business could have made.