No Holds Barred, No Effort Spared

As you've no doubt gathered from the post below, I was somewhat skeptical of the Undertaker-Triple H match scheduled for Wrestlemania 27.

However, thus far, the WWE seems to have avoided all the traps I feared they would fall into. Triple H has not put his career on the line, and the talk has simply been of both men leaving it all in the ring, which is as it should be. No Holds Barred means we can actually get that. For once it's not to allow someone to win by underhand means legally, it's simply so that the pair can go hell for leather, with no concerns other than giving the audience the best possible match they can.

It also allows the limitations of The Undertaker to be greatly masked. Triple H tends to work a fairly slow pace in matches, and every move will be drawn out for maximum effect. In that regard it's going to be much like the two meetings with Shawn Michaels. Whilst it will allow for weapons (expect a fan servicing appearance of a sledgehammer for example), it seems unlikely that the match will revolve around them. More likely we'll see weapons being teased, but rarely connecting. The trick will be to avoid too many periods of inactivity, and to utilise as big a variety of moves as The Undertakers' injury ravaged body can take.

A lot is being made of the WWE not mentioning the encounter between the two at Wrestlemania a decade ago, but frankly, it doesn't really seem important to me. In any case, mentioning that would set the bar far higher than the forthcoming match could ever hope to achieve. I'm unconvinced what context Wrestlemania XVII could be mentioned in that would add anything to this match, I can only see it being a negative factor.

Despite the potential pitfalls, this match up is one that I'm rather optimistic for. It won't be an instant classic, but it could, and should, be very good. With WWE seemingly pulling out all the stops on this years event, The Undertaker won't be the focal point as in the last two years, but rather he'll be just one ingredient in the mix.