The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns official for WWE WrestleMania 33 card

Three years after unbeaten streak was snapped, Taker prepares for his 25th match at WrestleMania

From his WWE debut in 1990 through his legendary unbeaten streak, few superstars -- if any -- are as synonymous with WrestleMania as The Undertaker. 

“The Deadman,” who turns 52 later this month, has officially booked his 25th match at the “Showcase of the Immortals,” when he faces Roman Reigns in a singles match at WrestleMania 33 in Orlando, Florida. WWE on Monday made the announcement official for the April 2 match.

Seeds for the match appeared to be planted at the Royal Rumble in January when The Undertaker entered at No. 29 and was eliminated by Reigns, who came in at No. 30. The feud escalated during last week’s episode of Raw when “The Phenom” interrupted a potential match in the main event slot between Reigns and Braun Strowman by crashing the party with his iconic ring entrance. 

After Strowman stepped away to avoid a confrontation, Reigns entered the ring to boos before telling The Undertaker to mind his business. The resulting chokeslam on Reigns set the Chicago crowd on fire.

The placement opposite Reigns at WrestleMania will be another high-profile assignment for Taker, who saw his historic WrestleMania unbeaten streak come to an end at 21 matches against Brock Lesnar in 2014. The showdown also presents an opportunity to provide Reigns with the kind of rub that no other superstar can. 

Reigns, 31, has competed in the main event of the last two WrestleMania cards, including a victory over Triple H last year to begin his third reign with the WWE championship. But despite being pushed as the company’s top babyface, Reigns continues to be lustily booed by at least half of the crowd at shows due in large part to what some fans feel is a concerted effort by WWE to put him over. 

If the kickoff to his feud with The Undertaker, who is beloved despite straddling the line between face and heel, is any indication, the pairing gives WWE the opportunity to present Reigns as the “bad guy” in the feud without actually needing to turn him heel, which the company has resisted. 

The Undertaker has competed in every WrestleMania for which he’s healthy, missing only WrestleMania X (1994) and WrestleMania 2000 due to injury. Hes defeated 18 different superstars during his 21-match streak and rebounded from the loss to Lesnar by defeating Bray Wyatt and Shane McMahon, respectively, over the last two years.