The Undertaker has spoken about an unexpected wrestling legend that he says shaped his own wrestling career.
The Undertaker has revealed that one of his biggest influences growing up was legendary luchador Mil Mascaras, and suggested that Mascaras’ dedication to his character may have shaped how he later approached the Undertaker persona. Mascaras is widely regarded as one of the greatest luchadors of all time and is credited with helping bring lucha libre to an international audience. Speaking on What Do You Wanna Talk About? with Cody Rhodes, Undertaker said Mascaras was one of his favourites while growing up in Houston.
“You wouldn’t believe it from where I ended up as a fan,” Undertaker said. “So I grew up in Houston. So we had Paul Bosch’s Houston wrestling, right? NWA Houston Wrestling. So I loved Mil Mascaras. And I say that, and people look at me like, ‘That would not have been who I thought.’ I don’t know, man. I don’t know, it was the mask and how fluid and how cool he was.”
Undertaker also recalled working on the same show as Mascaras during his time in WCW, and witnessing first-hand how seriously the luchador protected his character behind the scenes.
“I actually ended up getting to work, not against him, but on the same card as him when I was with WCW,” Undertaker said. “Crazy story. I come back, talking about living the gimmick. Like people always like, ‘Man, he lived the gimmick.’ I remember coming back from my match, Mil had already worked. I go in to get in the shower, and there he is, showering with his mask on. He had his mask on, and it is one of those things. You walk in, and I just stop like, ‘Should I be here right now?’ And I was like, ‘Oh man, okay. He protects it back here, too.’”
Undertaker described watching Mascaras briefly remove the mask, only long enough to wash his face and hair before immediately putting it back on.
“And not that I was watching him in the shower, but it’s, so he’s over there, and I’m in this corner. And just every once in a while, I would just like to look back to see if he still had his mask on,” he said. “And I looked back one time, and he pulled it off and hooked it onto the spigot there or the nozzle. And washed his face and his hair real quick, rinsed off and then put the hood right back. I mean, it probably wasn’t 20 seconds.”
Looking back, Undertaker believes that moment stayed with him once he fully embraced his own supernatural character.
“And then I don’t know, maybe that affected me later on, like when I started really having a gimmick,” Undertaker added. “I always thought back to Mil, like, ‘Dude, this guy’s even got the hood on in the shower.’”
Mascaras’ commitment to protecting the mystique of his mask became legendary, and Undertaker’s comments suggest that the same mindset helped shape one of the most enduring characters in wrestling history.
Did The Undertaker Ever Share A Ring With Lucha Legend Mil Mascaras?
The Undertaker was only involved in one match that Mil Mascaras was also involved in, and that was the 1997 Royal Rumble match. However, Undertaker and Mascaras were never actually in the ring at the same time, as Mascaras entered the match at number 11 and only lasted just over seven minutes before he eliminated himself.
Undertaker entered the match at number 30 and was part of the final four, but was eliminated by the eventual winner of the match, ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin.
