The Undertaker has revealed the only time Vince McMahon admitted he was wrong during their three decades working together, recalling a creative disagreement over the first Punjabi Prison match.
Speaking on an episode of Six Feet Under, The Undertaker was asked about the biggest argument he ever had with the former WWE Chairman. He rejected the idea that the two always saw eye to eye, explaining they often had very different opinions on WWE’s creative direction.
“I think people’s perception is that me and Vince were in lockstep together through that whole 30 years. But we butted heads a lot. Sometimes our visions on the product and the business were polar opposites, and there were a lot of times where I would choose the hill that I wanted to die on.”
The WWE Hall of Famer said he regularly had to decide whether a disagreement was worth pursuing or whether it was better to move on. The one occasion where he believed he had been proven right came ahead of the first Punjabi Prison match at The Great American Bash 2006, where he faced Big Show after The Great Khali was pulled from the bout.
According to The Undertaker, the disagreement centred on how he would escape the structure. McMahon wanted him to exit through the gate, while The Undertaker felt climbing from the inner cage to the outer cage would create a far more memorable visual.
“Vince had this idea about he wanted us to go through the gate or something while we were fighting, and that’s how I would get out of the cage. Or I had the idea that I wanted to jump from the inner cage to the outer cage and get out that way. I thought, man, that’ll be such a cool visual.”
Despite arguing his case, McMahon ultimately insisted they use his version of the finish.
“We went at it and back and forth, and it finally got to the point where, ‘I don’t want to hear anything else about it. This is the way we’re going to do it.'”
The Undertaker Said Vince McMahon Accepted That His Spot Was The Wrong Call
The Undertaker said the spot failed to generate the reaction he expected, and afterwards Vince McMahon quietly acknowledged he had made the wrong call.
“Anyway, we did it the way he wanted it, and it was flat. I mean, it was flat. He goes almost under his breath, ‘Yeah, yeah, I think you were right on that cage spot.'”
The Undertaker described the moment as a personal victory, noting it was the only time in their 30-year working relationship that McMahon admitted he had been wrong.
“That was such a victory for me, to actually have him admit that he was wrong on something. Didn’t happen very often.”
