Since this was Cyber Sunday, some sort of voting system had to be thrown into this match. I’m just glad they didn’t go with another stipulation, since their last 2 matches weren’t ordinary matches. So they do the old “who will be referee” crap, and big surprise, Austin gets voted in .
Enough of that crap, its the MATCH I give a damn about. The video package before the match is more awesomeness from the WWE Video production group, who are probably among the best in the industry when it comes to making video packages tbh. It had been 5 months since their last match, so the video did a great job of reminding everyone of their past matches, and got me hyped to see them wrestle one more time.
Also, remember that at this point, The Undertaker has 1 victory over Batista (from WrestleMania), whereas Batista hasn’t beat the Dead Man yet! Their last 2 matches have both been draws, and Batista only won the title back AFTER The Undertaker got taken out with an injury. So this match is all about Batista proving to himself that he is the MAN, and he CAN beat The Undertaker to remain World Heavyweight Champion.
Man oh man, these 2 really know how to start their matches! WrestleMania replay with Batista charging towards the Dead Man with a spear, but this time The Undertaker dodges, and goes for the big boot (like Backlash) but Batista ducks! Then similar to their cage match, they lock up and fight for control! Little things, but they really make this match more enjoyable and better IMO.
Nothing fancy here, just a massive brawl, which is essentially all they have been doing for the entire series, and its been awesome all the way! Things slow down a bit though, with The Undertaker working over Batista’s back.
They keep going back and forth for a while, with both men controlling the match for a little while, before losing control and taking some punishment. Austin being the guest referee was most likely an attempt to get better buyrates, but thankfully he really doesn’t stand out in this match at all. He does nothing that a normal referee wouldn’t do, which is a good thing. They are taking nothing away from this huge match, which didn’t need a guest referee, and that makes me happy .
One of my favourite spots in the match is when ‘Taker goes for Old School, but Batista catches him on the way down and levels him with a Spinebuster! But before Batista can possibly get a 3 count, Undertaker locks in a Triangle Choke!
That sequence of moves essentially starts the final stretch of the match, where we see ‘Taker hit a Chokeslam, Batista hit a spear, and both men fighting to land their finishers!
One thing that keeps coming back in this match is The Undertaker constantly losing control of the match by charging into the corner for different moves, only for Batista to move out of the way every time. He does it again during the final stretch, but this time it works in his favour as it allows him to hit the Last Ride out of the corner! Its still not enough though, and the match continues!
A Spinebuster and Batista Bomb are STILL not enough to keep The Undertaker down, and at this point you gotta believe that EVERYONE feels for certain that The Undertaker is going to win. So what happens? Batista gets royally pissed off, hits another Batista Bomb, and pins The Undertaker cleanly in the middle of the ring!!!
This match is without a doubt my second favourite of their series. It has the big match feel of their WrestleMania match, and the slower, more methodical pace of their Last Man Standing & Cage matches, and the same awesomeness from all 3 of those matches. Batista getting the clean win was a HUGE win, almost as big as his Vengeance 2005 win over Triple H. It was a nice conclusion to the story of Batista wanting to prove that he CAN beat The Undertaker, but it was certainly not the conclusion to this feud!
Rating: ****1/4
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