The Joe Rogan ExperienceJoe Rogan Experience #1598 - The Undertaker
CHAPTERS
- 0:02 – 2:58
Undertaker in Austin: Texas pride, California influx, and lockdown fallout
Joe welcomes Mark Calaway (The Undertaker) with Tony Hinchcliffe in full superfan mode, then the conversation quickly shifts to Austin and Texas culture. They discuss the migration from California, political leadership, and how COVID lockdowns impacted cities like Los Angeles.
- •Undertaker’s move from Houston to Austin-area life since 2004
- •‘Bring the money, leave the values’: cultural tension around relocation
- •Debate over lockdowns, government decisions, and public trust
- •LA’s decline during shutdowns (Comedy Store/Sunset Strip imagery)
- •Speculation on how long recovery could take post-lockdown
- 2:58 – 3:30
Life after wrestling and the hidden cost of a 30+ year career
Joe asks what retirement looks like after decades in the ring. Undertaker explains he’s still figuring out what’s next, while acknowledging the physical wear-and-tear that most fans never fully see.
- •Transition anxiety after 33 years in wrestling
- •Comparison to older wrestlers’ long-term mobility issues
- •Undertaker’s surprisingly functional movement despite damage
- •Chronic pain as ‘part of the game’ in old-school wrestling culture
- •Identity shift from full-time performer to post-career life
- 3:30 – 16:01
Birmingham hip resurfacing: pain-free overnight and extending a career
Undertaker details bilateral Birmingham hip resurfacing surgeries that dramatically reduced pain and prolonged his wrestling career. Joe and the crew dig into the procedure mechanics, recovery, longevity, and how modern sports medicine changes what’s possible.
- •Both hips resurfaced; first surgery in 2010 added ~10 years
- •Immediate pain relief upon waking from surgery
- •Procedure walkthrough: femur cap, acetabulum component, titanium hardware
- •No restrictions vs full hip replacement; why replacement would’ve ended his career
- •Relearning gait and rehab (including walking backwards on a treadmill)
- 16:01 – 17:40
The brutal schedule: 270 dates a year, nonstop travel, and why pills became common
They move from surgery into the day-to-day grind of being a top WWE attraction. Undertaker describes relentless touring, constant jet lag, and how the business environment pushed many performers toward painkillers and unhealthy coping strategies.
- •Eight-year stretch averaging ~270 dates annually
- •Early ’90s: two shows a day on weekends; TV taping blocks then road loops
- •‘We’ll sleep when we’re dead’ culture and constant physical depletion
- •Pain + travel + performance pressure as pipeline to pill abuse
- •WWE’s later evolution: trainers, doctors, concussion protocols, wellness programs
- 17:40 – 26:30
Drug testing, steroids, and the ‘sniff test’ debate (Braun, Vince, and protocols)
Joe questions why WWE tests at all, especially given the entertainment nature of the product and the incentive to look superhuman. Undertaker explains the testing structure and why it expanded beyond weed/prescriptions into broader wellness enforcement—while everyone jokes about physiques that don’t pass the ‘sniff test.’
- •Early focus: legal/PR issues (weed arrests) and escalation to rehab requirements
- •Modern WWE testing: mandatory urine and blood testing schedules + randomization
- •Steroid testing exists; Undertaker is puzzled by some current physiques
- •Examples: Braun Strowman physique discussion; jokes about Vince McMahon’s build
- •Testing compliance even for part-time/legend contracts
- 26:30 – 34:10
From college basketball to wrestling: paying $2,000 to train with Buzz Sawyer (and getting scammed)
Undertaker tells the origin story: a basketball path toward Europe changes after meeting someone in the gym who recruits him to try wrestling. He raises money for training, only to find the ‘trainer’ essentially ran a hustle—using brutal conditioning to run students off and then disappearing.
- •College basketball background; European scouts wanted him bigger/stronger
- •Reconnecting with wrestling fandom and weighing long-term career realities
- •Paying Buzz Sawyer $2,000 (huge money in 1986) to train
- •Old-school ‘weed out the weak’ training: exhausting cardio + painful amateur grappling
- •Trainer vanishes to another territory; Undertaker left with little ‘pro wrestling’ instruction
- 34:10 – 37:08
Sleeping in his car and the eight-month lobby grind: earning a break with World Class
After the failed training situation, Undertaker survives with odd jobs and persists relentlessly. He spends every Wednesday for eight months in the Von Erichs’ office lobby until a chance moment with Fritz Von Erich lands him a booking.
- •Financial hardship: living in a car, bouncing bars, scraping by to keep training
- •Weekly ritual: sitting in the WCCW lobby for eight months
- •Repeated rejection/being ignored; only a referee (Branko Lubich) acknowledges him
- •Fritz Von Erich finally notices him and orders a Friday booking
- •Lesson: persistence, timing, and being ‘in the right place at the right time’
- 37:08 – 43:24
First ‘real’ match: Bruiser Brody teaches a painful lesson in ring realism
Undertaker recounts his first professional match—against the legendary and notoriously tough Bruiser Brody. Over-nervous stiffness and a small mistake escalates into a brutal in-ring ‘education’ that nonetheless earns Brody’s respect and endorsement backstage.
- •Facing Bruiser Brody in first true professional match
- •Nerves and stiffness: ‘angle iron’ body; accidental shot to the face
- •Brody retaliates hard (kick to the jaw, chair explosion, repeated kicks)
- •Backstage respect ritual: thanking the veteran; ‘relax next time’ advice
- •Brody tells the promoter Undertaker ‘could be something’
- 43:24 – 45:30
WWE’s Performance Center: today’s pathway vs the old territory-era gauntlet
Joe asks how aspiring wrestlers get in today, and Undertaker explains how dramatically the system has changed. WWE now recruits globally and can sign talent to contracts specifically to train—an inversion of Undertaker’s era of hustling for bookings and paying to learn.
- •WWE Performance Center in Orlando as centralized pipeline
- •Tryouts evaluate fitness + personality/marketability
- •Potential to receive a contract ‘to train’ on the spot
- •Global recruiting strategy (China, Middle East, local hometown stars)
- •Contrast with territories, pay-to-train hustles, and self-funded grinding
- 45:30 – 1:19:08
Becoming The Undertaker: WCW rejection, Vince’s meeting, and escaping ‘Eggman’
Undertaker tells how WCW dismissed his earning potential, which pushed him toward WWF/WWE connections. A key meeting at Vince McMahon’s house didn’t yield an immediate role, but soon Vince called with the character concept—leading to Undertaker’s iconic 1990 debut.
- •WCW ‘Mean Mark Callous’ era and being told ‘no one will pay to see you’
- •Meeting Vince at his home in Greenwich, Connecticut; anxiety over goofy gimmicks
- •The Gobbledy Gooker/egg storyline makes him fear becoming ‘Eggman’
- •Vince calls: ‘Is this the Undertaker?’—character reveal and immediate buy-in
- •Original concept rooted in an Old West undertaker; debut at Survivor Series 1990
- 1:19:08 – 1:22:07
Protecting the mystique: living the character, limiting interviews, staying ‘real’ for decades
They explore how Undertaker remained a special attraction for 30 years in an era of constant media exposure. Undertaker explains the discipline of staying in character off-camera and how that commitment kept the persona believable and compelling.
- •Early presentation: dark era of colorful gimmicks; Undertaker as dominant contrast
- •Commitment to always being ‘what they saw on TV’
- •Avoiding interviews and public appearances to preserve mystery
- •Why breaking character would make the act feel like ‘just acting’
- •The high bar to stay relevant across generations and changing styles
- 1:22:07 – 1:28:05
The Last Ride and the final match: WrestleMania’s ‘Boneyard’ as a fitting exit
Undertaker describes the docuseries ‘The Last Ride’ as a way to process retirement and chase one last great performance. The COVID-era ‘Boneyard Match’ gave him a cinematic finish, but also made clear his body couldn’t keep delivering at the level he expected.
- •‘The Last Ride’ docuseries as a retirement/grief process for ending the run
- •Chasing ‘one more match’ to prove he still had it
- •Boneyard Match logistics: filmed overnight (8pm–5am) with heavy physical toll
- •COVID disrupted training (gyms closed, travel uncertainty), affecting preparation
- •Post-match clarity: physically done, despite still wanting to perform
- 1:28:05 – 1:50:23
Retirement identity and new purpose: hunting/archery, veterans’ work, and discipline culture
The conversation shifts to what replaces a lifetime of performance: outdoors pursuits and service-oriented projects. They also detour into David Goggins-style discipline, gun scarcity, and broader ‘hard times/soft men’ cultural commentary—framing purpose as a daily choice.
- •Exploring hunting and fishing more seriously; interest in archery with long draw length needs
- •Considering (but hesitating on) turning hobbies into a ‘job job’ media project
- •Work with veterans (including Nine Line) and regret of not serving
- •David Goggins clips as a springboard for discipline, mindset, and pain tolerance
- •Election/inauguration anxiety, gun/ammo shortages, and ‘hard times make hard men’ theme
- 1:50:23 – 2:00:49
MMA fandom and crossover: submissions in WWE, early UFC events, and Brock/Overeem talk
They connect wrestling to combat sports: Undertaker’s love of MMA, incorporating techniques like the gogoplata (renamed ‘Hell’s Gate’), and stories from early UFC events. The segment includes Brock Lesnar’s fights, drug testing eras, and the realities of toughness across both worlds.
- •Undertaker’s MMA attendance history and admiration for fighters
- •‘Hell’s Gate’ as a gogoplata adapted for pro wrestling safely
- •Early UFC commentary era memories and notable personalities (Tank Abbott)
- •Brock Lesnar’s career moments (Mir fights, Velasquez, Overeem after diverticulitis)
- •Discussion of PED-era ‘sniff test’ physiques (Uberreem) and evolving standards
- 2:00:49 – 2:43:06
Old-school wrestling toughness: Stossel slap, fading ‘shooter’ culture, and the Buzz Sawyer epilogue
They revisit the harsh ‘protect the business’ mentality of earlier locker rooms, including the infamous John Stossel incident. Undertaker contrasts that era with today’s softer backstage environment, then returns to Buzz Sawyer—revealing he even took Sawyer’s abandoned dogs after being scammed, and later confronted him in a locker room.
- •Why earlier generations reacted violently to ‘fake’ accusations (Stossel/Schultz clip)
- •Locker room culture shift: from guns/knives and ‘men were men’ to video games and image focus
- •Undertaker’s perspective on earning respect through hardship and consequences
- •Buzz Sawyer left town abruptly; Undertaker took Sawyer’s abandoned Rottweilers
- •Years later: Undertaker runs into Buzz again, setting up a confrontation (story continues beyond excerpt)
