Joe Rogan Experience #1598 - The Undertaker
Tony Hinchcliffe (guest), Narrator, Joe Rogan (host), Mark "The Undertaker" Calaway (guest), Narrator, Narrator, Narrator, Narrator, Narrator, Narrator, Narrator
In this episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, featuring Tony Hinchcliffe and Narrator, Joe Rogan Experience #1598 - The Undertaker explores undertaker Reflects On Pain, Grit, And Wrestling’s Softer New Era Mark Calaway, The Undertaker, sits with Joe Rogan and Tony Hinchcliffe to unpack a 33‑year pro wrestling career filled with brutal injuries, evolving drug policies, and nonstop travel. He details major surgeries—including double hip resurfacings, multiple reconstructed eye sockets, and shoulder rebuilds—that enabled him to keep performing far beyond typical limits. The conversation traces his unlikely break into wrestling, the creation of The Undertaker character, and his obsessive commitment to protecting its mystique. Calaway also critiques today’s WWE product as “soft,” contrasts past and present locker room cultures, and discusses life after retirement—particularly hunting, fitness, and his admiration for military veterans and mental-toughness figures like David Goggins.
Undertaker Reflects On Pain, Grit, And Wrestling’s Softer New Era
Mark Calaway, The Undertaker, sits with Joe Rogan and Tony Hinchcliffe to unpack a 33‑year pro wrestling career filled with brutal injuries, evolving drug policies, and nonstop travel. He details major surgeries—including double hip resurfacings, multiple reconstructed eye sockets, and shoulder rebuilds—that enabled him to keep performing far beyond typical limits. The conversation traces his unlikely break into wrestling, the creation of The Undertaker character, and his obsessive commitment to protecting its mystique. Calaway also critiques today’s WWE product as “soft,” contrasts past and present locker room cultures, and discusses life after retirement—particularly hunting, fitness, and his admiration for military veterans and mental-toughness figures like David Goggins.
Key Takeaways
Chronic pain becomes invisible until it’s gone.
Undertaker describes living with severe hip pain for over a decade, only realizing how much it drained his energy and mood when he woke up from Birmingham hip resurfacing surgery completely pain-free and “re‑motivated” to work.
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Longevity in a brutal business requires continual medical innovation and adaptation.
He extended his career through cutting‑edge procedures—double hip resurfacing, two orbital floor reconstructions, creative shoulder surgery using rerouted muscles—and constant retraining of gait, movement, and in‑ring style to work around permanent damage.
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Persistence and presence can matter as much as talent early on.
After being scammed by his first trainer, Calaway spent eight straight months sitting in the Von Erichs’ office lobby every Wednesday until Fritz Von Erich finally noticed him, saw a resemblance to his late son, and ordered him booked—his first real break.
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Protecting a character’s mystique demands real‑world discipline.
For years Undertaker stayed in-character in public—wearing black, speaking little, avoiding interviews and appearances—to keep fans from seeing a gap between the TV persona and the man, which he believes helped keep the character compelling for three decades.
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Old-school wrestling culture prized toughness and gatekeeping; today’s system is more corporate and developmental.
He contrasts being stretched, scammed, and hazed by “shooters” in the territories with WWE’s current Performance Center, where recruits are paid to train, drug-tested like major sports, and supported by doctors and trainers—but he feels the product lost some edge.
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Undertaker sees today’s WWE product as too “soft” and overproduced.
He argues modern wrestling has “too much pretty and not enough substance,” with fewer legitimately tough, gritty personas and less of the raw Attitude Era feel that drew older kids and adults, though he credits Triple H for trying to restore some of that edge.
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Transitioning out of a lifelong identity is psychologically complex.
His docuseries ‘The Last Ride’ documents him chasing one final match he’d be proud to retire on, and he admits the hardest part is accepting diminished physical skills and finding new passions—like hunting and veteran support—after decades defined by The Undertaker.
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Notable Quotes
““I was in pain easily 12 years, every step of every day… You don’t know how much of a drag it is on you until it’s gone.””
— The Undertaker (Mark Calaway)
““In any given match on any given day, you’re two inches away from something catastrophic happening.””
— The Undertaker (Mark Calaway)
““I sat in that lobby every Wednesday for eight months… One day Fritz walks in, looks at me, and says, ‘Book him Friday night. He looks just like David.’ That’s how I got my first break.””
— The Undertaker (Mark Calaway)
““To stay relevant for 30 years in this industry… I felt like I had to go to the extreme to make that guy real.””
— The Undertaker (Mark Calaway)
““The product has changed so much. It’s kind of soft… There’s too much pretty and not enough substance.””
— The Undertaker (Mark Calaway)
Questions Answered in This Episode
How different would The Undertaker’s career and body be if today’s wellness protocols, medical support, and Performance Center had existed when he started?
Mark Calaway, The Undertaker, sits with Joe Rogan and Tony Hinchcliffe to unpack a 33‑year pro wrestling career filled with brutal injuries, evolving drug policies, and nonstop travel. ...
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Where is the line between necessary spectacle and irresponsible risk in a business that thrives on perceived danger?
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Can WWE recapture the Attitude Era’s grit and authenticity in a billion‑dollar, family‑friendly, global brand—and should it even try?
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What does a truly healthy post‑career transition look like for performers whose entire identities and relationships are built around a singular character?
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How much responsibility do promoters and organizations bear for long‑term health issues that only fully surface decades after an athlete’s prime?
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Transcript Preview
(drum roll) Joe Rogan Podcast, check it out.
The Joe Rogan Experience.
Train by day, Joe Rogan Podcast by night. All day. (instrumental music plays) WWE royalty, ladies and gentlemen. The Undertaker and the biggest fucking wrestling fan on planet Earth. Like I was saying, uh, before the podcast, if I did not bring Tony Hinchcliffe on this podcast, I would have never heard the end of it.
(laughs)
No one loves you more than that man. Like, being right next to you right now is probably ... He's tingling.
He's tingling a little bit?
Might be lactating.
This is the highlight of my life.
(laughs)
That, ooh-
(laughs)
I don't, I don't know if I'm happy or sad about that, really.
(laughs)
(laughs)
But anyway, thanks for coming on here. I really, I really appreciate it.
No, thanks for having me, man. Yeah, it's an honor, really.
Oh, my pleasure. Honored to have you. So, what is it like, uh, being in Austin, Texas right now? You, are you enjoying it? And you're from this area, right?
Yeah, well I'm, I'm from Houston.
Right.
Uh, but I've been here since about '04. Um, you know, it's crazy, man. We got this influx of people from California right now. It's just-
I know. We're trying not to fuck it up.
(laughs)
What should we do? Tell us what to do.
Uh. You know, uh, it's fine. Bring the money, leave the values, and we'll all be good.
What values do we need to leave behind specifically?
Well, fuck, everything that fucked up California. You know?
'Cause I think that's the government, man. Speaker2: Yeah. They know nothing about-
No, it really ... Uh, what, the government gets voted in though, right?
Yeah, but, uh, I don't think we expected them to do that.
Exactly.
Yeah, no one expected them to shut down all the restaurants and shut down all the gyms. Like, what ... huh? And now that studies have come out. There was a new study that came out, it was in fucking Newsweek. I'm hoping that when Biden comes in, they're gonna be like, "Well, you know, we realize that lockdowns are not really good. It doesn't really help. Give people freedom and let them do ..." I'm hoping that this is a political thing. Which is a terrible thing to hope for, that this is political.
But, that's where we're at though.
But. Yeah, but that's where we're at.
Yeah.
I'm hoping that it was all political and that they'll adjust once, once Biden is in office.
Yeah, I hope so too. It's, it's been nuts, man. It really-
It's crazy.
It's just ... What do you believe, too, right?
Exactly.
You hear this, you hear that, like f-
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