• WWE Executive Reveals Which WrestleMania Main Event Was a Mistake
On his Something To Wrestle With podcast, WWE Executive Director Bruce Prichard acknowledged that the main event of WrestleMania 16 aka WrestleMania 2000 was a misstep, admitting that the match was never the outcome WWF truly wanted but rather the result of difficult circumstances and limited options.
Looking back on the show, Prichard described the fatal four-way main event for the WWF Championship between Triple H, The Rock, Mick Foley, and The Big Show as something born out of necessity rather than strong creative direction, calling it one of the most forgettable WrestleMania conclusions.
According to Prichard, the company found itself backed into a corner due to injuries at the top of the card. The intention was not to headline WrestleMania with a multi-man match lacking a clear central rivalry, but to make the best of a situation where key players were unavailable. Instead of building a focused, emotionally driven main event, WWF opted to stack names together in hopes that star power alone could carry the match. In hindsight, Prichard conceded that the approach didn’t work and failed to deliver a defining WrestleMania moment.
At the center of that regret is the absence of Stone Cold Steve Austin, whom Prichard believes should have been the cornerstone of the event. Even while acknowledging that Austin was injured and unavailable at the time, Prichard made it clear that Austin’s presence would have fundamentally changed the entire picture. From his perspective, WrestleMania main events thrive on singular attractions, and Austin was the biggest draw of that era.
Prichard contrasted WrestleMania 2000 with the previous year, when Austin and The Rock headlined in a straightforward one-on-one match that captured the moment perfectly. That comparison only reinforced his belief that WrestleMania works best when it leans into a clear, dominant rivalry rather than spreading focus across multiple competitors. Without Austin, the World Wrestling Federation lacked that gravitational center in 2000, and the main event suffered as a result.
He also framed the decision as a lesson in long-term booking realities. Sometimes, you are forced to work with what’s available rather than what’s ideal, Prichard said. WrestleMania 2000 fell squarely into that category. The company tried to compensate for Austin’s absence by loading the match with talent, but the end result lacked the clarity and memorability expected of a WrestleMania finale.
• Finlay Gave The Undertaker a Funny Nickname Due to Part-Time Schedule
A brief exchange on Six Feet Under revealed one of the more amusing locker-room nicknames The Undertaker picked up late in his career, courtesy of Fit Finlay.
While reflecting on The Undertaker’s sporadic schedule in his final years, the conversation turned to how rarely he appeared compared to earlier eras. By that point, Undertaker was no longer working full-time or even semi-regular dates. He was showing up once a year, almost exclusively around WrestleMania season, preparing for months, and then disappearing again. Fit Finlay summed it up with a nickname that immediately stuck: Santa Claus.
The comparison wasn’t subtle. Undertaker would come around once a year, make a major appearance, and then vanish again. Everyone involved understood exactly what Finlay meant, and Undertaker didn’t push back on it. Instead, the joke escalated when it was pointed out that Santa Claus never made as much money as Undertaker did, turning the rib into a sharp reminder of just how valuable Undertaker still was despite his limited schedule.
The moment worked because it captured two realities at once. On one hand, Undertaker’s body could no longer handle regular matches, and his appearances had become rare by necessity. On the other, those rare appearances were still massive business. When Undertaker showed up, it mattered, and it paid accordingly.
The nickname also reflected how Undertaker was viewed backstage at that stage of his career. He wasn’t expected to grind through weekly television or house shows. His role had shifted into something almost ceremonial, reserved for the biggest moments and the biggest stages. That understanding ultimately shaped how his final run was handled.
By the time Undertaker reached WrestleMania 36, the Santa Claus comparison felt almost prophetic. He arrived, delivered one last major performance, and rode off.
