Michael Cole has revisited one of the most iconic moments in his decades-long commentary career — his call of Brock Lesnar ending The Undertaker’s undefeated WrestleMania streak at WrestleMania 30 in 2014. Speaking on The Sal Licata Show, Cole confirmed what many fans have long suspected — he had absolutely no idea The Undertaker was going to lose, making his instinctive call one of the most genuinely authentic moments in WWE broadcasting history.
“There wasn’t one person in the Superdome that thought Undertaker was gonna lose. Every single person believed that he was either going to retire undefeated or, if he was going to lose, he was going to lose to an up-and-coming person that he could help give the rub to. None of us knew Brock was going to win,” Cole said. He added that the legend surrounding the match suggests the actual ending may have been changed mid-match, making the entire sequence even more chaotic behind the scenes.
Michael Cole on Why His Instinctive “The Streak Is Over” Call Was Perfectly Suited to the Moment
Cole described the physical experience of watching the referee’s hand come down for three. “When Brock hit Taker with the F5, I believed that Taker was going to kick out. It was almost a nonchalant one, two, and I was about to say ‘kick out’ when I froze. The first thing that came to mind was, ‘The Streak is over!'” On reflection, Cole has come to believe the call was exactly right for the moment — not because it was polished, but because it was real. “If I was screaming over the top, it just does not have the effect. When I do listen back to that, I get chills because it was the perfect call because of the shock value. You had a guy in myself who was legitimately shocked that this happened, and it was a historical moment in our business.”
Cole also revealed other moments where genuine surprise produced memorable calls — including Seth Rollins’ Money in the Bank cash-in at WrestleMania 31, where “The Heist of the Century” came to him on the spot, and Daniel Bryan’s championship win. “I know about 80 percent of what’s going to happen. At WrestleMania, I don’t like to know anything if I don’t have to,” he explained, suggesting that his best work consistently comes when the moment is real rather than scripted.
About the Author
