Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker wrestled six times on WWE's biggest shows across 13 years, and one of those nights changed wrestling history: at WrestleMania XXX in New Orleans, Lesnar ended The Undertaker's 21-match WrestleMania winning streak. The rivalry began in 2002, when a 25-year-old Lesnar was WWE Champion and The Undertaker was the company's longest-serving star, and it ended inside Hell in a Cell in 2015.
Lesnar won four of their six big-event singles matches, The Undertaker won one, and their first title match ended in a no contest. This page covers every one of those matches, how the feud turned personal, a side-by-side comparison of both careers, how fans reacted to the Streak ending, and our verdict on who won the rivalry.
Head-to-head record
Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker: Lesnar 4–1 (1 no contest). Every big-event meeting between the two, oldest first.
| # | Date | Event | Venue | Match | Result | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 22, 2002 | Unforgiven 2002 | Staples Center, Los Angeles | WWE Championship | No contest | Brawl took out the referee |
| 2 | Oct 20, 2002 | No Mercy 2002 | Alltel Arena, North Little Rock, Arkansas | Hell in a Cell · WWE Championship | Brock Lesnar won | F-5 · 27:18 |
| 3 | Oct 19, 2003 | No Mercy 2003 | 1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore | Biker Chain match · WWE Championship | Brock Lesnar won | Chain shot after Vince McMahon interfered · 24:14 |
| 4 | Apr 6, 2014 | WrestleMania XXX | Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans | Singles | Brock Lesnar won | Third F-5 · 25:12 |
| 5 | Aug 23, 2015 | SummerSlam 2015 | Barclays Center, Brooklyn | Singles | The Undertaker won | Hell's Gate (technical submission) · 17:10 |
| 6 | Oct 25, 2015 | Hell in a Cell 2015 | Staples Center, Los Angeles | Hell in a Cell | Brock Lesnar won | F-5 after a low blow |
Every match: our commentary
Unforgiven 2002 · Sep 22, 2002
Lesnar's first title defense after winning the WWE Championship at SummerSlam was a straight fight. Neither man could keep the other down, the referee was wiped out as the brawl spilled everywhere, and the match was thrown out as a no contest. The non-finish was deliberate: it set up a blow-off with no exits.
No Mercy 2002 · Oct 20, 2002
Two weeks earlier on SmackDown, Lesnar had broken The Undertaker's hand with a propane tank, and The Undertaker was allowed to wrestle in his cast. Lesnar spent the match ripping the cast off and attacking the hand; both men bled heavily. When The Undertaker went for the Tombstone, Lesnar countered into the F-5 for the clean pin. It is still regarded as one of the best Hell in a Cell matches ever held and the night Lesnar became a made man.
No Mercy 2003 · Oct 19, 2003
The rematch a year later was built around a chain hanging from a pole. The Undertaker had the chain and was about to use it when Vince McMahon, who was feuding with The Undertaker, pushed him off the top rope. Lesnar grabbed the chain, hit The Undertaker with it and retained the title. Lesnar left WWE five months later.
WrestleMania XXX · Apr 6, 2014
The Undertaker had returned to stab Lesnar's hand with a pen and chokeslam him through a table when Lesnar asked for a WrestleMania opponent. The match was slow and careful because, as WWE later confirmed, The Undertaker suffered a severe concussion early on. After two F-5s and a Tombstone kicked out of on both sides, Lesnar hit a third F-5 and the referee counted three. WWE held Lesnar's music and showed a 21–1 graphic to a silent Superdome. The Undertaker left by ambulance.
SummerSlam 2015 · Aug 23, 2015
The Undertaker cost Lesnar the WWE World Heavyweight title at Battleground a month earlier, saying it was revenge for the Streak. At SummerSlam the finish was chaos: the timekeeper rang the bell when The Undertaker appeared to tap to Lesnar's Kimura, but the referee had not seen it and waved the match on. The Undertaker hit a low blow, locked on Hell's Gate and Lesnar passed out. Paul Heyman rang the bell himself afterward and declared Lesnar the winner.
Hell in a Cell 2015 · Oct 25, 2015
Billed as the final chapter, the second Cell match was the most violent of the series, with both men bleeding from the first minutes and Lesnar tearing up the ring to expose the boards. The Undertaker went low again, but Lesnar answered with a low blow of his own and an F-5 onto the exposed floor for the win. After the match Bray Wyatt and The Wyatt Family took The Undertaker away, ending the rivalry.
The backstory
The feud got personal fast in 2002. Lesnar and his advocate Paul Heyman used a woman named Tracy to damage The Undertaker's marriage on television, and then Lesnar broke The Undertaker's hand with a propane tank on SmackDown on October 3, 2002. Stephanie McMahon ordered Hell in a Cell for No Mercy, and the image of Lesnar tearing the cast off is the defining picture of the first chapter.
The second chapter came 12 years later. Lesnar had spent 2008 to 2011 as a UFC heavyweight champion and returned to WWE as a part-time special attraction. When he and Heyman said nobody wanted to face him at WrestleMania XXX, The Undertaker answered with a pen through the hand and a chokeslam through a table. Shawn Michaels later said Vince McMahon made the call to end the Streak about four hours before the show.
The third chapter was revenge. The Undertaker attacked Lesnar during his title match against Seth Rollins at Battleground in July 2015, and the two men split SummerSlam and Hell in a Cell. Heyman framed the trilogy as the story of 'the one in 21–1', and for a generation of fans that is exactly what it became.
Tale of the tape
| Brock Lesnar | The Undertaker | |
|---|---|---|
| Billed height / weight | 6 ft 3 in · 286 lb | 6 ft 10 in · 309 lb |
| WWE main roster debut | March 2002 (Raw) | November 1990 (Survivor Series) |
| World titles in WWE | 10 | 7 |
| Royal Rumble wins | 2 (2003, 2022) | 1 (2007) |
| Signature finish | F-5 | Tombstone Piledriver |
| Outside WWE | NCAA heavyweight champion (2000), UFC heavyweight champion (2008) | — |
| Hall of Fame | — | Class of 2022 |
By the numbers
| Head-to-head stat | Brock Lesnar | The Undertaker |
|---|---|---|
| Wins in their big-event singles matches | 4 | 1 |
| Hell in a Cell wins vs. each other | 2 | 0 |
| Title matches against each other | 3 (2 wins, 1 no contest) | 3 |
| Matches with outside interference deciding it | 1 (No Mercy 2003) | 0 |
| WrestleMania meetings | 1–0 | 0–1 |
How fans and critics reacted
The ending of the Streak is one of the most-discussed results in wrestling. Fans in the Superdome went silent, then booed Lesnar out of the building, and The Undertaker received a standing ovation and 'thank you Taker' chants as he walked up the ramp. The decision divided fans, critics and former wrestlers, and it has been argued over ever since.
The 2002 Hell in a Cell match is the opposite: it is widely listed among the best Cell matches ever. SummerSlam 2015's timekeeper finish was criticized at the time as overbooked, but it achieved its goal of giving the trilogy a third match, which Hell in a Cell 2015 delivered as a violent, well-received finale.
Our take
Lesnar won the rivalry, and not narrowly. He won four of six, both Hell in a Cell matches and the only WrestleMania meeting, and the Streak is the single result either man is most remembered for against the other. The Undertaker's lone win needed a low blow.
Our view on the Streak itself has not changed: ending it was defensible, but giving it to a part-timer who left soon after wasted it. The match that should be shown to new fans is No Mercy 2002, not WrestleMania XXX.
Our verdict: Brock Lesnar.
FAQ
How many times did Brock Lesnar beat The Undertaker?
Lesnar beat The Undertaker in four of their six premium live event singles matches (No Mercy 2002, No Mercy 2003, WrestleMania XXX and Hell in a Cell 2015). The Undertaker won at SummerSlam 2015 and Unforgiven 2002 ended in a no contest.
When did Brock Lesnar end The Undertaker's streak?
At WrestleMania XXX on April 6, 2014 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, with an F-5 after 25:12. The Streak ended at 21–1.
Was The Undertaker hurt at WrestleMania XXX?
Yes. WWE confirmed he suffered a severe concussion early in the match. He was taken to hospital by ambulance and released the next day.
Who won the Lesnar vs. Undertaker rivalry?
Brock Lesnar, 4–1 with one no contest, including both Hell in a Cell matches.
More rivalries
Sources: Wikipedia: WrestleMania XXX · Wikipedia: No Mercy (2002) · Wikipedia: No Mercy (2003) · Wikipedia: SummerSlam (2015) · Wikipedia: Hell in a Cell (2015). Facts verified Oct 18, 2026.