Donald Trump continues his run of unusual podcast appearances, largely targeted at a young male demographic, as he appeared on the Undertaker’s podcast released Monday, “Six Feet Under.” Trump joked at one point, “I turned down ’60 Minutes,’ and I’m doing your stupid show.”
But Trump’s own interest in wrestling may be part of what brought him to the show. While retired pro wrestler Taker, aka Mark Calaway in his non-wrestling civilian persona, was interviewing the Republican presidential nominee, much of the interview included Trump exploring his curiosity about the world of pro wrestling.
As the Undertaker talked about the physical toll of decades of pro wrestling, Trump couldn’t help but ask about just how real pro wrestling actually is. Watch their full discussion in the video below:
“How do you– I’ve always wondered. ‘Cause whether it’s fun, or entertainment, you’re still getting slammed around, right? Does that ring take great absorption, in other words?” Trump asked.
Undertaker quipped that he noticed the rings get a little softer when McMahon started wrestling.
“Before that, it would be just like taking a fall on this floor. I mean, they were really hard,” Taker said. “It’s a crazy thing, and you just condition your body to it where after you do it so much, you don’t even think about it.”
Trump continued to inquire about the intricacies of sports entertainment, adding, “I mean, I know you’re supposed to interview me, but I find it very interesting. How often did it happen where somebody gets really angry? In other words, you hit a guy accidentally the wrong way or something, and he’s had it.”
“In the late ’80s and stuff like that, guys were really salty,” Taker explained, “and you’re supposed to be a professional and usually guys would think, ‘Well, if he hit me like that, then it’s for a reason.’”
Trump had a bit of confusion about which parts of matches were real and which weren’t, which Undertaker had to clarify for him, while playing down just how often things become too real. Taker compared the working relationship to politics.
“You don’t have to like each other, but you have to be professional enough to work with each other,” the wrestler offered. “It’s kind of like the way I wish politics would get back to. I may not agree with you, but I can share a dressing room with you, I can shake your hand and we can do business.”
Trump insisted on knowing whether the Undertaker had ever been hurt so bad that he needed to be carried out of the ring.
“It happens,” Taker said. “What most people don’t realize, Mr. President, is that although we’re entertainment, but in any given match, you’re two inches away from something really catastrophic happening.”
Donald Trump’s WrestleMania memories
Taker opened the interview talking with Trump about the last time they connected at WrestleMania 29. He shared an apology, as the wrestler’s family had asked Trump to move back a row to allow them a better view to watch his match against C.M. Punk. But Taker’s friend who was sitting with his family had a big head — which led to a photo of Punk about to go for an elbow drop with Trump in the background, trying to peek around that friend’s head to see.
Trump followed by diving into his memory of “the Battle of the Billionaires” at WrestleMania 23, when he and Vince McMahon each had a wrestler represent them in a match — with the loser’s billionaire getting their head shaved.
“I said, ‘I don’t want to have my hair shaved,’” Trump recalled, laughing, along with noting that he and McMahon had the chance to get physical a bit during the match.
Trump touted that this WrestleMania received more pay-per-view buys than any other WWE show in history. While it’s close between the top two shows, it does appear that WrestleMania 23 narrowly edged out WrestleMania 28, which featured John Cena vs. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
The Republican candidate took a beat to praise the Undertaker’s epic entrance.
“When he does this, he’s very, you know, slow and easy — and you know you’re supposed to act, well, you’re supposed to be a Deadman. So, you know, you’re acting sort of dead, and it’s one of the greats,” Trump enthused.
He went on to praise Taker’s surprising athleticism as a wrestler billed at 6’10” and over 300 pounds.
While not recalling his name, Trump asked about Taker’s opponent, mentioning, “You were wrestling a good guy that night,” adding, “He was a good specimen guy, and it was great.”
That wrestler was actually future actor Dave Bautista.
Trump shared his own intimidation at following the Undertaker’s match, noting that he’d suggested to McMahon that perhaps their match should take place beforehand.
“I heard you were a political fan of mine, and I appreciated that. But I said, he was such an incredible athlete-entertainer,” Trump shared. “You have a lot of great athletes that can’t entertain — might as well forget it in your sport.”
Taker returned the praise, telling Trump that he was “a master of this. You’ve got to make people care. You got to make them care one way or another — either they love you, or they hate you.”
Trump shared how he got into pro wrestling, explaining that it comes from his love of sports along with getting to know Vince McMahon. He reminisced about the multiple WrestleManias that Trump sponsored in the late 1980s, as well as praising both McMahon and UFC’s White.
Trump worried The Rock never liked him — until he was shot
Trump asked Taker for his own list of favorite wrestlers, which included “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair. He also praised younger wrestlers including Roman Reigns, Gunther and Cody Rhodes.
The former president detailed his own wrestling memories, citing Haystack Calhoun, who wrestled from the 1950s through the ’70s.
The pair discussed the similarities between WWE and UFC, with Taker — known for his own incorporation of mixed martial arts style into his wrestling — talking about the companies’ recent merger under Ari Emanuel and Endeavor. They talked about how hot the wrestling business has been lately with WWE reguarly selling out shows and continuing to expand internationally.
Trump shared a story that he heard from UFC promoter Dana White.
“He was great. I never thought he liked me, and I felt badly, because I think he’s a terrific guy. And then Dana White said, when I was shot — took a shot to the ear, you may have heard about it — Rock called Dana and said, ‘I want to have his number. I want to have his number. What he did is sort of incredible.’ He considered it bravery. I don’t know, to me, I considered it, ‘What’s going on here?’ But it was very nice, the Rock.”
Trump asked Undertaker to pass along his appreciation to the Rock, with Undertaker praising Trump’s response in the moment to raising his fist in the air after being shot.
Finding purpose in politics and the embarrassment of being shot
As Trump occasionally has, he reacted to the Undertaker noting that he doesn’t have to be a politician by chuckling as he said, “I don’t have to do this. I say, ‘what am I doing,’ sometimes — ‘why am I doing this?’”
Trump noted that he’ll joke with crowds about how he could be on the beach in Monte Carlo, but he tells them that he’d rather be with them.
“It’s true, actually,” Trump said. “Look, I have a lot of wealthy friends, and they go to these places, and most of them aren’t happy and all that stuff. But, you know, I feel I have a purpose, and that’s to rebuild our country.”
He later said that he might get to those beaches later, adding, “There’s golf to be played.”
After turning to his usual talking points about the border, Trump turned back to another subject he deeply cares about: ratings.
“I don’t know when this [episode] is going on,” Trump said, noting, “I wish you luck with it. I know you’re going to get high ratings.”
Taker joked about whether Trump might get a portrait done of the chart that he’s credited with helping to save his life when he was shot.
“There have been so many portraits. And some are genius, and some are terrible,” Trump quipped. “I get paintings every day — paintings. Some are really good, and some aren’t good. Some are not great artists. But I’ve never seen anything like that. Actually, I had that with my mug shot, but to a lesser extent.”
Trump claimed to have more people at his rallies than attend pro wrestling shows, by a factor of three, which seemed to be a dubious claim. However, he noted that being shot at in front of all those people actually made him feel embarrassed.
“It’s sort of embarrassing. You’re speaking, and all of a sudden you’re getting down on the floor,” Trump said. Despite criticism of their response by many, Trump also praised the bravery of the Secret Service.
Along with the sniper who took out the shooter, Trump also credited local police, adding, “We believe also the local police hit the barrel of the rifle and splintered the hell out of it.”
He praised the “country-type doctors” who helped save those who were shot at the rally but survived.
Trump joked that being down bleeding isn’t supposed to be his life, it’s supposed to be Undertaker’s, to which the wrestler responded, “I don’t mind bleeding, I’d just rather it not come from bullets.”
The Republican candidate also wanted to know if Taker would consider going into politics, but the Undertaker said there was “no chance.” Trump wanted to know who the next wrestler to become a governor would be, a la Jesse “The Body” Ventura,” to which Taker responded by referencing his former tag team partner and current Tennessee mayor, Glenn “Kane” Jacobs.
The pair endorsed Trump in a TikTok video released last week.
The former president also praised Vince’s wife Linda, who was part of Trump’s cabinet as the small business administrator.
Trump questioned Taker about the WWE having to change its name from WWF in the early 2000s due to a legal conflict with the World Wildlife Fund.
“It used to be WWF, right? And they just couldn’t get that name back, which was amazing,” Trump said. “Do you think it made a difference? Now, with time — but it was hard to get used to it.”
Multiple marriages and the real Trump
Taker and Trump also connected in a funny moment discussing their respective marriages. Trump wanted to know why the wrestler was doing this podcast since he retired, to which he explained that his podcast cohost, Matt Lyda, pulled him into doing the show. “He says, you know, you’ve got this huge platform. You need to do something with it. And my wife was the same way.”
Trump asked how long Taker had been married, to which he said he’d been married for 14 years. But when Trump asked if it was his second marriage, Taker smiled as he laughed, “Who counts. Numbers!” The wrestler is actually on his third marriage.
“You can cut that part,” Trump joked. “This sounds like it’s gonna little bit too, uh…”
“I think you can relate,” Taker added. “Like, we both have kind of maybe out-kicked our coverage.”
“So much for that question,” Trump continued as the pair chuckled. “The answer started getting a little bit longer. Bad things coming.”
“This is good. This is the Donald Trump that people really don’t get to see,” Taker said. “You need to show more of this part of you, because I really think you’re a guy’s guy and a sports fan.”
“Some people get caught up in the fact that, I think they look at politics now kind of like a wrestling story,” Taker said, “and they can’t separate reality.”
Trump responded by talking about his large rally crowds, adding, “I don’t have a card, and I’m not a wrestler.” He joked that he wouldn’t have been a particularly good wrestler and couldn’t compare to the strength of Calaway.
The Republican candidate claimed that his crowds are nearly a thousand times that of what Ronald Reagan could get. “If Ronald Reagan came back and he went to some of the places I went to, he’d have 250 people or 300, 400, and that’s very good. And do it in a ballroom someplace.” Instead, Trump said, he draws between 50,000 and 100,000.
Trans women in sports
While the Undertaker kept the political talk light, while giving Trump room to share his own political points, the wrestler did close the interview with a pointed political question.
“We’re not journalists, and we’re really not that great of podcasters either, but we get people that watch us,” Taker joked before transitioning to the question that mattered to him: “You met my daughter. What are we going to do, or what are you going to do if elected to, protect the integrity of women in sports, and continue on with just the fair play?”
The question was a clear reference to conservative outrage about trans women competing in women’s sports.
“I want to put a face to it, if you can — can I bring my daughter?” Taker asked.
He brought his daughter over. Trump continued the conservative approach to not accepting trans women as women. After noting that Calaway’s daughter wouldn’t want to wrestle a guy like her father, he added, “I will get rid of it fast. Men playing in women’s sports is insane.”
You can watch the full interview between Mark “The Undertaker” Calaway and Donald Trump in the video above.
Leave a Reply