Kane Finally Explains Why He Wore His Ring Gear During The Undertaker’s Final Farewell at Survivor Series

While The Undertaker’s “Final Farewell” segment at Survivor Series wound up being one of the most emotional of the year for WWE fans, it wasn’t without its share of strange moments. One of the most obvious was when a parade of former stars made their way out to the ring to honor “The Deadman.” Every former wrestler was dressed in street clothes with the noticeable exception of Kane, who arrived in full ring gear along with his mask and wig. Fans quickly took to social media to ask why “The Big Red Monster” was doing this, but he and the rest of the stars were gone from the ring after a video promo.

Kane (real name Glenn Jacobs) finally explained why he broke out the gear while speaking with the Two-Man Power Trip Podcast recently.

I was supposed to [be in ring gear]. Yeah, here’s the thing: Kane is Kane and despite different incarnations and all that, that was the reason for that because Kane and Undertaker I think, you know, pulled back the veil somewhat and sometimes we forget that,” Kane said (h/t POST Wrestling). “But that’s kind of what separates them I think from a lot of the other formers is the fact that they’re truly characters and I know people speculated [but] that was the plan all along so, some of those things I think sometimes people [begin] speculating and outthink themselves a little too much into it.”

Undertaker’s promo was supposed to signify the end of his character in the WWE, as Mark Calaway had announced his retirement from the business earlier in the year. The iconic wrestler admitted in interviews that, for as much as he’d like to continue wrestling, his body can’t physically stay in ring shape anymore.

“I think a lot of people saw this invincible character and what this year has done is given an air of vulnerability to me,” Calaway told Yahoo Sports regarding The Last Ride. “It really wasn’t my original goal, but I do think it encapsulates how important it was for me to be the Undertaker for our fans. From the time that we start the doc, I think it shows what it took me physically to go out and honor that. That was the gist of where we took the story, how important it was for me to go out and perform and it was a natural segway into the person.”

“I still have the passion to do it, I wish I could do it forever,” he later added. “When I watch the shows or I’m there live, the juices start flowing and I feel like I have to get ready to go out and perform. The reality of the situation is that I’m not physically able to perform at the level I want to perform at. I could go out there and cash in on all of the equity I’ve built up over 30 years, but I can’t deliver physically what I think people pay money to see the Undertaker do.”