The Undertaker tries to catch his breathe during a match against Brock Lesnar. (Photo : Getty Images/JP Yim)
The Undertaker underwent hip surgery a couple of months ago to prolong his WWE career. On the other hand, WWE World Champion A.J. Styles suffered an ankle injury at the TLC pay-per-view. As a result, he was unable to defend his title on SmackDown Live against James Ellsworth.
The Deadman returned to WWE television on the November 15 episode of SmackDown Live. He announced that he will have a more regular role on the show. However, he has not appeared on television ever since.
According to 411 Mania, The Undertaker was backstage on the December 5 episode of Monday Night Raw. He was reportedly "limping pretty badly" which means he might not be 100 percent healthy from his hip surgery.
Raw was held in Houston, a three-hour drive from the 51-year-old home in Austin. His wife, Michelle McCool, and their children were on Raw and they were at ringside on the side of the hard camera. The Undertaker, on the other hand, was not seen on television.
It led to a lot of speculation that The Phenom is not healthy enough for WrestleMania 33. However, it should be noted that the event is still four months away. He has a lot of time to recover and he was not limping during his appearance on SmackDown Live.
Styles, one of The Undertaker's rumored opponents at the Royal Rumble, was also suffering from an injury. He hurt his ankle during the TLC match against Dean Ambrose in the PPV of the same name last Sunday.
The champ that runs the camp was given the day off on Monday while he was in a walking boot during his appearance on SmackDown Live this past Tuesday, per WWE.com. He canceled his title defense against Ellsworth, who helped him win at TLC.
It is expected that Styles will be given the week off and his injury is considered minor. The WWE was just being cautious with him that is why he did not wrestle this Tuesday. Nevertheless, Styles is clearly moving on from Ambrose and there is no clear No. 1 contender.
The Undertaker vs. A.J Styles match is something that fans want to see. It might not happen or it might, but one thing is for sure: the health of both superstars is more important. Check out the video below to see Styles announce his injury on SmackDown Live.
