Why Former WWE Star Muhammad Hassan Found Match With The Undertaker 'Bittersweet'

Following a controversial segment that aired in the wake of the London bombings, Muhammad Hassan, along with WWE, was met with major backlash from media outlets and UPN — the network that hosted "WWE SmackDown" at the time. After Hassan had been dismissed from his "SmackDown" duties, it became clear that he would soon be written out of WWE completely. With this in mind, Mark Copani, the man behind the gimmick, recalled mixed emotions heading into Great American Bash 2005, which featured a match between himself and The Undertaker in which the winner received a future shot at the World Heavyweight Championship.

"[Undertaker] is just the guy, never had an issue with him. Always very gracious in the ring, always very easy and light to work with, but also just an unbelievable genius about telling a story. I'm the heel and he's leading me, which I ... obviously wouldn't have it any other way, he's The Undertaker. One of my most favorite matches of all time was my last match ever in the WWE ring, and that was against The Undertaker and it was bittersweet," Copani said on "The False Finish."

"I do remember the sadness that I had," Copani continued. "I drove there because, again, I lived in Syracuse, and I was staying at my parents house. I remember driving back and just being like, 'Okay, now what?' But I'll tell you what, that's the one thing that I am ... I wasn't thinking, 'Poor me, poor me.' I was thinking, 'Well, what's next? What happens next? What do I do next?'" Despite that contest ultimately being his last match in WWE, Copani noted that the ending was the most ideal way for him to exit the company — via a Last Ride from Undertaker.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The False Finish" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription