Early career (1992–1995) Jacobs was trained by
Dean Malenko, Placing emphasis on Jacobs' imposing height and weight, Yankem was portrayed as a monstrous figure whom Lawler had hired for the purpose of ridding the WWF of his long-time nemesis,
Bret Hart. The character's in-ring debut occurred at a
Superstars taping on August 15, where Jacobs lost to Hart by count-out. In September 1996,
play-by-play announcer
Jim Ross introduced Jacobs as
Diesel, and
Rick Bognar as
Razor Ramon, as part of a heavily criticized storyline mocking the departure of former employees Kevin Nash and Scott Hall respectively, while attempting to portray Ross as a disgruntled employee. The pair competed primarily as a tag team, losing a
WWF Tag Team Championship match to titleholders
Owen Hart and The British Bulldog at December's
In Your House 12: It's Time. As Diesel, he lost to The Undertaker via disqualification in the main event of the December 22 edition of
WWF Superstars of Wrestling and defeated Marc Mero on
WWF Shotgun Saturday Night on January 11, 1997. He competed in the 1997
Kuwait Cup, but was eliminated by
Davey Boy Smith in the first round. In May 1997, Jacobs and Razor Ramon went to Mexico to work for
Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. On June 24, 1997, Jacobs lost to Razor Ramon in a Loser Leaves Town match at USWA. In July 1997, Jacobs briefly returned to the United States Wrestling Association as Doomsday, winning the
USWA Heavyweight Championship from
Spellbinder. a
horror-themed
juggernaut and hellish personification of everything relating to fire. The character's theme and persona is rooted in
malevolent acts of
arson by his older half-brother, The Undertaker, that occurred during their youth. At
In Your House 14: Revenge of the 'Taker on April 20, The Undertaker launched a fireball into the face of his former manager,
Paul Bearer, who had previously had his protégé
Mankind do the same to The Undertaker prior to the event. On the May 12 edition of
Raw, Mankind reintroduced Bearer, who attempted to reunite with Undertaker because of his status as
WWF Champion. This was all following a long period of mutual hostility between the two. After The Undertaker's adamant refusals, Bearer used the
ultimatum of revealing The Undertaker's "deepest, darkest secret" to the world in order to coerce him into being his protégé. The Undertaker begrudgingly acceded to Bearer's wishes for a few months but eventually lost his patience with Bearer's abrasive management of him and rejected all association with him. Bearer responded by publicly revealing that his long-lost brother, Kane (later revealed as Bearer's illegitimate son and the Undertaker's
half-brother), was coming to the WWF to challenge him. On April 4, they faced each other again at Mayhem in Manchester, where the Undertaker defeated Kane again. They continued to feud until
Unforgiven: In Your House on April 26, when The Undertaker defeated Kane in the first ever Inferno match. In this match, Bearer tried to help Kane by attacking Undertaker, but as Kane was retreating backstage, Vader forced Kane back towards the ring, and The Undertaker attacked them both by jumping over the ring ropes surrounded by fire before setting Kane's right arm on fire. At
Over the Edge: In Your House on May 31, Kane defeated Vader in a
Mask vs. Mask match. On the June 1 episode of
Raw Is War, Kane defeated The Undertaker to become the number one contender to the WWF Championship. At the
King of the Ring on June 28, Kane defeated
Stone Cold Steve Austin in a
First Blood match following interferences by Mankind and The Undertaker to win the WWF Championship. Kane lost the title back to Austin the following night on
Raw Is War.
The Brothers of Destruction (1998–2001) In June, Kane formed a tag team with
Mankind, with whom he won the
WWF Tag Team Championship twice that summer. After dissension between the partners saw their second reign end at
SummerSlam on August 30, Kane broke away from Mankind and allied with The Undertaker, with the duo being known as the
Brothers of Destruction. At
Breakdown: In Your House on September 27, Kane, The Undertaker, and Stone Cold Steve Austin competed in a
triple threat match for Austin's WWF Championship; Kane and The Undertaker were prohibited from
pinning each other, so they pinned Austin at the
same time. The half-brothers fought one another for the vacant WWF Championship at
Judgment Day: In Your House on October 18, with the match ending in a
no contest when
special guest referee Austin counted a double pinfall and declared himself the winner; during the match, The Undertaker betrayed Kane for Paul Bearer, turning Kane
face. At
Rock Bottom: In Your House on December 13, Kane interfered in the
Buried Alive match between Austin and The Undertaker, attacking The Undertaker and costing him the match. As a result,
The Corporation had Kane committed to an insane asylum. In December, Kane joined
The Corporation to stay out of the insane asylum. During this time, Kane aligned himself with
Chyna and feuded with
Triple H. At
WrestleMania XV on March 28, 1999, Kane was betrayed by Chyna and thrown out of The Corporation. Kane then formed a tag team with
X-Pac and acquired a girlfriend,
Tori. While teaming with X-Pac, Kane evolved from being
mute to aided speech through an
electrolarynx to speaking unaided. He also became associated with
D-Generation X (DX), the faction of which X-Pac was a member. His first unaided words were the DX slogan "suck it". The duo won the WWF Tag Team Championship twice. Kane returned on the May 29 episode of
Raw is War, when he helped The Undertaker and
The Rock fight off the McMahon-Helmsley Faction. His involvement in this feud culminated in a main event match at
King of the Ring on June 25 against
Vince and
Shane McMahon, and then-champion
Triple H. The Undertaker and Kane's rivalry resurfaced during the match, Kane stayed in contention for the WWF Championship for the remainder of the year and ended 2000 in a feud with
Chris Jericho; Kane defeated him at
Survivor Series on November 19 and again at
Rebellion on December 2, but he ultimately lost to Jericho in a
Last Man Standing match at
Armageddon on December 10. Kane turned face once again by reforming his alliance with The Undertaker immediately after the
Royal Rumble on January 21, 2001, in which he eliminated 11 wrestlers and was the runner-up, after being eliminated by Stone Cold Steve Austin. Kane competed for the
Hardcore Championship, defeating Raven for the title at
WrestleMania X-Seven on April 1 in a triple threat match that also featured
Big Show, later losing the title to
Rhyno on the April 19 episode of
SmackDown!. Kane and The Undertaker began teaming as The Brothers of Destruction, and in the course of the year they feuded with
Edge and Christian, Rikishi and
Haku, and
The Two-Man Power Trip. At
Judgment Day on May 20, Kane defeated Triple H in a
Chain match to win the
Intercontinental Championship. Kane lost the title to
Albert on the June 28 episode of
SmackDown! following interference from
Diamond Dallas Page. During
The Invasion, Kane and The Undertaker feuded with Page and
Kanyon after Page began stalking The Undertaker's wife Sara. The feud culminated at
SummerSlam on August 19, where they defeated Page and Kanyon in a steel cage match, resulting in them holding both the WWF Tag Team Kane and The Undertaker defeated
KroniK at
Unforgiven on September 23 to retain the WCW Tag Team Championship and both participated in the ten-man
Winner-Takes-All match at
Survivor Series on November 18 as members of the victorious Team WWF.
Unmasking (2002–2004) On March 25, 2002, the WWF was
divided into two brands, Raw and SmackDown!, with Kane being drafted to Raw. Kane shortly feuded with the
New World Order (nWo) and began acting human by talking through his mask and referring to his fans as "Kanenites". Kane returned to the renamed WWE as part of the Raw roster in August, with a new outfit and half-mask where his facial hair was shown. On the September 23 episode of
Raw, Kane and
The Hurricane won the
WWE Tag Team Championship after defeating
The Un-Americans (
Lance Storm and
Christian). On the October 7 episode of
Raw, Kane successfully single-handedly defended the World Tag Team Championship in a four-team
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, as The Hurricane had been attacked earlier that evening by Triple H and Ric Flair and was unable to compete. That match was later nominated as WWE's 2002 "Match of the Year". Kane and The Hurricane lost the World Tag Team Championship to Chris Jericho and Christian the following week on
Raw. He claimed that after Vick was killed in a
car crash, Kane
had sex with her. Triple H later threatened to show video footage of Kane committing the act in question. The footage that finally aired showed Triple H (dressed as Kane) simulating mock sex with a
mannequin in a casket; and was de-emphasised before the title match. Triple H defeated Kane at No Mercy, due to Triple H and Flair cheating, unifying the two titles. On the October 28 episode of
Raw, Kane defeated Triple H in a non-title Casket match to end their feud. At
Survivor Series on November 17, Kane participated in the first-ever
Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship, which was won by
Shawn Michaels. Kane then formed a tag team with
Rob Van Dam, with the duo eventually winning the World Tag Team Championship from
Chief Morley and Lance Storm in a triple threat elimination match (also involving the
Dudley Boyz) on the March 31, 2003 episode of
Raw. The unmasking rendered Kane emotionally unstable, and in an interview with
Jim Ross on the July 14 episode of
Raw, Kane attacked Ross and set him on fire. He later attacked
Linda McMahon on the
Raw stage the following week. This action sparked a feud between Kane and Shane McMahon, Linda's son, with Kane defeating Shane in a
last man standing match at
Unforgiven on September 21 and an
ambulance match at
Survivor Series on November 16. At Survivor Series, Kane also interfered in a
Buried Alive match between Vince McMahon and The Undertaker, helping McMahon bury The Undertaker and win the match.
Storyline with Lita (2004–2005) against
Edge After losing at WrestleMania XX, Kane fell in love with
Lita, but was spurned. This led to him kidnapping Lita in May, and on the same night, Kane won a 20-man
battle royal for a World Heavyweight Championship match against
Chris Benoit at
Bad Blood on June 13. Six days before Bad Blood in a handicap tag team match between Kane and La Resistance against Edge and Benoit, Kane pinned Benoit, then lost to him at Bad Blood. Lita later announced that she was pregnant, with
Matt Hardy her then-boyfriend both on- and off-screen, assuming that he was the child's father. On the June 21 episode of
Raw, Kane claimed that he was the father. The next week, he explained that he had impregnated Lita to continue his legacy and justified an attack on Shawn Michaels a week earlier by claiming that Michaels had stood in the way of him winning the World Heavyweight Championship. To appease Kane, General Manager Eric Bischoff gave Kane a rematch with Benoit, instructing Benoit that he could only win by submission, whereas Kane could win the title by any means. Kane again lost to Benoit, and following the match, Lita came to the ring and low-blowed Kane, who initially went to chokeslam her in revenge, but stopped when he realized that she was trying to force him to cause her to miscarry their child. Kane and Matt Hardy faced one another in a "Till Death Do Us Part" match at
SummerSlam on August 15, with Lita obliged to wed the victor. Kane defeated Hardy at SummerSlam, and "married" Lita on the August 23 episode of
Raw. Although he was attacked by Hardy during the ceremony, he gained the upper hand and ultimately chokeslammed Hardy off the stage. A week after the wedding, General Manager Eric Bischoff gave Kane and Lita the wedding gift of choosing any match that Kane wanted at
Unforgiven on September 12. Shawn Michaels was chosen and defeated Kane in a no-disqualification match at Unforgiven. The next night, on the September 13 episode of
Raw, Kane accidentally fell on Lita during a match with the debuting
Gene Snitsky, who hit him on the back with a steel chair, ostensibly causing Lita to miscarry. Kane turned face by seeking revenge against Snitsky for causing the death of his child but lost to Snitsky in a steel chain match (which was selected by the fans) at
Taboo Tuesday on October 19. Kane was sidelined for several months after Snitsky crushed his
larynx with a chair during the match. This storyline gave Jacobs time to complete his role in the film,
See No Evil. Kane returned by defeating Snitsky at
New Year's Revolution on January 9, 2005. Kane and Lita reconciled with one another and began antagonizing Lita's rival
Trish Stratus. This led to a match between Kane and Stratus' hired bodyguard
Viscera at
Backlash on May 1 that was won by Kane. Lita later turned on Kane and started an on-screen relationship with her real-life boyfriend at the time
Edge. This led to a feud between Kane and Edge, whom Kane defeated at
Vengeance on June 26 despite interference from Snitsky. The feud ended when Edge defeated Kane in a
Stretcher match on the July 25 episode of
Raw.
Teaming with Big Show (2005–2006) Kane returned to WWE television on the October 17 episode of
Raw, winning an 18-man battle royal. As a result of his victory, he, along with Big Show and Shawn Michaels, was featured in an Internet poll to decide who would receive a shot at the
WWE Championship at
Taboo Tuesday on November 1. In the weeks before Taboo Tuesday, Kane and Big Show teamed together on several occasions. The poll was won by Michaels, and Kane and Big Show teamed together to face
Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch, defeating them for the World Tag Team Championship. One week later, Kane and Big Show faced Spirit Squad members
Johnny and
Nicky in a rematch for the title, but were disqualified after Kane "snapped", ostensibly due to "voices in his head". In subsequent weeks, Kane began attacking anyone who mentioned the date May 19. During the match between Kane and Big Show at
Backlash on April 30, Kane's voice began echoing throughout the arena saying "May 19th", "It's happening again" and "They're all going to know", leaving Kane visibly shaken. Big Show then struck Kane with a chair, resulting in a no contest. On May 19, Kane appeared on
SmackDown! as
John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL)'s hand-picked opponent for
Rey Mysterio. After the aforementioned voices and mask video began playing, Kane chokeslammed JBL and Mysterio, before leaving the ring. On the June 26 episode of
Raw, Kane threw the impostor out of the arena and removed his mask, saying "I believe that this is mine". Kane was absent from WWE television for two months thereafter as he toured Europe to promote
See No Evil. Kane returned at
SummerSlam on August 20, attacking
Umaga, who was interfering in the D-Generation-X versus Mr. McMahon and Shane McMahon tag team match. Upon his return, he faced his former partner Big Show for the
ECW World Championship in a losing effort. Soon after, Kane would engage in a major feud with Umaga that concluded on the October 9 episode of
Raw in a Loser Leaves Raw match, which he lost.
Brothers of Destruction reunion (2006–2007) when he returned to SmackDown! in 2006 On the October 13 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane moved to the SmackDown! brand. On the November 3 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane reunited with The Undertaker as The Brothers of Destruction to defeat
Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) and
Mr. Kennedy. Kane continued a feud with MVP competing in several gimmick matches. The result of the feud was an Inferno match at
Armageddon on December 17; Kane won by setting MVP's back on fire which resulted in first degree burns. On the January 26, 2007 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane was involved in a six-man elimination over-the-top-rope battle royal, with King Booker, MVP,
The Miz, Chris Benoit, and
Finlay. This match went to a no-contest as The Undertaker interrupted after Kane had been eliminated and punished by the remaining opponents. At the
Royal Rumble on January 28, Kane eliminated King Booker, who re-entered the ring and eliminated him. On the February 2 episode of
SmackDown!, while receiving the key to the city in his hometown of Houston, King Booker was attacked by Kane starting a feud between the two. At
No Way Out on February 18, Kane defeated King Booker. On the February 23 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane lost to King Booker in a Falls Count Anywhere Money in the Bank Qualifying match after interference from
The Great Khali, sparking a feud between the two. Kane started to walk around with a hook, similar to the hook he used as Jacob Goodnight in
See No Evil. At
WrestleMania 23 on April 1, Kane lost to Khali. During the match, in homage to
Hulk Hogan slamming
André the Giant twenty years earlier at
WrestleMania III, Kane picked up Khali for the first time and body-slammed him to the mat. After WrestleMania, he began to feud with
William Regal and Dave Taylor.
The Boogeyman then joined the feud, teaming up with Kane. On the May 4 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane competed in a number one contender's match for the United States Championship against MVP. Kane lost due to interference by Regal and Taylor. On the May 25 episode of
SmackDown!, Kane competed in a fatal four-way number one contender's match for the World Heavyweight Championship which was won by Batista. Kane then entered a short feud with
Mark Henry, losing to him in a
Lumberjack match at
One Night Stand on June 3 due to interference from lumberjacks Kenny Dykstra and
Chavo Guerrero and then took a short hiatus. On the July 6 episode of
SmackDown!, General Manager
Theodore Long announced that Kane would face Edge for the
World Heavyweight Championship at
The Great American Bash on July 22. After Edge was attacked and injured by Kane and the title was vacated,
Batista faced Kane in a number one contender's match on the July 20 episode of
SmackDown!. During the match, new World Heavyweight Champion The Great Khali interfered by attacking Batista; the match was ruled a no-contest and both men were ruled the number one contenders and were scheduled to face Khali in a triple threat match at The Great American Bash. Khali retained the title after pinning Kane for the win at The Great American Bash. Kane later teamed up with Batista on the August 18 ''
Saturday Night's Main Event'' to defeat Khali and Finlay. Kane then entered a storyline with Finlay, which led to a match at
SummerSlam on August 26, which Kane won after chokeslamming Finlay. They continued to feud, which included Kane losing to Finlay in a number one contender's tournament on the August 31 episode of
SmackDown! after interference from
Hornswoggle. Kane then made an appearance on the October 16 episode of
ECW as the hand-chosen partner of
ECW Champion CM Punk, helping him defeat John Morrison, The Miz, and
Big Daddy V in a three-on-two handicap match. In retaliation, Big Daddy V attacked Kane on the October 19 episode of
SmackDown!, igniting a feud between the two. The two continued to battle in the following weeks. Kane was voted to face the defending champion MVP for his United States Championship at
Cyber Sunday on October 28, which Kane won by countout and thus did not win the title. After this, he continued to feud with Big Daddy V, with the two ending up on opposite teams at
Survivor Series on November 18, where Kane's team won. Big Daddy V eventually began to team with Mark Henry, while Kane teamed with CM Punk. The feud concluded at
Armageddon on December 16, where Kane and Punk lost to Big Daddy V and Henry after Big Daddy V pinned Punk.
ECW Champion (2008–2009) at a WWE Live Event in February 2008. In a battle royal before
WrestleMania XXIV on March 30, 2008, Kane won by last eliminating former rival Mark Henry, earning a match for the
ECW Championship against Chavo Guerrero later that night. Kane defeated Guerrero in the second fastest WrestleMania match with a record-setting
eleven seconds to win the ECW Championship. Shortly after winning the championship, Kane officially joined the ECW brand. At
Backlash on April 27, Kane successfully defended the ECW Championship against Guerrero. He then continued teaming with CM Punk to earn a
WWE Tag Team Championship match at
Judgment Day on May 18, which they lost to
John Morrison and The Miz. On the June 23 episode of
Raw, as part of the
2008 WWE Draft, Kane was drafted to the Raw brand, making the ECW Championship exclusive to Raw. Kane lost the ECW Championship to Mark Henry at
Night of Champions on June 29 in a triple threat match that also involved Big Show. On the July 7 episode of
Raw, Kane lost a number one contender's fatal four-way match to Batista (Batista would advance to the
World Heavyweight Championship match at
The Great American Bash on July 20), leading him to attack commentators
Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler, thus turning heel in the process. At The Great American Bash, Kane interfered and attacked both the champion CM Punk and the challenger Batista, causing the match to end in a double disqualification. In September, Kane began a feud with Rey Mysterio that lasted through
Survivor Series on November 23. On the March 2, 2009 episode of
Raw, Kane pinned
Mike Knox in a triple threat match, also involving Rey Mysterio, to earn a spot in the
Money in the Bank ladder match at
WrestleMania 25 on April 5, a match ultimately won by CM Punk. During the
2009 draft Kane beat The
Brian Kendrick for a draft pick and, later in the night, was drafted to the SmackDown brand. There, Kane feuded with CM Punk and defeated him at
Backlash on April 26. He then took a break to tour India and also heal injuries, returning at
The Bash on June 28 to assist
Dolph Ziggler in his match with The Great Khali by hitting Khali with a steel chair, allowing Ziggler to win. This started a feud with Khali, whom he defeated at
SummerSlam on August 23 and in a Singapore Cane match at
Breaking Point on September 13. Alongside Chris Jericho, Kane was co-captain for the victorious Team SmackDown at
Bragging Rights on October 25. On the October 30 episode of
SmackDown, Kane then unsuccessfully challenged Jericho in a number one contender's match for an opportunity to face World Heavyweight Champion The Undertaker and Big Show in a triple threat match at
Survivor Series on November 22. In November, Kane reunited with The Undertaker to feud with Big Show and Jericho, thus turning face.
World Heavyweight Champion (2010–2011) At
WrestleMania XXVI on March 28, 2010, during the Money in the Bank ladder match, Kane was unsuccessful in claiming the briefcase as
Jack Swagger won the match. Over the next few months, Kane was involved in sporadic singles matches on episodes of
SmackDown, including a loss to CM Punk in May in a qualifying match for the World Heavyweight Championship match for the
Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view event on June 20. On the June 4 episode of
SmackDown, Kane stated he had found his brother The Undertaker in a "vegetative state" over
Memorial Day weekend and vowed revenge on whoever was responsible. Due to Undertaker's injury, a battle royal was held to determine his replacement for Fatal 4-Way, which Rey Mysterio won by last eliminating Kane. Mysterio would go on to win the match at Fatal 4-Way. Kane participated in the SmackDown Money in the Bank ladder match at the first
Money in the Bank pay-per-view on July 18. He won the match, and cashed in his Money in the Bank contract later that night, defeating Rey Mysterio (who had just defeated Jack Swagger) to win the World Heavyweight Championship, thus making Kane the first wrestler in WWE history to win the WWE Championship, the ECW Championship, and the World Heavyweight Championship. He became the first wrestler to cash in the Money in the Bank contract on the same night it was won and also holds the record for the fastest cash in at 47 minutes. On the next
SmackDown on July 23, Kane accused Mysterio of putting The Undertaker in a vegetative state; Mysterio countered the accusations, claiming that Kane himself was the perpetrator. At
SummerSlam on August 15, Kane retained the World Heavyweight Championship against Mysterio, and following their match, The Undertaker appeared. Kane was revealed as The Undertaker's attacker, thus turning heel once again and reigniting their feud. He successfully defended the World Heavyweight Championship against The Undertaker in a
No Holds Barred match at
Night of Champions on September 19. On the following episode of
SmackDown, a
casket was brought to ringside by
druids to reveal the return of Paul Bearer, supporting The Undertaker. At
Hell in a Cell on October 3, Bearer turned on The Undertaker and allied himself with Kane, who retained the World Heavyweight Championship in a
Hell in a Cell match with Bearer's help. At
Bragging Rights on October 24, Kane defeated The Undertaker in a
Buried Alive match after help from
The Nexus to retain the World Heavyweight Championship once again, thus ending their feud. Kane then rekindled his feud with
Edge, who on the October 29 episode of
SmackDown was named the new challenger to Kane's World Heavyweight Championship at
Survivor Series on November 21. On the November 12 episode of
SmackDown, Edge kidnapped Bearer and started to play mind games with Kane, trying to psychologically wear him down before their title match. At Survivor Series, Kane retained his title after the referee determined the match a draw due to both men pinning each other at the same time. As Edge still had Bearer in his captivity, Kane agreed to a rematch at the
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view on December 19. On the December 3 episode of
SmackDown, Edge defeated Kane in a non-title match to win the right to determine the stipulation for the title match; Edge chose a
Tables, Ladders and Chairs match before leaving Kane with a Paul Bearer lookalike and driving away with the genuine Bearer strapped to the back of a truck. The following week, Kane accidentally injured Bearer, believing it to be another hoax by Edge, and Bearer was written out of the storyline. The week after, Kane rampaged into the stadium to hunt down Edge hoping to get back at him but the two were nearly restrained by the entire Smackdown roster. At TLC, Kane lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Edge in a four-way Tables, Ladders and Chairs match also involving Mysterio and
Alberto Del Rio. Kane received his rematch for the World Heavyweight Championship on the January 7, 2011 episode of
SmackDown in a Last Man Standing match, but was unsuccessful. Kane competed in the
Royal Rumble match on January 30, the largest Royal Rumble match in history, and was the 40th and final person to enter the match, but was eliminated by Rey Mysterio. Kane then competed in the
Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship at
Elimination Chamber on February 20, eliminating
Drew McIntyre and Big Show before being eliminated by Edge. The following month, Kane reunited with the Big Show against a common enemy,
The Corre, thus turning face once again in the process. Kane and Big Show began challenging them for the tag team titles and saving other wrestlers from their attacks. At
WrestleMania XXVII on April 3, Big Show and Kane teamed with
Santino Marella and
Kofi Kingston to beat The Corre. The next week, a rematch took place under two out of three falls rules, which Kane's team won. On the April 22 episode of
SmackDown, the duo defeated Corre members
Justin Gabriel and
Heath Slater to win the
WWE Tag Team Championship, their second championship as a team. Big Show and Kane then started feuding with the New Nexus. After defending the titles against CM Punk and
Mason Ryan at
Over the Limit on May 22, Kane and Big Show lost the championship to
Michael McGillicutty and
David Otunga the following night on
Raw. The team disbanded after the match, as Big Show suffered an injury. Kane participated in the second annual SmackDown
Money in the Bank ladder match at
Money in the Bank on July 17, but the match was won by
Daniel Bryan. On the July 22 episode of
SmackDown after losing a street fight to Randy Orton, Kane was attacked by
Mark Henry, who injured his leg with a steel chair. WWE reported the attack had fractured Kane's
fibula, likely to sideline him for five months.
Remasking (2011–2012) in April 2012. Beginning in November, WWE began airing vignettes featuring Kane and a burning red mask and ending with the words "Kane Resurrected" appearing on screen. Kane returned on the December 12 episode of
Raw SuperShow wearing a metallic mask and new ring attire inspired by the incisions of a postmortem human body after an
autopsy. He interrupted the main event between Mark Henry and
John Cena, attacking Cena before removing the metallic mask to reveal a new red mask and turning
heel once again. Kane continued to attack Cena in the following weeks, claiming he wanted Cena to "embrace the hate" from Cena's detractors, rather than try to "Rise Above Hate", as Cena's T-shirt proclaimed. Kane also attacked and injured Cena's ally
Zack Ryder. Kane and Cena fought to a double countout at the
Royal Rumble on January 29, 2012. After the match, Kane attacked Ryder with a
Tombstone Piledriver and then he
chokeslammed Cena. On February 19 at
Elimination Chamber, Cena defeated Kane in an
Ambulance match to end the feud. In March, Kane initiated a feud with Randy Orton by attacking him. Kane later explained that he needed to feel like a monster again, and believed that defeating Orton would allow him to do that. Orton retaliated in the following weeks, leading to a match at
WrestleMania XXVIII on April 1, which Kane won. In a rematch on the following
SmackDown, Orton defeated Kane in a No Disqualification match. After Kane attacked Orton and his father,
"Cowboy" Bob Orton, the pair faced off at
Extreme Rules on April 29, in a Falls Count Anywhere match, which Orton won by utilizing a steel chair. At the
Over the Limit preshow on May 20, Kane defeated Zack Ryder.
Team Hell No (2012–2013) Kane then engaged in a three-way feud with WWE Champion CM Punk and
Daniel Bryan after Bryan interfered in a non-title match between Kane and Punk to frame Punk for attacking Kane with a steel chair. On the June 1 episode of
SmackDown, a WWE Championship match between Kane and Punk ended in a double disqualification after Bryan attacked both men. On the June 4 episode of
Raw SuperShow, Kane beat CM Punk in a non-title match. Meanwhile, Bryan's jilted ex-girlfriend
AJ Lee turned her affections to both Punk and Kane. The feud culminated in a triple threat match at
No Way Out on June 17, where Punk retained the WWE Championship after AJ distracted Kane. On the
1000th episode of Raw on July 23, Kane turned
face once again when he was saved by his brother
The Undertaker from an attack by
Jinder Mahal,
Drew McIntyre,
Tyler Reks,
Curt Hawkins,
Hunico and
Camacho. At
SummerSlam on August 19, Kane was defeated by Bryan. As a result of Bryan and Kane's issues, AJ enrolled them in
anger management classes hosted by Dr. Shelby and they were later forced to compete in a "Hug it Out" match. At the arrangement of Dr. Shelby and AJ, the two adversaries formed a team whose constant infighting during matches inadvertently resulted in them defeating
The Prime Time Players (
Titus O'Neil and
Darren Young) to become the number one contenders to the WWE Tag Team Championship, and defeating champions Kofi Kingston and R-Truth to win the titles at
Night of Champions on September 16. Kane and Bryan made their first successful title defense the following night on
Raw, defeating the former champions in a rematch. The following week on
Raw, "Team Hell No" was chosen as the official team name via a
Twitter poll. Team Hell No entered a feud with Team Rhodes Scholars (
Cody Rhodes and
Damien Sandow), and successfully defended the championship against them on multiple occasions (including at
Hell in a Cell on October 28 and the November 14 episode of
Main Event). On the November 26 episode of
Raw, both Kane and Bryan were assaulted by
The Shield (
Dean Ambrose,
Seth Rollins, and
Roman Reigns). Team Hell No allied with
Ryback to face The Shield, but lost a
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 16. Further successful title defenses against Team Rhodes Scholars and 3 MB (
Drew McIntyre and Heath Slater) followed throughout December and January 2013. On the February 11 episode of
Raw, Kane defeated Dolph Ziggler to earn the final spot in the number one contender Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship, but was the second man eliminated from the match at the
Elimination Chamber pay-per-view on February 17. On April 7 at
WrestleMania 29, Team Hell No defeated Dolph Ziggler and
Big E Langston in another successful title defense. Following WrestleMania, Team Hell No rekindled their rivalry with The Shield after they saved The Undertaker from The Shield. On the April 22 episode of
Raw, Team Hell No and The Undertaker were defeated by the Shield in a six-man tag team match. Kane and Bryan then faced members of the stable in both tag team and singles competition, but were mainly unsuccessful. On May 19 at
Extreme Rules, Kane and Bryan lost the WWE Tag Team Championship to Shield members Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, ending their reign at 245 days. Team Hell No lost their WWE Tag Team Championship rematch against Reigns and Rollins on the May 27 episode of
Raw. On the June 14 episode of
SmackDown, Kane, Bryan and Randy Orton ended the Shield's unpinned/unsubmitted streak in televised six-man tag matches. Kane unsuccessfully challenged Dean Ambrose for the
United States Championship at
Payback on June 16 and the following night on
Raw. On the July 8 episode of
Raw, Kane beat Christian in a Money in the Bank qualifying match, then he was attacked and injured by the debuting
Wyatt Family, removing him from his scheduled match at
Money in the Bank on July 14. Kane returned three weeks later, losing to Bryan. Following the match, he was attacked again by The Wyatt Family, setting up a
Ring of Fire match at
SummerSlam on August 18 against
Bray Wyatt. Kane lost the match, following interference from
Erick Rowan and
Luke Harper, and after another attack, he was carried out of the arena by The Wyatt Family. The storyline was put in place to allow Jacobs time off to film
See No Evil 2.
The Authority (2013–2015) 's Director of Operations in 2014 Following a two-month hiatus, Kane returned at
Hell in a Cell on October 27, attacking both The Wyatt Family and
The Miz. The next night on
Raw, Kane pledged allegiance to
Stephanie McMahon by handing her his mask, and reinforced his loyalty the next week by aiding members of
The Authority, turning
heel in the process. As part of his character change, he appeared unmasked and wore a suit and tie to fit in with the corporate ideology of The Authority, and was given a fictional role as "Director of Operations". Kane then involved himself in The Authority's feud with Daniel Bryan, which included Kane booking himself in a match with Bryan on the February 17 episode of
Raw and interfering in the WWE World Heavyweight Championship Elimination Chamber match at
Elimination Chamber on February 23 (where Randy Orton was defending his championship against Bryan, John Cena,
Sheamus,
Cesaro, and
Christian.) Following
WrestleMania XXX on April 6, after Kane and
The New Age Outlaws lost to The Shield, Kane was berated by Stephanie McMahon and told to find the "Big Red Monster" that he was before. He returned to his masked self that same week, attacking
Big Show following the April 15 episode of
Main Event. On the April 21 episode of
Raw, Stephanie McMahon announced Kane as the number one contender to the
WWE World Heavyweight Championship at
Extreme Rules on May 4, prompting Kane to attack champion Daniel Bryan and his wife
Brie Bella. Kane lost his title match to Bryan at Extreme Rules. At
Money in the Bank on June 29, Kane helped
Seth Rollins win his
Money in the Bank contract, and then he competed in a WWE World Heavyweight Championship ladder match, which was won by John Cena. At
Battleground on July 20, Kane competed in a WWE World Heavyweight Championship fatal four-way match against John Cena, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns, but Cena retained the title. On the July 28 episode of
Raw, Kane was scheduled to face Roman Reigns, but Kane and Randy Orton attacked Reigns before the match began. On the August 4 episode of
Raw, after Kane lost to Roman Reigns in a
Last Man Standing match, he relinquished his mask and gave it to Stephanie McMahon. The following week on
Raw, Kane resumed his role as The Authority's Director of Operations. At
Survivor Series on November 23, Kane was part of Team Authority in the main event, and was eliminated by
Dolph Ziggler, who ultimately won the match for Team Cena. After Survivor Series, he began feuding with
Ryback, which led to a chairs match between the two at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 14, where Ryback emerged victorious. At the
Royal Rumble on January 25, 2015, Kane eliminated four superstars, thus surpassing the record for most overall eliminations in the Royal Rumble match. At
Fastlane on February 22, Kane, Big Show, and Seth Rollins defeated Dolph Ziggler,
Erick Rowan, and Ryback, after Kane pinned Ziggler. Kane participated in the 2nd Annual
André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at
WrestleMania 31 on March 29, and was eliminated by
Cesaro. At
Extreme Rules on April 26, Kane served as the "gatekeeper" for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Steel Cage match between Seth Rollins and Randy Orton, which Rollins won by escaping the cage. At
Payback on May 17, Kane secured his role as Director of Operations by helping Rollins retain his title in a fatal four-way match against Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton, and Roman Reigns. At
Money in the Bank on June 14, Kane participated in the
Money in the Bank ladder match, which was won by
Sheamus. On the July 13 episode of
Raw, Kane was injured by
Brock Lesnar, who smashed his ankle with the steel ring steps. Following the attack, Rollins berated Kane and kicked his injured ankle. Kane returned at
Night of Champions on September 20 with his mask as his "Demon" persona, preventing
Sheamus from cashing in his
Money in the Bank contract and attacking
Seth Rollins, thus turning
face in the process. Kane appeared as both his "Demon" and "Corporate" personas and continued his feud with Rollins, defeating him in a lumberjack match on the October 12 episode of
Raw. "Demon" Kane lost his
WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Rollins at
Hell in a Cell on October 25, and as per the stipulation, "Corporate" Kane was fired from his role as
The Authority's Director of Operations.
Tag team reunions (2015–2020) during a feud with
The Wyatt Family in 2016 Following Hell in a Cell, Kane reunited with
The Undertaker to feud with
The Wyatt Family. At
Survivor Series on November 22,
The Brothers of Destruction defeated
Bray Wyatt and
Luke Harper in a tag team match. Kane was the seventh entrant in the
Royal Rumble match on January 24, 2016, and was eliminated by
Braun Strowman. At
Fastlane on February 21, Kane teamed up with
Big Show and
Ryback to defeat The Wyatt Family. At
WrestleMania 32 on April 3, Kane participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and was the runner-up, being eliminated by eventual winner
Baron Corbin. On July 19 at the
2016 WWE draft, Kane was drafted to the SmackDown brand. At
Backlash on September 11, Kane defeated Bray Wyatt following interference by
Randy Orton. At
Survivor Series on November 20, Kane defeated Luke Harper on the kick-off show. A rematch between the two was made on the November 29 episode of
SmackDown Live, in which Kane was once again victorious. On the October 16, 2017 episode of
Raw, after ten months of inactivity, Kane made a surprise return when he came from under the ring to attack
Roman Reigns, costing him a
Steel Cage match against Braun Strowman and joining
The Miz's team at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on October 22, thus moving to the Raw brand and turning
heel in the process. At TLC, Kane, The Miz, Strowman, and
The Bar were originally scheduled to compete in a
5-on-3 handicap TLC match against
The Shield, but
Roman Reigns was sidelined due to real-life illness. Donning the signature Shield ring attire,
Kurt Angle took Reigns' place in the match as an honorary member of The Shield alongside
Seth Rollins and
Dean Ambrose. Kane, Miz, Strowman and The Bar lost the match after Kane, Miz and The Bar betrayed Strowman. After defeating the likes of
Finn Bálor and Seth Rollins, Kane engaged in a feud with Strowman. On the December 11 episode of
Raw, Kane and Strowman fought to a double countout in a match to determine the number one contender to
Brock Lesnar's
Universal Championship. At the
Royal Rumble on January 28, 2018, Lesnar retained his title in a
triple threat match against both Kane and Strowman. Kane was written off television after losing a
Last Man Standing match against Strowman the following night on
Raw. He returned on the March 19 episode of
Raw and
chokeslammed
John Cena after Cena called out The Undertaker. The following week on
Raw, Kane lost to Cena in a no disqualification match. At
WrestleMania 34 on April 8, Kane participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, and lasted until the final four but was ultimately unsuccessful. Kane returned as a face on the June 26 episode of
SmackDown Live and saved
Daniel Bryan from
SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Bludgeon Brothers, thus reuniting
Team Hell No. At
Extreme Rules on July 15, Team Hell No lost to The Bludgeon Brothers in a SmackDown Tag Team Championship match after Kane was attacked by his opponents backstage. Kane made his return on the October 1 episode of
Raw and reunited with The Undertaker to feud with
Triple H and
Shawn Michaels. At
Super Show-Down in
Melbourne,
Australia on October 6, The Undertaker was defeated by Triple H following interference by Michaels. After the match, Kane and The Undertaker attacked Michaels and Triple H, setting up a tag team match between The Brothers of Destruction and
D-Generation X (DX) at
Crown Jewel on November 2. At Crown Jewel, despite dominating most of the match, the Brothers of Destruction lost to DX after Triple H pinned Kane. On the September 16, 2019 episode of
Raw, Kane returned after a hiatus of nearly a year this time under his real name, and he pinned
R-Truth to capture the
24/7 Championship, his only championship won under his real name, but dropped the title back to R-Truth. Later that night, his Kane persona reemerged and saved Universal Champion Seth Rollins from
The O.C. (
AJ Styles,
Luke Gallows, and
Karl Anderson) and
Raw Tag Team Champions Dolph Ziggler and
Robert Roode, but was subsequently attacked by
"The Fiend" Bray Wyatt. Kane returned on the January 17, 2020 episode of
SmackDown, where he was interrupted by The Fiend, but Daniel Bryan would attack The Fiend with a running knee and the two would subsequently have a brief reunion afterwards. At
Survivor Series on November 22, he made an appearance during The Undertaker's retirement ceremony.
WWE Hall of Famer (2021–present) At
Royal Rumble on January 31, 2021, Kane appeared as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble match, eliminating Dolph Ziggler and
Ricochet before being eliminated by
Damian Priest. On March 24, 2021, it was announced that Kane would be inducted into the
WWE Hall of Fame as part of the class of
2021. Kane's induction was completed on April 1, 2021. On September 17, prior to
SmackDown, Kane presented
Bianca Belair with a proclamation from the Tennessee Senate. He later appeared during
SmackDown during in-ring celebrations. Kane attended the 2022
WWE Hall of Fame in recognition of The Undertaker headlining the
ceremony. On the April 25, 2022 episode of
Raw, Kane made brief cameo appearances in two separate backstage segments involving Bianca Belair and Randy Orton. Kane made a surprise appearance at the 2022
SummerSlam event announcing the shows attendance, then delivered his signature ring pyro before leaving the ring. == Professional wrestling style and persona==