Over the past few weeks, speculation has been building that Stone Cold Steve Austin could be ready to compete again at WrestleMania 39.
On November 14th it was reported that WWE had offered Steve Austin a deal to come back. The Texas Rattlesnake returned to action for the first time in almost two decades at WrestleMania 38 where he defeated Kevin Owens.
Prior to that bout, it was thought Austin unable to compete due to injuries he had built up over his career.
Adding to the rumour mill, the former WWE Champion shared a number of workout videos on social media that showed he was in incredible shape. Austin explained away the workouts by saying he was tired of “looking like sh*t”.
Jim Cornette reveals how he would book Steve Austin at WrestleMania 39
Despite Steve Austin’s denials, fans have been fantasy booking a return to action for the Bionic Redneck at WrestleMania 39. Now, legendary manager Jim Cornette has weighed in with his thoughts on how it should be done.
Speaking on his Jim Cornette Experience podcast, began by explaining how easy it would be for WWE to sell out the Showcase Of The Immortals if the rumours are true and both Austin and The Rock were available.
“Well, I think, my God if they can get [Steve Austin]. Because remember they’re still talking about, or there’s rumour about The Rock being at WrestleMania in Hollywood, and they’ve long been wanting to put together The Rock vs. Roman Reigns. So if you had The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin, one at one night of WrestleMania and one at the next night of WrestleMania, well you then just fill the rest of the f*cking card and you’re sold out.”
Looking back on Austin’s appearance at WrestleMania 38, Cornette admitted he could see no issues with the star getting back in the ring.
“So Austin looked great. It was Vince that, bless him, was physically falling apart. Austin doesn’t have to have the kind of match that you shouldn’t have when you’re 50-something years old, he doesn’t have to have Ric Flair’s match that he shouldn’t have had when he’s 73 years old. He doesn’t have to go upside down on the turnbuckles to be Steve Austin.
“Against another guy, especially a younger guy that can take a majority of the big bumps and, through strength of personality and openness, my God it would probably be one of the highlights of the programme. I didn’t see anything about Austin in the last one that makes me think that if he didn’t embarrass himself against a 70-something-year-old billionaire, he’s not going to embarrass himself against one of the boys.”
When Cornette was asked how he would book Steve Austin at WrestleMania, he said that it should be against one of the younger stars that WWE wants to elevate.
“Well, you don’t want a legends match, because then nobody wants any of the other guys that you mentioned necessarily to lose either. Nobody wants to see Austin lose. You got to put him against somebody younger. You can’t put him against somebody that you want to build as a main event attraction because you got to beat him, but you want somebody in a position to be elevated by the interaction.
“I think it might be stretching to say something like Austin Theory because he’s got all the time in the world to do something else later on. With Owens It was perfect because he’s a guy that can move, he can talk, and more importantly, whether he wins or loses is immaterial to his career. But, he was in a better place because of the interaction with Austin I think. That’s the kind of guy you gotta [use].”
Cornette finished up by explaining why he doesn’t think Steve Austin should face a fellow legend, saying that it would be difficult to decide who should lose in that situation.
“You don’t want Austin against another legend, who’s going to do the job? That’s why when they said everybody wants Sting versus Undertaker. Well, how would you have felt whenever one of the guys lost?”
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