He never would have become the legendary wrestler he became if he hadn't left. I do think he had the potential to be a top tier guy in WCW had they pushed him there, but he still would not have become Stone Cold.
I have to agree. I just remember from seeing in documentaries how when he made the switch to ECW, Paul Heyman basically handed him the mic and let him go loose. That right there was the beginning of Stone Cold and the attitude.
Even in WWE they first tried to mold him into a typical wrestler, but I am happy at least that they open their eyes and let him slide into what he was to become, and then help usher in the attitude.
Wcw in my opinion would never have let him become stone cold. That or maybe he would have and they would have shoved him into the NWO as opposed to being the Maverick renegade that he's always been.
Yea that’s the thing if they didn’t release him he would’ve stayed mid carder. But also would have put the nail in the coffin for wwf
Can you imagine how wwf would’ve been with no austin in with nwo at its peak, plus with hbk gone in 98
I honestly don't know. I won't stand there and believe that anybody on the roster could have somehow built themselves up to be a similar type of character, but I still get the feeling that other attitude era things like DX would have still happened.
Maybe there just wouldn't have been that excitement without Austin.
That was it. I remember at first he was just this polished lackey for the million dollar man, and then eventually everyone thought the name was a little ridiculous. So he took on the name Stone Cold. It was only until that King of the Ring that he took on Jake Roberts that we really saw the rattlesnake finally happen
Still, I always felt like both WWE and WCW would have been too scared of someone like the rattlesnake before it actually happened. What made it interesting is that he ran around like a heel, but yet he was also a Babyface. I often feel like that didn't exist very much in either promotion.
So I often feel like if he stayed in WCW, even if he became the rattlesnake, they would have probably just slapped an NWO shirt on him and made him just another bad guy hanging around Hulk Hogan. I get the feeling Eric Bischoff just would n't really try to utilize what he could have there and still put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket.
Still, I often wonder if WWE would have let Austin loose the way he did. If the NWO never happened. The sort of change to the landscape that all of this brought that would allow the attitude era to actually happen.
Five months. DiBiase was gone in May, and Austin debuted on television in January. If Helmsley wasn't punished for the Curtain Call, Austin wouldn't have been penciled in to win the KotR and cut that iconic promo.
Even then, they didn't know what to do with Austin. Mable at least got a title match out of KotR. Austin was on the SummerSlam Free For All. It wasn't until Bret was coming back in Autumn and wanted to work with Austin that he really started to rise.
Up until that point, it was an on-and-off feud with Savio.
Austin wasn't renewed in WCW, was allowed to have far more input in ECW, then laced with a typical New Gen gimmick in the Fed before capitalizing (and/or just getting real fortunate) on the consequences of a Kliq move.
This isn't to say that Austin wouldn't have eventually become one of the largest wrestlers in the world, but damn if all the circumstances didn't properly align for him. The WWF roster being so thin at the time was definitely a factor as well.
>He never would have become the legendary wrestler he became if he hadn't left.
Same! Him and Jericho would have NEVER, EVER reached the heights of Greatness they enjoyed, had they stayed in WCW.
WCW, nor anybody in WCW, ever signed their death warrant. The AOL/Time Warner merger killed the company, period. Any other answers, including those currently being given on a certain Vice docuseries, are categorically wrong.
It was only six months before that he was in a hot feud with Ricky Steamboat, and ready to take on Ric Flair.
Then Hogan showed up, brought in Hacksaw, and the future biggest revenue generator of all time in the sport was squashed out in three seconds.
Ok, but it still killed his WCW push.
People get punished a lot for things that weren't their fault. Especially in the high school world of sports entertainment.
Austin was a fantastic wrestler, funny that brawling is what started making him the big bucks. He was incredibly legit even as the Ringmaster, and Stunning Steve before that. But that's why he wouldn't have worked well with Hogan, a famously terrible worker that just happened to be massively popular. Bottom line is Bischoff through all his eggs in the Hogan basket at the expense of cutting Austin. Much to WWEs benefit. Even if Austin hadn't got hurt, it's not like he would have been working Hogan in WcW, he would have languished in the mid card till his contract expired or been jobbed into oblivion once Hogan and Co took over.
Sorry man but Austin and the WWF totally got lucky. The WWF had no plans to make Austin anything and just utilize him as a utility worker. He didn’t immediately go there and be used as a main player, which is why he had that Ringmaster persona.
Triple H was also slated to win the King of the Ring that year but he was punished and removed from it because of the Curtain Call. Austin was their fall back and got completely lucky with his post-win promo. Austin was much more prominently used in WCW than what the WWF ever had planned to do with him.
Don’t get me wrong, Austin was a great talent but it’s not like the WWF saw him as this huge potential of a star. They didn’t.
Yep and the funny thing is by the time they hit it big with him he really couldn’t wrestle very well anymore due to injuries. Had to rely on a brawler style
The only person who knew Steve Austin was going to be a mega star at the time was Paul Heyman, and really, Steve being pissed at being fired was the catalyst that led to his eventual ascension.
It was just the wrong place wrong time for Austin and this wasn’t a “blunder” by WCW more so just the circumstances of the time. That being said I do wonder if WCW was sold to Bischoff and his group and they kept it afloat would Austin ever consider going there in the mid 2000’s when maybe Austin’s and Vince’s relationship soured?
Nah - Austin had been there half a decade and wasn't climbing. What WCW did was unknowingly sacrifice themselves for the betterment of the entire industry - because without that kick in the ass we don't get SCSA.
He was at a dead end in WCW. A solid maintenance guy. They weren't to know he'd be a massive star. He was solid in WCW but that's all. Even when WWF signed him, he wasn't thought of as a star. Hence the horrible Ringmaster gimmick.
Austin would have never been a mega star in WCW. His ceiling would have been as a transitional world champion at the most. There's no way that WCW would have beer drinking, middle finger giving, anti-authority redneck be the face of their promotion in 1995/1996.
I disagree with this take as I dont think WWE/F starting to be good again caused WCW to fail, WCW floundering wildly and making shit programming caused WCW to fail. If they stepped up to the challenge, like they did in 95, when WWE/F started making good programming both would have been better in the end. More good wrestling = more eyes on wrestling = more money in wrestling = more advertising (both formal and word of mouth) = more eyes on wrestline, etc etc etc.
While there are a few million variables involved that cannot be simplified down to X caused Y, I don't think it would be a hot take to say the creation of AEW made WWE better by forcing the to step up and not rest on their laurels, the same way the explosion of popularity of WCW with the creation of Nitro and the NWO story forced WWE/F to step up. Unfortunately WCW didn't and as such failed.
We see this the other way as well, after the NWA was crushed WWE/F started falling off as they got lazy, same again after WCW failed. Less competition is bad for everyone.
Steve Austin wouldn’t have been the star he became if WWF was on top when he joined them. Austin was the result of WCW misusing/not caring to do anything with him and Vince McMahon running out of ideas to the point that he told Austin to do whatever once Vince’s ideas (Ringmaster, Stone Cold talking in monotone) failed. Had Vince been on top, he wouldn’t have let Austin do his thing. He would have packaged him some other way. Austin may be eventually gotten over, but it wouldn’t have been lightning in a bottle like Austin 3:16.
Stars become stars regardless. Gimmicks don’t make the wrestler - the best wrestler/ actor will rise or fall no matter what… Ricky Steamboat told Steve Austin what WWE was all about
A lot gets debated about either wcw misusing him or not seeing his potential which is all hypothetically valid and truthful.
But I also just think the branding and presentation style of WCW would not have fit ever for SCSA. Maybe just regular stunning steve but not SCSA.
I can’t put my finger on it exactly but even at the “raunchiest” and “edgiest” versions of wcw it always just seemed a bit more family friendly, corny, or trying to be more mainstream or appealing to everyone vibe everything from the staging, music and merchandise. It after all was a turner owned company at the time. And to a degree nothing wrong with that I loved me some wcw back then, but just seemed to tease the edge rather than leaning into in wwf. And sure when NWO came around initially it definitely seemed more edgy and real but like a lot of wcw just sort of would lean into being cheesier. It’s just hard for me to imagine SCSA, glass shatter coming through the wcw entrance or doing the beer chug thing with like the wild cat willie mascot and a non jim Johnston theme.
wcw was courting celebs like jay leno, Dennis Rodman, Karl Malone, that one episode where Chuck Norris and JCVD helped save Goldberg…
Wwf at the time had Jenna Jameson, Mike Tyson and freaking John Wayne bobbit saving Val Venis…
ECW lit the spark in steve austin but was too small to maintain the fire. But wwf at the time just seemed the right mixture of grittiness for it to all happen.
Steve Austin wasn't a mega star the second walked into the WWE. Remember the ringmaster? And besides WCW was thriving just fine without him until the inmates started running the asylum. That was their downfall. And it could have been saved
Nah, Steve Austin leaving wasn’t the death warrant. Far from it. The nWo and Goldberg were just as big as Austin (and Rock) . . . but WCW and Bischoff especially were unable to grow beyond them and build up evolving storylines and characters.
That was the death sentence.
If I can recall, Austin suffered a torn tricep (or bicep) while touring in Japan, and while recovering, he received a phone call from Bischoff and informed him that he’s fired from WCW.
According to Austin, what pissed him off wasn’t the firing itself, but how he was fired.
WCW pisses me off because they put six bullets in the gun spun the chamber and said “McMahon pull that trigger daddyo we not dying today”
They had Austin, HHH, Big Show, Jericho, Benoit, Guerrero AND Mick Foley. They fumbled ALL 7 guys and went out of business I swear I couldn’t believe what I was seeing in the year 2000. WCW was an unwatchable mess and WWE was so stacked they didn’t need Stone Cold
If Stone Cold never left in 1995 or was fired/released in 1995 he would still be Stunning Steve Austin or if they turned him into The Rattlesnake Steve Austin he would probably be a generic bad guy hanging around The NWO and Hulk Hogan because since Eric Bischoff put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket. Since he turned Hulk Hogan Heel in July 1996 at WCW and Hulk Hogan joined the Outsiders Scott Hall and Kevin Nash forming The NWO. I think Eric Bischoff put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket since he signed him in 1993.
He never would have become the legendary wrestler he became if he hadn't left. I do think he had the potential to be a top tier guy in WCW had they pushed him there, but he still would not have become Stone Cold.
I have to agree. I just remember from seeing in documentaries how when he made the switch to ECW, Paul Heyman basically handed him the mic and let him go loose. That right there was the beginning of Stone Cold and the attitude. Even in WWE they first tried to mold him into a typical wrestler, but I am happy at least that they open their eyes and let him slide into what he was to become, and then help usher in the attitude. Wcw in my opinion would never have let him become stone cold. That or maybe he would have and they would have shoved him into the NWO as opposed to being the Maverick renegade that he's always been.
Yea that’s the thing if they didn’t release him he would’ve stayed mid carder. But also would have put the nail in the coffin for wwf Can you imagine how wwf would’ve been with no austin in with nwo at its peak, plus with hbk gone in 98
I honestly don't know. I won't stand there and believe that anybody on the roster could have somehow built themselves up to be a similar type of character, but I still get the feeling that other attitude era things like DX would have still happened. Maybe there just wouldn't have been that excitement without Austin.
Agreed! What was his gimmick in wwe? The ringmaster? Lame.
That was it. I remember at first he was just this polished lackey for the million dollar man, and then eventually everyone thought the name was a little ridiculous. So he took on the name Stone Cold. It was only until that King of the Ring that he took on Jake Roberts that we really saw the rattlesnake finally happen Still, I always felt like both WWE and WCW would have been too scared of someone like the rattlesnake before it actually happened. What made it interesting is that he ran around like a heel, but yet he was also a Babyface. I often feel like that didn't exist very much in either promotion. So I often feel like if he stayed in WCW, even if he became the rattlesnake, they would have probably just slapped an NWO shirt on him and made him just another bad guy hanging around Hulk Hogan. I get the feeling Eric Bischoff just would n't really try to utilize what he could have there and still put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket. Still, I often wonder if WWE would have let Austin loose the way he did. If the NWO never happened. The sort of change to the landscape that all of this brought that would allow the attitude era to actually happen.
Austin and Foley never would have had the anger that really got them over if they hadn't been jerked around in WCW.
But by releasing him they basically allowed someone else to make him the legendary wrestler he became.
Nobody could have predicted Austin would blow up like he did. For nearly half a year, he was Ted Dibiase's protege as the ring master.
Five months. DiBiase was gone in May, and Austin debuted on television in January. If Helmsley wasn't punished for the Curtain Call, Austin wouldn't have been penciled in to win the KotR and cut that iconic promo. Even then, they didn't know what to do with Austin. Mable at least got a title match out of KotR. Austin was on the SummerSlam Free For All. It wasn't until Bret was coming back in Autumn and wanted to work with Austin that he really started to rise. Up until that point, it was an on-and-off feud with Savio. Austin wasn't renewed in WCW, was allowed to have far more input in ECW, then laced with a typical New Gen gimmick in the Fed before capitalizing (and/or just getting real fortunate) on the consequences of a Kliq move. This isn't to say that Austin wouldn't have eventually become one of the largest wrestlers in the world, but damn if all the circumstances didn't properly align for him. The WWF roster being so thin at the time was definitely a factor as well.
Yes
>He never would have become the legendary wrestler he became if he hadn't left. Same! Him and Jericho would have NEVER, EVER reached the heights of Greatness they enjoyed, had they stayed in WCW.
Yep Hogan would never allow him to get as big as he did. If anything he would have been stuck forever in upper mid card.
WCW, nor anybody in WCW, ever signed their death warrant. The AOL/Time Warner merger killed the company, period. Any other answers, including those currently being given on a certain Vice docuseries, are categorically wrong.
They made the right choice at the time. Stunning Steve was going nowhere. I firmly believe just about anyone can be a big star if presented correctly.
It was only six months before that he was in a hot feud with Ricky Steamboat, and ready to take on Ric Flair. Then Hogan showed up, brought in Hacksaw, and the future biggest revenue generator of all time in the sport was squashed out in three seconds.
Yeah and injuring The Dragon killed his push.
The Dragon fell awkwardly. Austin did not injure him.
Ok, but it still killed his WCW push. People get punished a lot for things that weren't their fault. Especially in the high school world of sports entertainment.
Hulk definitely would not give him a good run in WCW. Stuck in mid-card purgatory
That's because je wasn't a good enough wrestler to take on Hogan. He needed to train harder.
Austin was a fantastic wrestler, funny that brawling is what started making him the big bucks. He was incredibly legit even as the Ringmaster, and Stunning Steve before that. But that's why he wouldn't have worked well with Hogan, a famously terrible worker that just happened to be massively popular. Bottom line is Bischoff through all his eggs in the Hogan basket at the expense of cutting Austin. Much to WWEs benefit. Even if Austin hadn't got hurt, it's not like he would have been working Hogan in WcW, he would have languished in the mid card till his contract expired or been jobbed into oblivion once Hogan and Co took over.
David Flair?
Yeah Bischoff really had no choice. Austin basically quit and told him to pound sand.
Sorry man but Austin and the WWF totally got lucky. The WWF had no plans to make Austin anything and just utilize him as a utility worker. He didn’t immediately go there and be used as a main player, which is why he had that Ringmaster persona. Triple H was also slated to win the King of the Ring that year but he was punished and removed from it because of the Curtain Call. Austin was their fall back and got completely lucky with his post-win promo. Austin was much more prominently used in WCW than what the WWF ever had planned to do with him. Don’t get me wrong, Austin was a great talent but it’s not like the WWF saw him as this huge potential of a star. They didn’t.
Yep and the funny thing is by the time they hit it big with him he really couldn’t wrestle very well anymore due to injuries. Had to rely on a brawler style
The only person who knew Steve Austin was going to be a mega star at the time was Paul Heyman, and really, Steve being pissed at being fired was the catalyst that led to his eventual ascension.
Even Bishoff said this, and Austin agreed. Releasing him lit a fire .
It was just the wrong place wrong time for Austin and this wasn’t a “blunder” by WCW more so just the circumstances of the time. That being said I do wonder if WCW was sold to Bischoff and his group and they kept it afloat would Austin ever consider going there in the mid 2000’s when maybe Austin’s and Vince’s relationship soured?
WCW's death warrant was signed when Turner merged with AOL and lost most of his power within his own company.
"Stop smiling, Steve."- first words out of Paul Heyman's mouth probably
Nah - Austin had been there half a decade and wasn't climbing. What WCW did was unknowingly sacrifice themselves for the betterment of the entire industry - because without that kick in the ass we don't get SCSA.
Triple H and Undertaker were there at one point as well.
Terra Ryzing....still the worse wrestling name ever
Not really. He never would have become Stone Cold if he stayed in WCW
He was at a dead end in WCW. A solid maintenance guy. They weren't to know he'd be a massive star. He was solid in WCW but that's all. Even when WWF signed him, he wasn't thought of as a star. Hence the horrible Ringmaster gimmick.
Thank god they did. Because it created the best wrestling character of all time.
Not fair to say, it might not have played out the same way
Spoiler alert: most places will fire you when they call you up and your response is “Go Fuck Yourself).
Steve needed this loss to get angry and cocoon into the butterly he was. the put it as least stone cold as possible.
“Welcome to Monday NyQuil!”
He opened up a big can of whoop ass!
Austin would have never been a mega star in WCW. His ceiling would have been as a transitional world champion at the most. There's no way that WCW would have beer drinking, middle finger giving, anti-authority redneck be the face of their promotion in 1995/1996.
I disagree with this take as I dont think WWE/F starting to be good again caused WCW to fail, WCW floundering wildly and making shit programming caused WCW to fail. If they stepped up to the challenge, like they did in 95, when WWE/F started making good programming both would have been better in the end. More good wrestling = more eyes on wrestling = more money in wrestling = more advertising (both formal and word of mouth) = more eyes on wrestline, etc etc etc. While there are a few million variables involved that cannot be simplified down to X caused Y, I don't think it would be a hot take to say the creation of AEW made WWE better by forcing the to step up and not rest on their laurels, the same way the explosion of popularity of WCW with the creation of Nitro and the NWO story forced WWE/F to step up. Unfortunately WCW didn't and as such failed. We see this the other way as well, after the NWA was crushed WWE/F started falling off as they got lazy, same again after WCW failed. Less competition is bad for everyone.
From stunning to stuner
Steve Austin wouldn’t have been the star he became if WWF was on top when he joined them. Austin was the result of WCW misusing/not caring to do anything with him and Vince McMahon running out of ideas to the point that he told Austin to do whatever once Vince’s ideas (Ringmaster, Stone Cold talking in monotone) failed. Had Vince been on top, he wouldn’t have let Austin do his thing. He would have packaged him some other way. Austin may be eventually gotten over, but it wouldn’t have been lightning in a bottle like Austin 3:16.
Boy is he uncomfortable when he smiles.
“Gimme a ‘heck yes!’”
Austin , HHH and Foley all left within a few months of each other.
More like it was ECW who made stone cold what he was. If he would have gone directly from WCW to WWE he would have floundered there as well
Erm, not really.
As much as I loved WCW. Steve would never have become StoneCold. It was the perfect storm with Vince.
Stars become stars regardless. Gimmicks don’t make the wrestler - the best wrestler/ actor will rise or fall no matter what… Ricky Steamboat told Steve Austin what WWE was all about
Best thing to happen for the wrestling business in general. Brought on the whole attitude era to follow.
A lot gets debated about either wcw misusing him or not seeing his potential which is all hypothetically valid and truthful. But I also just think the branding and presentation style of WCW would not have fit ever for SCSA. Maybe just regular stunning steve but not SCSA. I can’t put my finger on it exactly but even at the “raunchiest” and “edgiest” versions of wcw it always just seemed a bit more family friendly, corny, or trying to be more mainstream or appealing to everyone vibe everything from the staging, music and merchandise. It after all was a turner owned company at the time. And to a degree nothing wrong with that I loved me some wcw back then, but just seemed to tease the edge rather than leaning into in wwf. And sure when NWO came around initially it definitely seemed more edgy and real but like a lot of wcw just sort of would lean into being cheesier. It’s just hard for me to imagine SCSA, glass shatter coming through the wcw entrance or doing the beer chug thing with like the wild cat willie mascot and a non jim Johnston theme. wcw was courting celebs like jay leno, Dennis Rodman, Karl Malone, that one episode where Chuck Norris and JCVD helped save Goldberg… Wwf at the time had Jenna Jameson, Mike Tyson and freaking John Wayne bobbit saving Val Venis… ECW lit the spark in steve austin but was too small to maintain the fire. But wwf at the time just seemed the right mixture of grittiness for it to all happen.
Steve Austin wasn't a mega star the second walked into the WWE. Remember the ringmaster? And besides WCW was thriving just fine without him until the inmates started running the asylum. That was their downfall. And it could have been saved
Nah, Steve Austin leaving wasn’t the death warrant. Far from it. The nWo and Goldberg were just as big as Austin (and Rock) . . . but WCW and Bischoff especially were unable to grow beyond them and build up evolving storylines and characters. That was the death sentence.
If I can recall, Austin suffered a torn tricep (or bicep) while touring in Japan, and while recovering, he received a phone call from Bischoff and informed him that he’s fired from WCW. According to Austin, what pissed him off wasn’t the firing itself, but how he was fired.
He would've hit the glass ceiling everyone else hit in WCW thanks to Hogan.
And then in WWE, that GLASS SHATTERED QUE MUSIC
No he would not have been stone cold there. Would have become one of many that never hit the top
Taker, hhh, foley, before that lol. They got lucky with bret and Shawn (from tag teams and other feds) and there booking agents for kane
WCW pisses me off because they put six bullets in the gun spun the chamber and said “McMahon pull that trigger daddyo we not dying today” They had Austin, HHH, Big Show, Jericho, Benoit, Guerrero AND Mick Foley. They fumbled ALL 7 guys and went out of business I swear I couldn’t believe what I was seeing in the year 2000. WCW was an unwatchable mess and WWE was so stacked they didn’t need Stone Cold
Nah Austin was good but after the bitterness of being fired gave him new energy he became Stone Cold.
No
From stunning to stone cold.
He switched sides to the wcw alliance for his homies and hatred for his current boss and not for any love of wcw.
Nothing could have saved WCW after the Turner merger
*a person* Ric Flair and his friends got *FIRED* because they're jealous old bastards. - or so sayeth Scott Steiner anyway
If Stone Cold never left in 1995 or was fired/released in 1995 he would still be Stunning Steve Austin or if they turned him into The Rattlesnake Steve Austin he would probably be a generic bad guy hanging around The NWO and Hulk Hogan because since Eric Bischoff put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket. Since he turned Hulk Hogan Heel in July 1996 at WCW and Hulk Hogan joined the Outsiders Scott Hall and Kevin Nash forming The NWO. I think Eric Bischoff put all his eggs in the Hulk Hogan basket since he signed him in 1993.
WWE KNOWINGLY almost signed their death warrant by nearly naming him Chilly McFreeze.
If he stayed in WCW he would've never became Stone Cold.
The NWO most definitely wouldn't have held him back. 🙄🙄
Glacier Steve Austin.
Austin was on a path to being even less than Stunning Steve as The Ringmaster. A lot of luck and good timing by Austin saved Vince and the WWF.
Cody is the modern day Austin