‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin Hated This Iconic Match From His Career

WWE

Winning your first World Championship at WrestleMania is a dream of every wrestler hoping to one day make it to WWE.

The moment is considered by many as one of, if not the very best, highlight of their entire career, but that’s not the case for Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Austin won his first WWE Championship back at WrestleMania 14, taking the title from Shawn Michaels in the main event with interference from Mike Tyson.

However, when asked about the match on his appearance on UpUpDownDown’s WWE 2K23 launch stream, Austin revealed his thoughts on the match, and why he hated it.

He said:

“That was a big deal for me as it is for everybody. The match, on a one to five, is a two. I mean, Shawn, I consider from bell to bell, when the bell rings from the beginning to the end, I consider Shawn to have no peers. Now, Bret as far as realism, you can’t top him. Flair is my traveling World Champion. I mean, he’s the man. But from bell to bell talent wise, no one can lace Shawn Michaels boots.

“So to go out there and have a lackluster match with him and in the biggest show of the year, WrestleMania, and that was a sold out show and it’s a small building compared to nowadays, that was a big deal. We had Mike Tyson there. I remember when Vince told me one time he said, ‘You know, I’m thinking about bringing Mike Tyson in.’ I said, ‘Why are you going to bring in Mike? He’s like, ‘Why am I going to bring in Mike? Because he’s really, really over.’

“When Mike came in, me and Mike hit it off, and he was over. He brought a lot to it, so it was cool being out there with Mike. Me and Shawn could have had a way better match, but he was in a bad place. He was injured. I was just red hot. When I got the stunner on him, Mike quick-counted me. He didn’t give me that slow championship pace. But to answer your question, I hated that match. I love Shawn. I have the utmost respect for him, but I don’t consider that to be a good match at all.”

Austin returned to the ring for the first time in 19 years at last year’s WrestleMania in Dallas, where he defeated Kevin Owens.

There were reportedly numerous pitches for Steve Austin for this year’s WrestleMania event, with him not yet set for the show.

transcription via WrestlingNews.co

Think you’re a wrestling mastermind? Well you can prove it by taking quizzes in our brand new quiz section! Don’t forget to tweet us your results!

• Steve Austin
• WrestleMania
• shawn michaels
• wwe

Share this article with friends