The Rock Recalls Making Stone Cold Steve Austin WWE Contract Demand

WWE

Former multi-time WWE World Champion The Rock has recalled his rival Stone Cold Steve Austin’s salary demand.

The two biggest stars of the WWE Attitude Era were The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. The two legends battled in three huge headline bouts at WrestleMania 15, 17 and 19 from 1999 to 2003.

Austin and Rock were largely responsible for elevating the company to new heights in the late 90s and early 2000s.

Speaking with Patrick Bet David, The Rock recalled negotiating his second WWE contract with Vince McMahon, following his rise to become a top star in the company.

He said:

“I was coming up and my very first contract with the WWE with Vince that I signed with him was a five year contract for $150,000. 150 grand per year is great, [but] when you’re wrestling 250 dates a year, do the math, what you’re getting per match. It was an opportunity for me.”

“Look, I came from seven bucks, so this great. It’s time to renegotiate. About three years later, after as I became The Rock, newly minted The Rock, he wanted to renegotiate my contract.”

“A couple of wrestlers at that time had their own agents. I chose not to have an agent. He [Vince] said, ‘Are you going to have an agent? Are you looking for an agent?’ I said, ‘I’m not. I’d like to negotiate with you directly.’”

Looking back on the negotiations with Vince McMahon, The Rock recalled demanding double of what Stone Cold Steve Austin was making at the time, Rock continued:

“How we met was with a handshake, and I believe how we’re going to do this is with a handshake. Handshakes are very important to me, as I know everybody in this room.”

“So I always say my handshake is better than anything I ever sign. It’s right here. So he said, great, I love that. I respect it. He said, ‘What are you thinking?’ And I said, ‘Who’s the highest paid, if you don’t mind me asking, between us, who’s the highest paid on the roster?’”

“He said ‘Stone Cold Steve Austin.’ I said, Okay. I said ‘If you don’t mind me asking, what’s his guarantee?’ He said ‘A million dollars.’ Okay, I want two.”

Explaining his logic bahind the decision and believing he could be a bigger star than Austin, Rock said:

“[Laughs] I know, the balls on that kid. So he said, ‘Two million?’ I said, Yes. He said, ‘I’m just curious, where do you get that from? What are you figuring out in your mind?’”

“And I said, ‘Well, I love Steve, I respect him, but if he’s getting a million dollars, where I see myself going is past a million dollars, I think it should be two.’”

“He went, ‘Okay, I understand that logic. Here’s what I want you to do. I’m going to put you in contact with one of our executives, and I need you to take a couple of months if it takes that long.”

“I need you to understand the business, this side of the business, from top to bottom, all the economics. […]’ Once you learn this business, then you come back to me, and then we’ll talk about what the renegotiate was.”

At the start of 2024, The Rock returned for what was his most substantial WWE run in over a decade – turning heel, joining The Bloodline and competing in the WrestleMania 40 main event alongside Roman Reigns against Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins.

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Transcription via Inside The Ropes

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