Despite being 61 years old, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin is not completely against a return to the WWE ring.
Austin will go down as one of the greatest — if not the greatest — stars in WWE history. Yet his run as one of the industry’s biggest names was not as long as some may realize. “The Texas Rattlesnake’s” time as a top star in the company was from 1997 to 2003, and included a couple of lengthy stints on the sidelines due to injuries.
Since he retired at 38 years old, fans have clamored for years to see him return to the ring. And they got it four years ago at WrestleMania 38. Considering he was away from the ring for 20 years, most assume his match in Dallas was the last time he would compete. Or maybe not.
“I could,” Austin said to Chris Van Vliet when told he looks like he could still wrestle right now. “Got dang it, just saying that takes me back to when we did that WrestleMania match with Kevin Owens in Dallas and how they didn’t send a ring down for me to get any ring time and run the ropes.”
Steve Austin recalled that he had very little in-ring training before the match, and has admitted in recent years that he wishes he had been prepared for the bout. While he doesn’t expect a return to the mat, he did offer up the classic “never say never” response to the idea of one more match. Especially since he feels far better after getting a knee replacement last year.
Steve Austin Hated His 2001 Heel Turn
Along with talking about his surprise return to the ring in 2022, Austin also looked back on the final year of his career, which included his infamous heel turn in the main event of WrestleMania 17. While the moment is iconic and led to some major matches in the year following, the WWE legend admitted he wished he hadn’t done it.
“It was an interesting period. The heel thing, if I could go back in time, I would not have done it, because I didn’t need to,” he said. “I think Jim Ross said it best, ‘Nobody wanted to hate John Wayne.'”
