With rumours swirling about Stone Cold Steve Austin appearing the 2023 Royal Rumble and wrestling at this years Wrestlemania event, WWE Hall Of Famer’s have been queuing up to give their verdict on whether or not the Texas Rattlesnake should step back into the ring the for the first time since Wrestlemania 38.
At last years event, Austin wrestled his first match in 19 years when he stepped into the ring to wrestle Kevin Owens. They main evented the first night of Wrestlemania 38 in a no-holds barred match, after Owens goaded the Hall of Famer into accepting his challenging by insulting his home state of Texas.
Austin won a brilliant match – which included him being hit with a brutal suplex onto the concrete as the pair brawled through the crowd – with a Stone Cold Stunner to send the crowd home happy and to add a final note to a legendary career. However, it looks like it’s not quite over yet, although one WWE Hall of Famer does not think Steve Austin in the 2023 Royal Rumble match is a very good idea at all.
Speaking on his podcast “Hall of Fame“, six-time World Champion Booker T claimed he doesn’t want to see Steve Austin in this years Royal Rumble match. He noted this because there is only one option for him if he enters the match – to get thrown over the top rope and out of the match “because he’s not going to win it”.
This comes after rumours of him coming back to the ring have heightened. Reports claim he has been offered a deal for one more match for the 58 year old and a return at the Royal Rumble would be one of the best surprise Royal Rumble returns ever and will likely garner one of the biggest pops ever – regardless whether Austin wins the match or not.
“I think Steve’s role could be a little bit bigger, you know, then being in the rumble because we all know what the rumble is leading to. I don’t think we want to put Steve Austin in a match like that knowing where it would lead to, which is him getting tossed out because he’s not going to win it. I don’t think that works. For Steve Austin to get up off the sofa at this age he is right now is pretty hard. Getting in the ring with Roman would not be a good idea.”
If Steve Austin appeared at the 2023 Royal Rumble, it would be his first appearance in the titular match for 21 years. His last rumble match appearance was in the 2002 Royal Rumble, where he finished fourth in the match after being eliminated by Kurt Angle and Mr Perfect. He is a three-time Royal Rumble winner, the most of any wrestler in history and could win his fourth in 2023 – two more than his nearest competitor.