'Stone Cold' Steve Austin on WWE In-ring Future, Fighting off the 'What?' Chant, More

One year removed from his highly anticipated return to the ring, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin remains a hot topic of conversation among wrestling fans, specifically for speculation that another match might be on the horizon for him.

Austin stole WrestleMania 38 weekend last year when he agreed to an impromptu match against Kevin Owens. Between looking like The Texas Rattlesnake of old and the electricity in the air when he connected with his signature Stunner, it was nothing short of a spectacle at AT&T Stadium that night.

It opened the floodgates for rumors that he'd consider stepping back inside the squared circle if the correct opportunity presented itself. Ultimately, he did not compete at this year's Show of Shows, but he hasn't completely shut the door on wrestling again eventually.

In his time way from WWE, the six-time world champion has kept busy by exploring endeavors he didn't have a chance to experience at the height of his stardom. From flight simulators to bowling with seniors, all of Austin's adventures will documented on the all-new Stone Cold Takes on America series, which on A&E this Sunday (April 30).

Austin caught up with Bleacher Report to discuss the show, what he was pitched for WrestleMania 39 that he had to turn down, how the dreaded "What?" crowd chant he helped create can finally be extinguished, and more.

One of the primary reasons Stone Cold reached the seemingly insurmountable heights he did is because of how dedicated he was to his craft throughout his illustrious career.

His rise to the top was far from immediate. He had to prove himself at every level for years before finally tasting success.

As a result, Austin was forced to miss out on everyday American activities, all of which he's giving the old college try in Stone Cold Takes on America as part of A&E's Superstar Sundays.

That includes attempting to do the weather on a live newscast, which did not come easy to him.

"She's showing me how she breaks down the weather and breaking down a long paragraph into pertinent information just by looking at it," Austin told B/R. "She wasn't trying to psych me out, but I got so psyched out by what she was doing that I thought I had to perform at that level. I've been on live TV for years and I thrive in that environment, but I knew there was a snowstorm and I had to get people to work safely and I froze up on live TV. I think it was the worst live television performance I've ever had."

Despite being widely regarded as one of the greatest talkers in pro wrestling history, Austin was out of his element, and that's what the new series is all about.

He concedes that his notoriety helped the showrunners break barriers and get certain stuff booked, though he didn't rest on his laurels by portraying his Texas Rattlesnake persona during any of the experiences.

"We didn't shoot a pilot, so we were basically throwing something at the wall and see what sticks," he said. "I think midway, two-thirds of the way through the show, we were seeing what was sticking and what was running off. There was a lot of planning on the fly because when this show got green-lit, it was in rapid-fire fashion."

Austin's absence from WWE programming this past year, including at Raw's 30th anniversary episode and on Peacock's Broken Skull Sessions, left fans wondering what his status was for WrestleMania 39 and if he was too busy training for another in-ring return to appear.

Simply put, his Stone Cold Takes on America obligations lasted longer than expected and were ultimately the reason why he missed out on 'Mania this year.

"There was an internal stop-down with stuff that was out of our control, so we were down for a little over a month," Austin said. "Originally, give or take, this show was going to take three months to shoot, but it took close to five and it chewed up a lot of time."

His intense workout for the show saw him get down to seven percent body fat, the best shape he's ever been in. Unfortunately, his stellar physique went to waste when he had to layer up while filming in 10-degree weather.

"People have asked me, 'Why didn't do you do 'Mania?' They asked me, but I didn't know what my life was going to look like until I was done with this show," he said. "I finished up on the show four days before WrestleMania. I drove every single mile in an RV and I brought dumbbells with me, a sandbag and a kettle bell, so I got my workouts in."

Evidently, an appearance—let alone a match—was never going to be in the cards for him at this year's Show of Shows.

For those assuming WWE wanted Austin to appear at WrestleMania 39 solely to drink beer and send the crowd into a frenzy for a few minutes, think again.

Per Stone Cold himself, he was pitched a marquee match for 'Mania this year that would have been much more competitive than his outing against Kevin Owens.

This falls in line with a Fightful Select report from January that revealed Roman Reigns vs. Austin was at one point on the table for the event provided the 58-year-old could compete.

"The concrete idea was a match," Austin said. "It was a match with one of the top guys in the business, period. I'll let everybody speculate about that, but yeah, it was a match and I just didn't think I could get ready for it in time because I didn't know my schedule, which is what I told them. 'I don't know what my life looks like until I finish this show.'"

Had Reigns vs. Austin come to fruition, it would have completely changed the complexion of the card for WrestleMania. Other opponents could have been Brock Lesnar or Seth Rollins, but The Tribal Chief would have made the most sense and been the biggest box-office draw.

The Texas Rattlesnake headlined last year with Owens and ended the evening on a high note. He praised KO for being both an amazing worker and a talker, and he was proud to put on the show that they did despite not being in ring shape.

"I did the best I could to get ready on short notice for Kevin Owens and I barely did anything," Austin said. "This would have been a real competitive match."

For almost 19 years, the idea of Austin wrestling again was just a pipedream for fans. The more time passed, the more unlikely it seemed he would ever come out of retirement.

Then, WrestleMania 38 happened. Now, he's taking more of a "never say never" approach.

"I said many years ago, 'I'm done, I'm never going to wrestle again, but if the stars ever aligned...' and they did," he said. "When they approached me about working with Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 38, I turned them down several times until we came up with that idea. So, we went out and did it."

As previously noted, Austin and Owens exceeded all expectations and had a wonderful brawl. The WWE Hall of Famer wasn't preparing months in advance for that, and thus one can only imagine what a full-fledged Stone Cold match would look like in 2023 if he had the proper training ahead of time.

"Could it still happen? Yeah, it could still happen," he said. "Am I lobbying for it? Am I trying to get anybody talking about it? No. If you ever ask me a question, I'm going to give you an honest answer."

Let the speculation for WrestleMania 40 begin.

Of everyone on the active WWE roster, LA Knight arguably draws the strongest comparisons to Stone Cold, and not just for their popular catchphrases.

Dating back to his days as Eli Drake pre-WWE, Knight has long modeled his persona after Austin, whether that be intentional or not. He also carries himself like a star, has exceptional mic skills and can connect with a crowd with ease.

An Austin vs. Knight program would certainly be appealing at some point, if only for the promos alone.

Stone Cold has followed the 40-year-old's career for several years and even interviewed him on his Steve Austin Unleashed podcast in late 2019.

He has nothing but complimentary things to say about the SmackDown Superstar and revealed what advice he recently gave him.

"I got a text message from him a while back, and I'm so bad about returning calls. My wife gets on me about it all the time, I've got a lot of heat," Austin said. "But I did talk to him before that one text and I told him, 'Hey man, just make sure your cardio is supreme and go do you.'

"That guy can talk a blue streak, he's a great worker, he's got a good look, he's got a great energy. I think he's doing great. He can ascend to a higher level, and I think he will."

In 2001, Austin took a real-life "rib," or a running gag, he had with Christian and incorporated it into some of his segments on WWE TV where he would respond with "What?" to anything and everything a Superstar was saying to him.

Fans eventually adopted it as their own and reacted to every line in a promo with the dreaded single word. Unfortunately, it caught on with crowds and has been a constant at WWE shows ever since.

It's far more annoying than it is entertaining nowadays, but Stone Cold doesn't feel too strongly about it one way or the other now as a viewer. If anything, he sees it as an obstacle for the performers to overcome to better themselves.

"If it ever dies down, it does," he said. "I'll be neither happy nor sad because there have been many people who have learned how to work the crowd, and it's just about not giving them that pause and cadence to let them get in. You can work them, and I think it's a challenge for a talent to overcome and defeat. I think it's like a goal."

The chant can be conquered, but after two decades, it's unlikely it will go away for good. Stone Cold can be blamed for that, or credited if you share his stance on it.

"It's about the nature of a promo and whether people are drawn in or not," he said. "If people are listening to what you're trying to say and they're truly digging you, they're not going to say the 'What?' chant. Sometimes they do it just to mess with you, so it's a way to read the crowd."

If anyone knows how to control a crowd, it's 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.