My Favorite Athlete: Wrestler Steve Austin

Who was the man that had been the only three-time Royal Rumble winner? Who was the man that had first started off as a referee before becoming a famous wrestler? Who is the man that started the famous chant “What?” That man is none other than “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, one of the best professional wrestlers in WWE. A number of prominent industry figures, including McMahon, have declared Austin to be the biggest star in WWF/WWE history and stressed that he surpassed the popularity of Hulk Hogan. Steve Austin has held the championship 19 times throughout his wrestling career, as a six-time WWF Champion, a two-time Intercontinental champion and a a four-time Tag Team Champion—thus making him the fifth Triple Crown Champion in WWE history, all the while being a two-time WCW United States Heavyweight Champion. Steven James Anderson, or as we know him Steve Austin was born on December 18, 1964 in Austin, Texas and was the youngest of five children. Steve had spent most of his childhood in Edna, Texas and his father had left the family so his mother had decided to remarried, causing Steve to change his last name from Anderson to Austin. In high school Austin was worthy of achieving a free education because of his football skills in school. Austin had declined, wanting to become a wrestler and finally got a chance at the end of 1989.

Austin had left the USWA in 1990 and had signed with WCW the next year and had defeated Bobby Eaton for his first WCW World television Championship on June 3, 1991. Later that year Austin joined Paul E’s Dangerously’s Dangerous Alliance. In January 1993 after leaving the Dangerous Alliance, Austin had made his own tag team known as the Hollywood Blondes with Brian Pillman. That year they won the WCW World Tag team Championship on March 3, deafeating Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas. Later in 1995, Austin had been fired by WCW after suffering a triceps injury and in late 1995 Austin joined the WWF after the wrestlers Diesel and Jim Ross helped convince WWF’s owner Vince McMahon to hire him. Austin had debuted on the January 8,1996 version of Raw and won his first match over Matt Hardy, and in 1996 his stardom began to rise at the RIng of King.In 1997 Austin was forced to defend his title again, only because he had drove his truck to the stadium and he had a Stunner to D’Lo Brown which the owner had saw as weapon usage. Austin refused to defend his title and then gave up the title, Austin said he didn’t care about titles and the set his sights on Heavyweight Champion.

Then in 1999 at the Survivor Series Austin was ran over by a car and was out of the action for 11 months because of spinal surgery. Austin returned back to wrestling when the Backlash 2000 was happening. He helped the Rock win his fourth WWF Championship from the wrestler called Triple H. In October 2000 at the match No Mercy Austin fought Rikishi but that match had to be stopped when Austin had tried to run Rikishi over after the match and was arrested.

Austin was nonstop in 2001 first winning the 2001 Royal Rumble and becoming the only three time Royal Rumble winner and then in April of 2001 Austin had defeated the Rock got his fifth WWF title. Austin as champion had lasted a long time, 5 months 22 days being the longest championship reign in several years.Austin then had went to WCW/ECW alliance on July 22, 2001 surprising the world and had helped them win the Inaugural Brawl and had created the famous catchphrase “What?” In November Austin had luckily escaped losing the Heavyweight title to the Rock but had lost the title to Chris Jericho on December 9,2001.Austin had begun Feuding with Ric Flair after a match where Flair was a referee didn’t see where Austin’s opponent should have been disqualified. Austin faced Fair in a 2-on-1 Handicap match on Judgement day 2002. That would be the last match for Austin, in early June he didn’t show up for the taping of RAW. Steve Austin has not been see fighting since, he was forced to retire in 2003 due to knee and neck injuries. On January 12, 2009, on an episode of Raw, Austin was announced to be the first member of the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2009 where Austin had announced he was retiring from wrestling. Now Steve Austin works as an actor and a producer and has made and has starred in many movies.