Often, WWE will remark that the 1996 King Of The Ring was the night on which 'Stone Cold' began his ascent up the ladder in the company, becoming an overnight success. In reality, this is far from the truth - Steve Austin would take a lot longer to reach the top of the mountain and truly connect with fans - but few can claim this wasn't an important night for 'The Rattlesnake'. The catchphrase 'Austin 3:16' was born at the King Of The Ring, but it almost never happened. Instead, it was supposed to be one Hunter Hearst Helmsley who would have his coronation as 'King', but Triple H had ruined that opportunity by breaking kayfabe in the infamous 'Curtain Call' incident at Madison Square Garden. Looking to punish Hunter, Vince McMahon instead cancelled plans for his King Of The Ring win, handing the title to Steve Austin instead. Triple H would eventually win the tournament the following year, but who knows how different WWE history could have been had Austin not been able to coin the phrase which would sell millions of t-shirts worldwide.