10 Wrestlers Who Refused To Give Fans What They Came For

2. Steve Austin

The period between Royal Rumble 2001-WrestleMania X-Seven was Steve Austin's last great babyface run. 'Stone Cold' reigned supreme for that three-month stretch, then unthinkably joined forces with Vince McMahon in the spring. That parlayed into an equally-improbable comedy heel stint.

It's a stint Austin himself has admitted was a mistake.

Before eventually going baby again in 2002 (the law of diminishing returns struck him hard there), Austin goofed around with McMahon and Kurt Angle, became the head of the WCW/ECW Alliance and generally worked a delusional idiot gimmick that completely avoided his prior bad-assery. Throughout, fans continued to ache for the old 'Stone Cold'.

He wouldn't give them it - not yet. Austin proceeded to let his character drift further and further away from what had turned him into wrestling's biggest star. Fans who wanted beer bashes, rebellious Stunners and McMahon-baiting were left disappointed.