10 Wrestlers Who Risked Absolutely Everything

10. Stone Cold Steve Austin

Stone Cold Steve Austin was one of the safest bets for superstardom in wrestling history in 1997, and wasn't prepared for any of that to change even after he was accidentally dropped on his head by Owen Hart at SummerSlam.

'The Rattlesnake' easily and effortlessly transitioned to simply cutting promos as he (just about) rehabilitated a neck so damaged that almost every doctor told him to retire, but even then he only took around three months off before he was back in boots and trunks and taking a modicum of revenge at a Survivor Series remembered for entirely different reasons.

Following some abbreviated battles with Hart and later The Rock, Austin's schedule extended to working tags and short main events ahead of his WrestleMania XIV WWE Championship victory over Shawn Michaels. With Austin unable to change his style until some 2000 surgery, the style simply changed for him. The risk, in the short term at least, proved worth it.

Authored by Michael Hamflett

Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for nearly 10 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 65,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live.

Posted On: 5th Nov 2021