7 WWE 25th Anniversary RAW Returns Who Couldn't Survive PG

7. 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin

As The Ringmaster in 1996, Steve Austin found himself in a situation similar to Cesaro’s, where he was a sound in-ring technician, but he hadn’t found that one character to bring him closer to the brass ring. Then after a fateful cup of tea, he came up with the ‘Stone Cold’ tag, one that would send him to unparalleled heights.

While we all remember the crimson mask as he passed out to Bret Hart’s Sharpshooter at WrestleMania 13, the first moment Austin truly shined was at King of the Ring. There, he uttered the famous words, “You sit there, and you thump your Bible, and you say your prayers, and it didn’t get you anywhere. Talk about your psalms, talk about John 3:16 . . . Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!”

Although he solidified his character with those words and pushed countless pieces of merchandise with the new moniker, there is no denying Austin’s most famous speech is highly blasphemous. In the New Era and the land of TV-PG, the promo would be scrapped entirely. Imagine him today trying to get over without being able to use 3:16 at all? Not to mention what ensued afterward: the cursing, the mudhole stomping, the beer drinking, and Stunning of many female stars including Linda McMahon. PG guidelines would prohibit almost all of the quirks above, which in essence, would reduce his entire persona back to Ringmaster levels.