10 Biggest Fakeouts In WWE History

4. Vince & Shane McMahon On Stone Cold Steve Austin

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WWE

Vince Russo's finest hour, the 1998 Survivor Series was fabulous victory for WWE's careful plotting of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mankind and The McMahons for much of the Autumn that year.

The 'Deadly Game' WWE Championship tournament was always crafted by the Chairman to send his doting patsy Mankind to the final and hated rival Austin to the outhouse, but the meticulousness of the kayfabe planning put 'The Rattlesnake' over as a foe that required the forethought.

Coasting through to the Semi Final against an Austin previously brutalised by the Big Boss Man, Mankind was the warm body the McMahons needed to reveal their evil scheme. A wheelchair-bound Vince rose from his station to remove the referee in the first shock, before babyface Shane revealed that he was working with his Father when he followed a two-count with two-middle fingers.

The entire exhilarating scene resulted in Austin's world shattering like the glass at the start of his iconic entrance theme, and the billionaire b*stards weren't done. Foley's lumbering run at glory was halted by The Rock in the final, as Vince and Shane revealed the third man in their masterplan. 'The Great One' went corporate as the baddies toasted the success of their spectacular long con.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 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 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, 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. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett