Paul Heyman's appearance on the Steve Austin WWE Network podcast reignited hopes that a Lesnar/Austin confrontation/match was forthcoming. Going into full-on Stone Cold promo mode, Austin told The Beast's manager that, would the two ever meet, The Texas Rattlesnake would whip his ass. It was compelling stuff. Austin's unscripted promo was the talk of the wrestling world for days after, with most fans believing that he, WWE and Heyman were sewing the seeds for a Austin/Lesnar showdown at WrestleMania 32. It soon became apparent that the match was pure fantasy and had no chance of happening. WWE would not allow Austin, who is 50-years-old and has a history of serious injuries, into the ring with someone as physical as Lesnar. Although the company need as man marquee matches as possible to fill the 100,000+ AT&T Stadium in Austin's home state of Texas, they're not willing to take the risk. Vince McMahon did famously book Austin to lose to Lesnar(causing Austin to 'take his ball and go home') way back in June 2002. That's thirteen years ago, almost fourteen by the time 'Mania rolls around. If Lesnar versus Austin was going to happen, it would have by now. As much as both men would probably want the match to happen (both men are friends and, moreover, would receive very healthy payoffs), it's simple not viable in 2016. Now, it has to be considered an opportunity missed.
