10 Missed Opportunities In Steve Austin's WWE Career

10. Working With Eddie Guerrero In 2002

Fed up with working with guys who couldn't keep up with him, such as The Big Show, Ric Flair and The Undertaker, Steve Austin requested in spring 2002 that the company match him up against the super-talented and razor-sharp Eddie Guerrero. Latino Head had just returned from almost a year away from WWE. He was fired in November 2001 after he failed to sober up during a stay in WWE-sponsored rehab. Luckily for Guerrero, he was given a second chance once he kicked the drugs and alcohol and came back to the company stronger than ever in April 2002. Stone Cold had clearly been monitoring Guerrero's performances against the likes of Rob Van Dam and Jeff Hardy and wanted to work a programme with him. The two were set to clash in a singles match at the King of the Ring pay-per-view, when Austin famously walked out after being asked to do the job to a young rookie named Brock Lesnar. It was a shame we never got to see Austin take on Eddie in a big PPV setting. The two had some entertaining angles in the run up to their match but, sadly, the whole thing was dropped and Eddie meandered in the midcard for a while. A programme with Austin would have almost certainly elevated him (had their matches have been competitive). The two men did work a series of house show main events together (reports of which were good) but they never had a proper televised outing.