10 Wrestlers Who Were Right To Walk Out On WWE

2. Steve Austin (2002)

Steve Austin Scott Hall WrestleMania X-8
WWE.com

Some will be surprised to see Steve Austin's name on this list, especially when it's so high up. The story was that Austin balked at the thought of jobbing to a young Brock Lesnar on a random Raw in 2002 and decided he'd rather sit at home. So, the biggest box office draw in recent WWE history took his ball and walked out.

That's not the full story.

On the latest edition of his 'Grilling JR' podcast, Austin's good pal Jim Ross said he doesn't think Steve deserves all the blame. He was disheartened and angry at WWE for outright failing to prepare anyone for him to feud with, and he was still smarting over being relegated to a mid-card program with Scott Hall at WrestleMania X8.

Losing to Lesnar without any build whatsoever would've been a foolish career move for someone who had been Vince McMahon's golden goose for so long. By protesting the way he did, Austin perhaps forced WWE to look inwardly at how they were rushing through business without patience or planning.

He was right to stick up a middle finger at their booking.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.