10 Wrestling Promo Masters Who Never Needed A Script

5. Stone Cold Steve Austin

Many in this list are masters of vocabulary, straining the boundaries of the dictionary to wring every bit of emotion from their promos as possible. Steve Austin does not belong in this category. His straight-talking, uncomplicated style perfectly meshed with his authority-baiting everyman character, and was backed up by a seething sense of danger lurking underneath the surface. As exciting as the standard "hell yeah" Stone Cold promo always is, the true depths of his charisma are most evident during his run as the bullying leader of the invading WCW forces in 2001. He drummed up tremendous sympathy for rising stars such as Kurt Angle and Rob Van Dam with his incessant, barking insults and chilling intensity. Unquestionably, Austin's best promo is the one which sparked the Attitude Era itself - his victory speech upon winning King Of The Ring 1996. Upon defeating the god-fearing Jake Roberts in the tournament final, Stone Cold tossed out an improvised line - "you talk about your Psalms, talk about your John 3:16's. Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass". The reaction was instantaneous, cementing Stone Cold's status as the spearhead of a new movement. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQhlaWxMbTg