10 WWE Stars Who Fought Through The Pain Barrier

5. Steve Austin Vs. Owen Hart - WWF SummerSlam 1997

Triple H quad 2007
WWE Network

There's a reason why Austin was the toughest S.O.B. of his generation - Austin fought through the pain barrier on two occasions.

That might be understating matters - the injury he suffered here would plague him with severe neck pain for the rest of his career - but this and the previous entry in particular are extreme examples of Austin being tougher than any of his peers. Owen could only mug to the audience following his botched tombstone piledriver in the finishing sequence of their Intercontinental title tussle.

He couldn't pin Austin since 'Stone Cold' had been booked to win. After what seemed like an eternity, Austin inexplicably managed to catch Owen by surprise and roll him up for the three count. It looked abysmal, understandably, but that wasn't important. Austin had managed to finish a match having been temporarily paralysed just minutes earlier.

Austin has gone on record repeatedly to criticise Owen's technique, bemoaning the fact that he 'landed flat on his a**', but while that may be true, it's hypocritical of the 'Rattlesnake'. Five years earlier, he inflicted a broken neck on Masahiro Chono using the same manoeuvre in the same way on New Japan Pro Wrestling card.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!