20 WTF Moments In Stone Cold Steve Austin's WWE Career

9. Quitting In 2002

Given the events already covered in 2001, is it any wonder that Austin quit the next year? In all seriousness, his departure from the company came across as sudden and was, to many, him simply "taking his ball and going home." For fans, we were as confused as ever. That's because on the surface, besides the annoying changes to his character, Stone Cold was on top of the WWE world. Triple H and Kurt Angle were occupying a few of the top spots, leaving plenty of room for Austin to take over. Stone Cold had always been very protective of his character, and it was his refusal to work with some WWE stars that finally led to his exit. We all know how he adamantly wouldn't put over Jeff Jarrett because Jarrett balked at Austin's non-religious use of 3:16, but Austin also wasn't a fan of Hulk Hogan coming back to WWE with a reformed nWo. That's why we got Rock/Hogan at WrestleMania X8 instead of the no-brainer Austin/Hogan. However, it was when Austin was asked to face Brock Lesnar€”a huge bout for the young up-and-comer€”on an episode of Raw with no build whatsoever that Stone Cold skipped Raw and eventually quit.