This WWE Legend Didn't Think Stone Cold Vs. Hulk Hogan Could Work

One WWE icon is sure that Stone Cold vs. Hulk Hogan would've been a huge disappointment.

by Jamie Kennedy
Jim Ross
AEW

Legendary wrestling announcer and current AEW play-by-play man Jim Ross doesn't think Steve Austin vs. Hulk Hogan would've been a winner back in 2002.

Via his 'Grilling JR' podcast, Ross dissected the chances of that bout happening when Hogan returned to WWE that year. Privately, his good pal Austin told Jim that he had reservations about working Hulk's rigid in-ring formula - he wanted to wrestle an "intense, aggressive, somewhat snug" pace.

'Stone Cold' wasn't convinced that the match was right for him.

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Of course, longstanding rumours suggest Austin and Hulk had a frosty relationship anyway, but JR said that's not true at all. Steve was more worried about a "styles clash" than anything, and wanted to be sure of a good match before rubber-stamping his approval.

Jim agrees that the bout would've been disappointing. He can see the appeal, and definitely thinks it would've made for an awesome poster, but doesn't think the actual bell-to-bell "had a chance in hell" of living up to the insane hype.

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That's fair, and yet it still feels like Hogan vs. Austin is one dream match that got away for WWE.

Contributor

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.