WWE Survivor Series 1998: 5 Awesome Things And 5 That Sucked

4. Steve Austin Was Used Well As A Sympathetic Babyface

Going into the tournament, Steve Austin was definitely the favorite. He was screwed out of the WWE Title by Vince McMahon two months earlier at Breakdown when Kane and Undertaker pinned him, so most fans thought that Austin would get the title back here. Obviously that didn't happen. It was very hard to make Austin a sympathetic figure in that era because he was always booked strong. The main storyline was him against Vince McMahon and as that story intensified, Austin was rarely made to look weak. However, Austin failed to win because of the heel actions of Shane McMahon, Vince McMahon and his buddies. It made it seem like Austin was going to have a tough time climbing to the top of the mountain again. What was cool about Austin's booking is that he put over Mankind although it wasn't clean. Then at the end of the night, he went after The Rock and beat him up all around the ring. It was the perfect way to set things up for the next five months, which put them on the road to WrestleMania where the heel Rock defending the WWE Title against Austin.