WWE: Top 25 Stone Cold Steve Austin Moments

15. "What Would Those Consequences Be, Punk?"

This uncommon incident isn't particularly remembered in the WWF's expanded history, nor is it vastly understood in the root of its own context. While involving Stone Cold Steve Austin, it doesn't involve his drive of wreaking havoc by stunning people, running over things, or randomly assaulting people. It does, however, revolve around the one thing that makes Steve Austin who he is: his hardcore attitude. One of Austin's first-class acts towards Vince McMahon occurred back in December 8th of 1997 in Portland, Maine. At the time Austin was the WWF Intercontinental Champion, and dominated the business with the crowd behind his back. He didn't care about any repercussions, only that his way was the only way to any answer. Due to his behavior, Vince McMahon called out Austin to the ring to establish a sense of order with how Austin managed himself. Of course Austin answered the call and came out to confront Vince. Vince gave the order for Steve Austin to defend his title against The People's Champ, The Rock, seeing as how he deserved it. Austin disagreed, telling Vince that Austin does what he wants, when he wants. Vince replied to Austin's retort, telling him there would be "consequences" if Austin didn't comply with the boss's plan. Vince played coy on what they actually were, and Austin told Vince he had his "own set of consequences." That was when Vince had officially crossed the line, putting himself in spitting distance of the Rattlesnake's strike. Austin continued to taunt Vince, announcing to the boss that he would chill out in the back of the arena while Vince thought out the consequences. Here's what Austin reported to McMahon: "While you sweat it out and think about your consequences, I'll come out later in the show and give you an answer. But I'm telling you this: if Stone Cold comes back out, somebody's gonna get their ass whipped. It might be you, Jim Ross, it might be your precious little official in the striped shirt, and you can damn well bet your bottom dollar son, it might be your sorry ass." That single quote from Austin summed up his motivations and character to a T, and it carried over for the rest of his career. That defining moment is what ultimately put Austin and McMahon on the warpath towards their famous feud. For it was very rare for wrestlers to become bigger than the business they worked for, and Stone Cold fit the bill perfectly. NOTE: There was no isolated video for this specific moment. Sorry for the inconvenience.