Over the last couple of days — after so many WWE fans were convinced that it would be happening — the idea of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin returning to the ring after a dozen years to face Brock Lesnar has pretty much been squashed. Both Paul Heyman and Austin himself have said that the match won’t happen, and on top of that, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon does not want Austin returning to the ring due to the neck issues that forced him to retire in 2003. You can read more on that here .
WrestleMania 32 , as many people know, will be taking place in Austin’s home state of Texas in front of the largest audience in WWE history. Austin said in the past that he plans on attending the show, and if he’s there, it’s likely that WWE will have him be involved in the show in some capacity.
Over the last couple of years, WWE likes to bring back names from the past to host WrestleMania . They did it with The Rock in 2011, and they did it again with Hulk Hogan last year. With WrestleMania being in Texas, the live crowd — and likely the people at home watching on the WWE Network — will be dying to see Austin at the show, which could lead to WWE making him the host of WrestleMania 32 .
In the past when discussing coming back and being part of an angle, Austin has said that he’s worn out the special guest referee gimmick. In 2004, Austin played the part of the special guest referee for the Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar match, again for the “Battle of the Billionaires” in 2007, and once again for Michael Cole vs. Jerry “The King” Lawler in 2011. As such, Austin wants to do something different. But, unfortunately, with Austin not willing or not being able to wrestle, there are not many options for him.
There’s no question that WWE wants to give Austin an on-screen role at next year’s WrestleMania , so Austin being the host could end up being the move. However, WWE is still searching for the one big super-match that will sell-out AT&T Stadium, which could end up being The Rock vs. Brock Lesnar . Austin could end up changing his stance on being a special guest referee for Rock vs. Brock.
Despite Austin, Heyman, and Vince McMahon all saying that “Stone Cold” won’t be returning to the ring, there are still fans who think it’s all a work and that Austin will be back at next year’s WrestleMania . It’s possible, but, unfortunately, it’s not likely.
[Image via WWE ]
