Stunning: The Steve Austin Viewer Guide
Enjoy The Texas Rattlesnake's Best Promos and Matches As Featured in the New Book by Zack Heydorn
(UPDATED TO INCLUDE MISSING MATCHES)
Zach’s new book was released yesterday on Amazon. Please support independent authors and artists.
I can still remember the first time I saw “Stone Cold” Steve Austin in living color. It was my girlfriend’s birthday and we drove an hour up the road to Charlotte so she could see her bald-headed favorite in action, giving a random kid five dollars to park on the grass of a nearby lot. It was the first time at a WWF show for both of us. Like so many other college-aged kids, we’d caught the wrestling bug by then—but ECW and WCW were more our speed.
Austin changed everything. He was so compelling, such a force of nature, that we’d flip the channel over to the USA Network just to see him glare at his boss and flip the bird to anyone and everyone he saw. If I’d recognized the man who’d once played a Hollywood Blond, he was certainly well-hidden. The Stone Cold character was singular, a supernova the likes of which the business may never see again.
We were two of the 17,682 in attendance that night, despite the event being a mere house show. That’s how hot Austin and the WWF were at the time. Every day of the week they played the big basketball arenas around the country, The Rock, the New Age Outlaws, Edge and the Hardy Boyz, the show of shows. It was a variety act—but there was no doubt who the people had come to see.
Austin.
He wrestled Mankind, Undertaker and Kane that night in a Fatal Four Way for the WWF championship. I couldn’t tell you anything about the match. What I do remember is the sound. When the glass broke, the audience absolutely came unglued. It wasn’t just noise—you could feel it in your bones, like it was alive, the love of thousands of fans taking corporeal form.
Author Zack Heydorn loves Austin even more than I do. He’s studied him carefully to understand how he became wrestling’s biggest star. A lot of books will tell you when it happened. Only Zack attempts to figure out why—what made the Stone Cold character so special to so many?
To really appreciate Zack’s upcoming book, released yesterday, you’ll need to watch the same material he so thoughtfully analyzed. We’ve attempted to make that easy for you with this viewer’s guide.
Many of the matches and promos are available on YouTube. But many more require a subscription to Peacock, home of the WWE archive. Those are marked with a (*).
Chapter 1
Steve Austin & Jeff Gaylord vs. Jimmy Jack Funk & Chico Torres
USWA - Championship Sports, 3/3/90
Steve Austin vs. Chris Adams - Barbed Wire Match
USWA Challenge - Sportatorium, 5/25/90
Steve Austin & Jeannie Clark vs. Chris Adams & Toni Adams
USWA Challenge - Sportatorium, 7/20/90
Date Unknown/1989 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Williams vs. The Punisher - Championship Sports
2/3/1990 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Chris Adams - Championship Sports
2/10/1990 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin and Chris Adams Brawl - Championship Sports
5/5/1990 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin vs. The Convict - Championship Sports
6/30/1990 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Todd Overbow - Championship Sports
8/3/1990 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Chris Adams - Come As You Are Match - Championship Sports
“It’s Austin” USWA Championship Sports, January 27, 1990
“The gorgeous, lovely, Jeannie” USWA Championship Sports, April 21, 1990
“I own Chris Adams” USWA Championship Sports, June 30, 1990
Chapter 2
Steve Austin vs. Bobby Eaton - WCW World Television Championship
WCW Worldwide, 6/29/91
*Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes - WCW World Television Championship
Halloween Havoc 1991, October 27, 1991
*Steve Austin vs. Ricky Steamboat - WCW World Television Championship
Clash Of The Champions 20, 9/2/92
*6/12/1991 - Knoxville, Tennessee - Steve Austin vs. Joey Maggs - Clash Of The Champions 15
*7/14/1991 - Baltimore, Maryland - Steve Austin & Terrance Taylor vs. Beautiful Bobby & PN News - Great American Bash 1991
8/17/1991 - Sioux City, Iowa - Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes - WCW World Television Championship - WCW Saturday Night
*9/5/1991 - Augusta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. The Z-Man - WCW World Television Championship - Clash Of The Champions 16
10/8/1991 - Montgomery, Alabama - Steve Austin vs. Tracy Smothers - WCW World Television Championship - WCW Main Event
1/18/1992 - Atlanta, Georgia - Steve Austin & Bobby Eaton vs. Sting & Marcus Bagwell - WCW World Championship Wrestling
1/25/1992 - Shocklin, Missouri - Steve Austin vs. Ron Simmons - WCW Power Hour
*2/29/1992 - Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Steve Austin & Larry Zbyszko vs. Dustin Rhodes & Barry Windham - WCW Superbrawl 2
5/9/1992 - Atlanta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. Barry Windham - WCW World Television Championship 2 out of 3 Falls Match - WCW Saturday Night
*5/17/1992 - Jacksonville, Florida - The Dangerous Alliance (Steve Austin, Beautiful Bobby, Arn Anderson, Rick Rude, Larry Zbyszko) vs. Sting Squadron (Sting, Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Ricky Steamboat) - War Games - Wrestle War 1992
7/4/1992 - Topeka, Kansas - Steve Austin vs. Brian Pillman - WCW World Television Championship - WCW Worldwide
10/24/1992 - Augusta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. Shane Douglas - WCW Saturday Night
“The champion who can take wrestling into the ‘90s” 9/15/1992 - WCW Worldwide
“Let me just show ya what I can do in the ring right now” 10/24/1992 - WCW Saturday Night
Chapter 3
*The Hollywood Blonds vs. Ricky Steamboat & Shane Douglas - WCW World Tag Team Championship
Clash Of The Champions 22, January 13, 1993
Clash Of The Champions 23, June 17, 1993
*1/2/1993 - Atlanta, Georgia - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Larry Santo & Rikki Nelson - WCW Saturday Night
1/30/1993 - Anderson, South Carolina - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Ricky Steamboat & Shane Douglas - WCW Worldwide
*2/21/1993 - Asheville, North Carolina - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Erik Watts & Marcus Alexander Bagwell - Superbrawl 3
2/27/1993 - Gainesville, Georgia - The Hollywood Blonds and The Heavenly Bodies vs. Ricky Steamboat & Shane Douglas and The Rock and Roll Express - WCW Worldwide
3/27/1993 - Macon, Georgia - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Ricky Steamboat & Shane Douglas - WCW World Tag Team Championship - WCW Worldwide
5/15/1993 - Columbus, Georgia - The Hollywood Blonds vs. 2 Cold Scorpio & Marcus Alexander Bagwell - WCW Power Hour
*5/23/1993 - Atlanta, Georgia - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Dos Hombres - WCW World Tag Team Championship Cage Match - Slamboree 1993
*7/18/1993 - Biloxi, Mississippi - The Hollywood Blonds vs. Four Horsemen (Arn Anderson & Paul Roma) - WCW Beach Blast 1993
*8/18/1993 - Daytona Beach, Florida - Steve Austin & Lord Steven Regal vs. Four Horsemen (Arn Anderson & Paul Roma) - Clash Of The Champions 24
*“You create an unbeatable machine” 1/2/1993 - WCW Saturday Night
*“Let us enrich your lives and give you a brush with greatness” 4/3/1993 - WCW Saturday Night
*“It’s a flare for the old” 5/15/1993 - WCW Saturday Night
Chapter 4
*Steve Austin vs. Brian Pillman
Clash Of The Champions 25, November 10, 1993
*Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes - WCW United States Championship 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match
Starrcade 1993, December 27, 1993
*Steve Austin vs. Ricky Steamboat - WCW United States Championship Match
Bash at the Beach 1994, July 17, 1994
*11/20/1993 - Pensacola, Florida - Steve Austin & Ric Flair vs. 2 Cold Scorpio & Maxx Payne - Battlebowl 1993
*1/1/1994 - Atlanta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. Sting - WCW Saturday Night
*2/5/1994 - Atlanta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. Terry Taylor - WCW United States Championship - WCW Saturday Night
*2/20/1994 - Albany, New York - Steve Austin, Rick Rude, & Paul Orndorff vs. Sting, Dustin Rhodes, & Brian Pillman - ThunderCage - Superbrawl 4
3/26/1994 - Atlanta, Georgia - Steve Austin vs. Fire Cat - WCW Saturday Night
*4/17/1994 - Rosemont, Illinois - Steve Austin vs. The Great Muta - WCW United States Championship - Spring Stampede 1994
*5/22/1994 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Steve Austin vs. Johnny B. Badd - WCW United States Championship - Slamboree 1994
*8/24/1994 - Cedar Rapids, Iowa - Steve Austin vs. Ricky Steamboat - WCW United States Championship - Clash Of The Champions 28
*9/18/1994 - Roanoke, Virginia - Steve Austin vs. Jim Duggan - WCW United States Championship - Fall Brawl 1994
*10/23/1994 - Detroit, Michigan - Steve Austin vs. Jim Duggan - WCW United States Championship - Halloween Havoc 1994
5/21/1995 - St. Petersburg, Florida - Steve Austin vs. Eddie Jackie - WCW Main Event
“Who cares! No one cares” 7/23/1994 - WCW Saturday Night
“I’ve got one helluva surprise” 11/12/1994 - WCW Saturday Night
Chapter 5
Steve Austin vs. Keiji Muto (Request Access)
NJPW Fighting Spirit Legend, June 5, 1995
*Steve Austin vs. Mikey Whipwreck - ECW Heavyweight Championship
ECW November to Remember, November 18, 1995
12/9/1995 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Steve Austin vs. Sandman vs. Mikey Whipwreck - ECW World Heavyweight Championship
8/6/1992 - Shizuoka, Japan - Steve Austin vs. Arn Anderson - G1 Climax First Round Match (Request Access)
9/23/1992 - Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan - Steve Austin vs. Masahiro Chono (Request Access)
6/12/1995 - Osaka, Japan - Steve Austin & Arn Anderson vs. Masa Saito & Riki Choshu (Request Access)
“Well, all that shit never happened!” October 10, 1995 - Hardcore TV
Chapter 6
*The Ringmaster vs. Matt Hardy
WWE Monday Night Raw, January 15, 1996
*The Ringmaster vs. Marty Jannetty
WWE Monday Night Raw, February 19, 1996
*1/20/1996 - Bethlehem, Pennsylvania - The Ringmaster vs. Scott Taylor - WWE Superstars
*2/10/1996 - San Jose, California - The Ringmaster vs. Fatu - WWE Superstars
*3/2/1996 - Huntington, West Virginia - The Ringmaster vs. Tony Williams - WWE Superstars
*“The million dollar champion”, 1/8/1996 - WWE Monday Night Raw
*“That’s what I’ll do” 2/10/1996 - WWE Superstars
Chapter 7
WrestleMania 12, March 31, 1996
*Steve Austin vs. Jake Roberts - King of the Ring Tournament Final
King of the Ring 1996, June 23, 1996
*Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels
WWE Monday Night Raw, October 14, 1996
*Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart - Submission Match w/Ken Shamrock as special referee
WrestleMania 13, March 23, 1997
*Steve Austin vs. Owen Hart - WWE Intercontinental Championship
Summerslam 1997, August 3, 1997
*Steve Austin vs. The Rock - WWE Intercontinental Championship
In Your House 19: D-Generation X, December 7, 1997
*3/11/1996 - San Antonio, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Savio Vega - WWE Monday Night Raw
*4/15/1996 - San Bernardino, California - Steve Austin vs. Bart Gunn - WWE Monday Night Raw
*5/20/1996 - Sioux City, Iowa - Steve Austin vs. Marc Mero - WWE Monday Night Raw
*5/26/1996 - Florence, South Carolina - Steve Austin vs. Savio Vega - Caribbean Strap Match - In Your House: Beware of Dog
*6/23/1996 - Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Steve Austin vs. Marc Mero - King of the Ring Semifinal Match
*6/24/1996 - Green Bay, Wisconsin - Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker - WWE Monday Night Raw
8/18/1996 - Cleveland, Ohio - Steve Austin vs. Yokozuna - Summerslam 1996 - Dark Match
*10/20/1996 - Indianapolis, Indiana - Steve Austin vs. Hunter Hearst Helmsley - In Your House 11: Buried Alive
*11/17/1996 - New York City, New York - Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart - Survivor Series 1996
1/18/1997 - San Antonio, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Goldust - Shotgun Saturday Night
*5/5/1997 - Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin - Steve Austin vs. British Bulldog - WWE Monday Night Raw
*5/11/1997 - Richmond, Virginia - Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker - WWE Championship - In Your House: A Cold Day in Hell
*5/26/1997 - Evansville, Indiana - Steve Austin & Shawn Michaels vs. The Hart Foundation - WWE Tag Team Championship - WWE Monday Night Raw
*6/8/1997 - Providence, Rhode Island - Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels - King of the Ring 1997
*7/6/1997 - Calgary, Alberta, Canada - Steve Austin, Goldust, Ken Shamrock, & Legion of Doom vs. The Hart Foundation - In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede
*11/9/1997 - Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Steve Austin vs. Owen Hart - WWE Intercontinental Championship - Survivor Series 1997
*“Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass” 6/23/1996 - King of the Ring 1996
*“Hitman” 10/14/1996 - WWE Monday Night Raw
*“Give your soul to the lord” 4/28/1997 - WWE Monday Night Raw
*“You can kiss my ass!” 9/22/1997 - WWE Monday Night Raw
Chapter 8
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels - WWE Championship
WrestleMania 14, March 28, 1998
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker - WWE Championship
Summerslam 1998, March 30, 1998
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Mr. McMahon - Cage Match
St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, February 14, 1999
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock - WWE Championship
WrestleMania 15, March 28, 1999
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Triple H - Three Stages Of Hell
No Way Out 2001, February 25, 2001
*Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock - WWE Championship
WrestleMania 17, April 1, 2001
*4/13/1998 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon - WWE Monday Night Raw
*4/26/98 - Greensboro, North Carolina - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Dude Love - Unforgiven In Your House - WWE Championship
*6/29/98 - Cleveland, Ohio - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kane - WWE Monday Night Raw - WWE Championship
*10/26/98 - Madison, Wisconsin - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Ken Shamrock - WWE Monday Night Raw
*4/25/99 - Providence, Rhode Island - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock - Backlash - WWE Championship
*5/16/99 - Manchester, England - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker vs. Triple H - No Mercy UK - WWE Championship
*6/27/1999 - Greensboro, North Carolina - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Vince McMahon & Shane McMahon - King of the Ring 1999 - Ladder Match for ownership of the WWE
*6/28/99 - Charlotte, North Carolina - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker - WWE Monday Night Raw - WWE Championship
*11/14/00 - Indianapolis, Indiana - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Eddie Guerrero - WWE Smackdown
*2/5/01 - Atlanta, Georgia - Stone Cold Steve Austin & Triple H vs. Kurt Angle & The Rock - WWE Monday Night Raw
*“I ain't gonna do things your way” March 30, 1998 - WWE Monday Night Raw
*“If you’re ready for WrestleMania, give me a hell yeah” March 22, 1999 - WWE Monday Night Raw
*Chapter 9
Steve Austin & Triple H & Stephanie McMahon vs. The Hardy Boyz & Lita
WWE Monday Night Raw, April 9, 2001
Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle - WWE Championship
Summerslam 2001, August 19, 2001
Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle - WWE Championship
Unforgiven 2001, September 23, 2001
5/5/2001 - London, England - Stone Cold Steve Austin & Triple H vs. The Undertaker - WWE Championship Handicap Match - WWE Insurrextion 2001
5/21/2001 - San Jose, California - Stone Cold Steve Austin & Triple H vs. Chris Jericho & Chris Benoit - WWE Tag Team Championship - WWE Monday Night Raw
6/4/2001 - Minneapolis, Minnesota - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Chris Jericho - WWE Championship - WWE Monday Night Raw
7/22/2001 - Cleveland, Ohio - WWE (Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, Kane, Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle) vs. WCW/ECW (Booker T, Diamond Dallas Page, Rhyno, The Dudley Boyz) Inaugural Brawl - Invasion
10/21/2001 - St. Louis, Missouri - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle vs. Rob Van Dam - WWE Championship - No Mercy 2001
11/3/2001 - Manchester, England - Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock - WWE Championship - Rebellion 2001
11/18/2001 - Greensboro, North Carolina - Team WWE (The Rock, Chris Jericho, Kane, The Undertaker, Big Show) vs. Team Alliance (Stone Cold Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, Shane McMahon) - Winner Take All Survivor Series Elimination Match - Survivor Series 2001
“Why Stone Cold, Why” April 2, 2001 - WWE Monday Night Raw
“It’s an insurance policy, Jim” April 5, 2001 - WWE Smackdown
“This is what the World Wrestling Federation Champion looks like” May 21, 2001 - WWE Monday Night Raw
“The Cowboy Hats” July 5, 2001 - WWE Smackdown
*Chapter 10
WrestleMania 18, March 17, 2002
WrestleMania 19, March 30, 2003
12/6/2001 - Chicago, Illinois - Steve Austin & The Rock vs. Kurt Angle & Chris Jericho - WWE Smackdown
12/9/2001 - San Diego, California - Steve Austin vs. Chris Jericho - WWE Undisputed Championship Tournament Final - Vengeance 2001
12/18/2001 - New Orleans, Louisiana - Steve Austin vs. Booker T - First Blood Match - WWE Smackdown
2/17/2002 - Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Steve Austin vs. Chris Jericho - WWE Undisputed Championship - No Way Out 2002
2/25/2002 - Providence, Rhode Island - Steve Austin vs. Mr. Perfect - WWE Monday Night Raw
6/3/2002 - Dallas, Texas - Steve Austin vs. Ric Flair - WWE Monday Night Raw
2/23/2003 - Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Steve Austin vs. Eric Bischoff - No Way Out 2003
“What!” 1/14/2002 - WWE Monday Night Raw
“I didn’t bring a ball with me. I brought a big fat can of whoop ass” 3/3/2003 - WWE Monday Night Raw
“The Rock was the better man” 3/31/2003 - WWE Monday Night Raw
BONUS SECTION
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Kevin Owens - WrestleMania 38
Very cool to have a direct link to the matches!