"Stone Cold" Steve Austin is synonymous with the Attitude Era of the WWE. After calling it quits in 2002, Stone Cold has appeared sporadically inside the squared circle. But, while he's made occasional appearances, his match against Kevin Owens in April at WrestleMania 38 was actually the only time he's laced up his boots in 19 years.
Now, if we believe the rumors, the WWE Hall of Famer will be fighting for the second time in two decades.
According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful (hat tip to H. Jenkins), the WWE already reached out to Austin for another match. Apparently, the WWE sat on this idea before Vince McMahon stepped down and the new Head of Creative, Triple H, wants to make it happen as soon as possible. Unfortunately, Sapp's sources couldn't quite confirm when exactly the match will take place or if the WWE and Stone Cold have already agreed to disagree.
The 57-year-old officially retired from in-ring competition in 2003 due to a laundry list of knee and neck injuries. However, Stone Cold showed little signs of rust when he performed in front of his home crowd in Texas.
Furthermore, Austin remains in great shape. His recent workout video even sparked rumors that Austin is preparing for a more involved WWE comeback. But, fans know better than to hope for more than one match.
Fingers crossed, the WWE has called and booked Stone Cold for a match at WrestleMania next year.
Ideally, the WWE has a better plan for the Texas Rattlesnake in his return to in-ring action. If he returns at WrestleMania 39, the WWE needs to find a way to build up the match relative to his stature as one of the most iconic performances in entertainment history. This isn't to say that Stone Cold's earlier match against Owens wasn't worth it. But, if the WWE wants to bring Stone Cold back, they'll need to cobble up a match with better buildup befitting the Bionic Redneck.
Speaking of WrestleMania 39, the rumor mill is busy churning info about what the WWE has planned for April. Among these include a potential Logan Paul vs John Cena matchup and the return of The Rock.
