Stone Cold Steve Austin (Photo : Photo: Twitter)
The WWE was reportedly a lot closer than anybody thought to booking Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan showdown at Wrestlemania 22, until 'major roadblocks' eventually prevented the dream match from taking place, according to PWTorch Editor Wade Keller.
In his latest podcast, Keller delved deeper into one of the biggest matches that never happened and provided the real reasons why Steve Austin decided to stay retired despite the lure of big money match with the Hulkster in the greatest show of them all.
Austin, who was then just two years removed from retirement, had an opportunity to add another feather to his hat by taking on WWE's biggest star in the 1980s - Hollywood Hulk Hogan. But despite all the insinuations made by the Hogan in 2005, Stone Cold stayed very much retired, shattering everybody's dream of a blockbuster fight in the process
In an interview with Jim Ross on the Ross Report last January, Stone Cold explained why he never regretted his decision to turn down a match with Hogan. While he has no doubts the match would generate enormous amount of money for WWE, he nevertheless believes a Stone Cold vs. Hogan fight wouldn't live up to the hype as far as 'the execution of the match' is concerned.
"No I don't have any regrets (about not wrestling Hulk Hogan). Obviously on paper it's 'Stone Cold' vs. Hulk Hogan, so that would draw money. But as far as the execution of the match, I just don't think it would have been what I would have wanted it to be, or what people would have wanted it to be. So I don't have any regrets about it whatsoever."
Trish Stratus believes Sasha Banks is the future of WWE's Women's division. Stratus, the 7-time Women's champion title holder, thinks Banks' appeal and in-ring generalship separates her from the rest of the field, making one of the superstar to closely watch for in the coming years.
"Sasha, to me, is a star. There are a lot of comparisons, but I don't think we are that similar, actually, at all. But she's the star of the division, and she's the one. She really knows her character, she owns her character, and she's so solid in the ring," Stratus said in an interview with Sports Illustrated.
