Stone Cold Steve Austin

name="Stone Cold" Steve Austin

Extreme Championship Wrestling

As Austin healed from his knee injury, he was contacted by his former manager in WCW, Paul Heyman. Heyman was in charge of his own promotion at the time, the Philadelphia-based Extreme Championship Wrestling, and wanted to offer Austin a platform for which he could air out his frustrations toward WCW. This is where Austin would develop his future "Stone Cold" persona. Austin would use his wit and biting sense of humor to air out his grievances, imitating Eric Bischoff and other WCW luminaries. One of his most famous vignettes centered around Austin (in the role of Bischoff) announcing the lineup for what he called "Monday Nyquil". "Bischoff" announced there would be a "Bottle of Geritol On a Pole" match, in which WCW wrestlers who were past their prime would use their sticks and walkers to do battle. As "Superstar" Steve Austin, he was able to connect with the viewing public in a manner he was never allowed to do while with WCW.

Related Topics:
Philadelphia - Extreme Championship Wrestling

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Austin also made his return to the ring under the ECW banner, feuding with The Sandman and Mikey Whipwreck. Whipwreck, who was the ECW World Champion at the time, scored a huge upset win over Austin at ECW's November To Remember, on November 18, 1995. Years later, Paul Heyman stated he originally wanted to book Austin to win the World championship, but Austin disagreed, feeling it would be better for business if Austin was the "hunter" instead of the "hunted."

Related Topics:
The Sandman - Mikey Whipwreck - November To Remember

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