10 Things You Didn't Know About WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin
"Michael "PS" Hayes showed Austin the "Ace Crusher", the weapon of choice for Johnny Ace (aka John Laurinaitis), and suggested a sitdown version of the move - and thus the Stone Cold Stunner was born..."
9. Not Wasting Time
After navigating his early struggles, Austin would prove valuable as a star villain in the Dallas and Memphis regions, and it didn't take long for somebody in a major promotion to notice this blonde-haired blue-chipper. Austin began his four-year stay with WCW in May 1991, and his first foray with a worthwhile championship would come in short order.
Just three weeks after his WCW debut, Austin would defeat Bobby Eaton to become the company's Television Champion. Eaton had only just defeated Arn Anderson for the title at the SuperBrawl pay-per-view, which ran a mere six days after Austin's first match in the company. All of a sudden, the belt was being transitioned to "Stunning Steve". Austin won the belt on June 3, 1991, and to show the faith that the WCW brokers had in him, he would go on to hold to belt for 329 days, just five weeks short of a year, before losing it to Barry Windham. In less than three years as a professional wrestler, Austin was given a title run of such length by a national promotion, and very few people, if anyone, would've said he wasn't worthy.
Written by Justin Henry
In addition to writing lists and commentaries for Cultaholic, Justin is also a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine, and is co-author of the WWE-related book Titan Screwed: Lost Smiles, Stunners, and Screwjobs.
