[WATCH] Stone Cold Steve Austin has two-word reaction for his career-highlight wrestling iconic Japanese WWE Hall of Famer
Long before shaving his head and becoming the legendary "Texas Rattlesnake" redneck that we know him for today, WWE legend Stone Cold Steve Austin wrestled the Hall of Fame Class of 2023 inductee, Great Muta, on August 10, 1992, for the New Japan Pro-Wrestling promotion.
Then known by his real name Keiji Muto, the Japanese legend faced a young Austin in a bout that people remember fondly even today. Stone Cold recently retweeted a fan's highlight-clip post on Twitter, remarking his early days as "good times."
Good times. twitter.com/vintagepuro/st…
Austin joined WCW in 1991 and remained there until 1995. The Bionic Redneck even had a brief stint at Philadelphia-based wrestling promotion ECW after being contacted by Paul Heyman before finally landing a contract with WWE, thanks to Kevin Nash and Jim Ross.
Meanwhile, despite never wrestling under the global juggernaut company, Great Muta etched his name in the history books of the pro-wrestling world, working for several companies from the 1980s to 2023.
Steve Austin wishes he wrestled The Great Muta during WWE run
His "Stone Cold" character in WWE helped the company break records and reach a status higher than any other promotion in the world. Steve Austin recently discussed wrestling The Great Muta and how he wished for a match between the two to happen while he was at the peak of his career:
"I'd always enjoy working with Muta. Man, that guy was a very special talent. I wish I got to wrestle Muta when I was in total Stone Cold Steve Austin mode rather than the "Stunning" Steve mode." [From 0:18 to 0:30]
Muta had a match against WWE's Shinsuke Nakamura on January 1, 2023, at NOAH The New Year show. His final bout took place on February 21, at the Keiji Muto Grand Final Pro-Wrestling "Last-Love" event, losing to Tetsuya Naito in a previously advertised match and to Masahiro Chono in an impromptu contest.
Despite turning down a match at WrestleMania 39 after returning to the ring at last year's event in Dallas against Kevin Owens, Austin enjoyed watching the Show of Shows, especially the main event between Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes. He even sent a one-word text to those involved in the match. Read more here.
If you use the quote, credit the original source and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.