Steve Austin on if John Cena should turn heel

Steve Austin and John Cena

As noted earlier, WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin appeared on the first two episodes of Jim Ross‘ new podcast, The Ross Report. The latest episode of the Ross Report dropped last night and features Showtime Championship Boxing commentator and former Strikeforce play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo.

In his last episode with Austin, Jim Ross asked “Stone Cold” if there was any money in turning John Cena heel.

“No, there’s no money in turning John Cena heel,” Austin replied.

Austin said that Cena is the face of the company, and turning him heel would be a bad idea. He noted that Cena is the most liked active U.S. athlete on Facebook, he’s All American, does all the charity work, he’s good and that kids love him. He said that while a heel turn may sound like a good idea because of the crowd reactions, he feels like the audience is just messing with him. He said that Cena is walking on the edge of a razor blade, and he’s never seen another run like Cena’s.

He said that you cannot have the face of the company doing all that he can to be hated, adding that it does not work and there’s no money in it. Austin added that he respects Cena as much as he has respected anyone in the business. Jim Ross stated that you also cannot turn your back on the merchandise that he moves, and asked how you can turn on children.

Austin talked about his own heel turn at WrestleMania 17 and how it was his idea, and admitted that it was a mistake. While he did get to take his character in different directions and try new things, he took a big hit in merchandise while the company suffered in ticket sales and pay-per-view buy rates. He once again iterated that it was not a successful endeavor, and that “white meat young, clean, handsome babyface John Cena must remain that guy.”

Once again, it’s a great listen, you can check out the full episode below: