Scherer reports that Austin and his attorney are in the midst of a contract renegotiation and that a meeting with Vince McMahon turned ugly on Friday when Austin's lawyer tried to play hardball and McMahon resisted.
Austin may not have picked the best time to make such a move because 1Wrestling sources have told us the company is irate at recent reports that he is accused of domestic violence against his live-in girlfriend Tess Broussard.
Austin did not appear on RAW last night, although the show was broadcast from his home state of Texas.
WWE.com has not made mention of the Austin situation
Man, who else is gonna leave? If he does leaves, I wanna see how WWE explains it on RAW.
"Huard, gonna go back to throw the ball. Sets up, looks, throws towards the corner of the endzone...it is INTERCEPTED INTERCEPTED, THE DUCKS HAVE THE BALL! Down to the 35, the 40. Kenny Wheaton's gonna score! Kenny Wheaton is gonna score! 20, the 10, Touchdown! Kenny Wheaton on the interception, the most incredible finish to the football game!"
Austin not showing up on a RAW in Texas is a big deal. Something must be up. They certainly didn't mention his absence this week on RAW. He never came up that I remember, and even most Weiners commenting on in the RAW thread didn't even mention it. It's like nobody noticed. Probably Vince's way of saying, "Look, you wanna play hardball with me? I'll get people so excited about Shelton Benjamin, they won't even miss you."
So sayeth Randy Stilton, the real Stinky Cheese Man!
(I'm told that, in the UK, my name is actually hilarious.)
Foley said in his book that Vince won't get behind workers out of contract. Maybe that holds for Austin too.
Originally posted by Jeb Tennyson Lund• One of these days, when Triple H is in the middle of one of his long grunting promos, Jericho should just lean forward, stick his finger on the end of Triple H's schnozz and say, "poooooooke!" No one will know what to do.
I forget which match but the fans were chanting "We Want Austin" on RAW.
These things happen in contract negotiations all the time. Was Austin asking for too much? Was Vince lowballing Austin? I can see cases for both sides on why Austin should or shouldn't get what he's asking for. Perhaps it had something to do with Austin wanting to branch out with his clothing line and beer? Maybe Vince wouldn't let go of the rights to "Stone Cold Steve Austin" like he did with "The Rock"?
Point being, there's so many possibilities as to what could have happened in those contract negotiations. I'm sure Meltzer will have a good deal of coverage on it in next week's issue.
"The National Enquirer story covering the recent allegations of domestic violence on the part of Steve Austin contains an accusation from a "source close to the couple" that Austin previously beat his live in girlfriend Tess Broussard "so badly that she fled to a battered women's shelter".
The Enquirer story outlines the problems the couple have had in recent months and claims Austin tried to pay Broussard $54,000 to get out of his life. The trouble between the two, according to the Enquirer story, began when Broussard began suspecting Austin was cheating on her.
A March 24 meeting between the two turned violent according to claims made in a police report filed by Broussard. The police report says Austin threw her to the ground causing her to land on her hands and knees. The Enquirer story says Austin "swung her around in a wrestling move and let her fly".
Austin did not appear at last night's RAW broadcast despite the fact that the show was airing from Austin's home state of Texas.
WWE management is furious about the recent allegations according to a 1Wrestling.com source, especially since the latest claims of domestic violence is coming in the midst of other negative publicity the company is dealing with. The National Enquirer story appears in the April 12 edition and is headlined "Galpal claims 'Stone Cold' beat her up"."
Who knows whats going on here with Austin and McMahon. These contract negotiations could be a work.
The domestic stuff is real but either Austin's on hiatus, or McMahon's just trying to hedge his bets by bringing in Regal and Tajiri to Raw.
I really don't see how Raw would have time for Regal and or Tajiri skits along with the perfunctory Austin stuff. Austin will probably take some time off till things cool down with this Brousard women.
It's not like Austin really has too many choices. He can't wrestle, so all his goodwill is tied up in the WWE. I don't think it would work if he went into another promotion and talked trash when he can't back it up with wrestling. And besides cameo appearances in movies, he's not going to have a career in Hollywood like the Rock.
Originally posted by fuelinjectedI forget which match but the fans were chanting "We Want Austin" on RAW.
These things happen in contract negotiations all the time. Was Austin asking for too much? Was Vince lowballing Austin? I can see cases for both sides on why Austin should or shouldn't get what he's asking for. Perhaps it had something to do with Austin wanting to branch out with his clothing line and beer? Maybe Vince wouldn't let go of the rights to "Stone Cold Steve Austin" like he did with "The Rock"?
Point being, there's so many possibilities as to what could have happened in those contract negotiations. I'm sure Meltzer will have a good deal of coverage on it in next week's issue.
I can see that. Rock's been almost bragging about how he owns his name and was shocked Vince handed it to him without hassle. I guess with Austin's mindset, why shouldnt he get the same thing? Austin can still be an intrigal part on the RAW side, but WWE doesnt really need him at this point. Like mentioned above, most of us didnt even notice he was gone.
I think logic falls on the side of McMahon this time. Austin should just take whatever he's offered at this point and be glad. He's got no better options. He can't leave to make movies like Rocky can, he's just got this beer thing which seems like a tenuous venture at best. And that will work out a lot better with WWE as opposed to against them.
At this point Austin can't wrestle, doesn't really go on the road full time, and has mostly a speaking role. Why should Vince pay him as if he was a working talent. Pay him something similar to what Flair was getting before he started getting back in the ring semi-regularly again. If that's not good enough for him go on without him. I think it's absurd to say no one will miss him, but at this point he's become a lightning rod for bad publicity and his upside is neglible. At the very least the company should take some time away from him until this latest domestic violence accusation blows over (assuming it will).
I'd tell you to kiss my ass, but I don't want to get it infected.
Damn, and here I was wondering how they'd handle the Austin/Rene Dupree situation. Although it'd be delightfully twisted if they had Dupree call out Austin when he's not in a position to speak...
If I was WWE I would keep Austin under wraps until this whole domestic thing cooled off. He wasnt in a major storyline so keep him off for a couple of months. I think he livens RAW up and is still a big name, something WWE is currently lacking.
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Even leaving the domestic abuse out of it, I wouldn't be sad to see him go. I, personally, am really tired of watching a man on the verge of being crippled hailed as the toughest guy on the show. They even said on tv that he couldn't take another bump, waaay back when Bischoff fired him as an active competitor. So, yeah, he doesn't do anything for me on the show.
Austin brings nothing to the show anymore. He can't wrestle, so any storyline they involve him in can't really go anywhere beyond "annoying redneck drives dune buggy around and shouts", and he takes a hell of a lot of time away from people who actually have a real future with the WWE. His personal life's gotta be a huge embarassment for the company. And, after a two week bump, ratings went right back to their previous levels after his return.
He sells merchandise. Aside from that, and loyalty from Austin's huge contribution to the sucess of the Attitude era (and how often has loyalty really mattered to Vince?), I can't see any reason McMahon should keep him around.
Of course, I'm biased because I've been sick of face Austin since around the time the Ministry of Darkness angle ended, so I may not have the most objective opinion.
""[The word] liberal derives from the Latin 'liberalis' - of freedom, befitting the free. Synonyms are progressive, broad-minded, unprejudiced and generous; while antonyms include reactionary, narrow-minded, intolerant and stingy. Accordingly, a political liberal is an open-minded person who considers all the arguments before drawing conclusions. A conservative, on the other hand, clings to one position and sees no reason to entertain diverse viewpoints because he already has his mind made up. Are mainstream media 'liberal'? I certainly hope so." -~Forrest Wood~-
He sells merchandise. Aside from that, and loyalty from Austin's huge contribution to the sucess of the Attitude era (and how often has loyalty really mattered to Vince?), I can't see any reason McMahon should keep him around.
I have a feeling wrestling fans are still going to spend that money if there is a new Austin shirt on the stand or not. You might not see it transfer all to one person, but it'd be more spread out across the board.
The weird thing is, it completely skipped my mind that Austin wasn't on RAW, until someone pointed it out in a thread. I was so focused on the Sheldon/HHH upset.
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Originally posted by asteroidboyThe weird thing is, it completely skipped my mind that Austin wasn't on RAW, until someone pointed it out in a thread. I was so focused on the Sheldon/HHH upset.
So focused indeed that the spelling of Shelton's name completely passed you by
Originally posted by fuelinjectedI forget which match but the fans were chanting "We Want Austin" on RAW.
These things happen in contract negotiations all the time. Was Austin asking for too much? Was Vince lowballing Austin? I can see cases for both sides on why Austin should or shouldn't get what he's asking for. Perhaps it had something to do with Austin wanting to branch out with his clothing line and beer? Maybe Vince wouldn't let go of the rights to "Stone Cold Steve Austin" like he did with "The Rock"?
Point being, there's so many possibilities as to what could have happened in those contract negotiations. I'm sure Meltzer will have a good deal of coverage on it in next week's issue.
I can see that. Rock's been almost bragging about how he owns his name and was shocked Vince handed it to him without hassle. I guess with Austin's mindset, why shouldnt he get the same thing? Austin can still be an intrigal part on the RAW side, but WWE doesnt really need him at this point. Like mentioned above, most of us didnt even notice he was gone.
And from Vince’s mindset, on the one hand you’ve got a guy who always did the job when asked to put a new guy over, always tried to do what was good for business, and even came back early and did everything he could to help the company keep going after one of the other main-eventers decided to walk out. On the other, you have the aforementioned guy who completely walked out after being told he was going to be used to put over a guy the company believed would be a cornerstone in their future main event scene, and has been turning into a PR nightmare for the last couple of years due to incessant domestic abuse rumors. When you look at it that way, it’s easy to see why he would be willing to reward one for his hard work and dedication, and not be so quick to do the same for the other.
Originally posted by OlFuzzyBastardHe sells merchandise. Aside from that, and loyalty from Austin's huge contribution to the sucess of the Attitude era (and how often has loyalty really mattered to Vince).
I suppose you dont watch Smackdown, or you would note the Loyal Bob Holly and JBL Pushes of late.
The thing I cant figure out is why he would offer he 54,000 to move out. Just kick the bitch out! Its his house I assume, so why not just put her out on the street and change the locks?