Steve Austin Addresses Rumors of Heat with Vince McMahon, WWE Network Podcasts, Tough Enough Status

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On his latest podcast, WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin claimed there is no heat with Vince McMahon or WWE. However he then also detailed a variety of non appearances and non deals with the company.

On not attending WrestleMania
There is no heat. One of the rumors was I supposed to be on an airplane with The Undertaker. Not true. I don’t know where Undertaker lives. Last time I checked it was Austin, Texas. I currently reside in Los Angeles, California. When I’m not there, I’m at the Broken Skull Ranch. So, why they would have me and Undertaker on the same commercial airplane, I have no idea. So, that rumor is completely untrue.

On not being part of WM31 plans
I was never part of any part of any kind of Creative discussions with me participating in WrestleMania 31. So, there was no booking, there were no ideas, I didn’t turn down anything. So, I simply wasn’t there.

On not hosting a new season of Tough Enough
Everyone says there’s heat with Steve and Vince. And Steve turned down the Tough Enough gig. No, that’s not true. I’ve been talking with WWE about doing Tough Enough for quite some time. Quite some time. It was supposed to be shot in February or March. Right now, we’re in April. Well, it didn’t happen in February or March, through nobody’s fault. There are so many dynamics and so many moving parts planning a show the magnitude of Tough Enough. It takes a while to get all those pieces in order. Once WWE finally got those pieces in order and could go to camera was the same exact time that CMT said, ‘Hey, we want to do more episodes of Broken Skull Challenge.’ Both things lined up the same time, and I had the previous commitment to Broken Skull Challenge. In a perfect world, had we been able to film Tough Enough in February or March, then I was scheduled to do it, and that would have been an absolute blast. So, I didn’t turn down Tough Enough because I have heat with Vince McMahon. That was my first reality TV hosting gig and I absolutely loved it, and it helped get the other gigs that I now do as well. So, scheduling problems prevented me from doing Tough Enough. I didn’t turn it down for any other reason than that. Wish I could have done it, too bad I couldn’t. That’s just the way it is.

On WWE shifting to Chris Jericho hosting live podcasts
I’m not doing the podcast on WWE Network just because we did the initial two (with Vince McMahon and Triple H) and were going to make a deal and move forward. A deal wasn’t made and we’re not moving forward. End of story. There’s no heat there.

On his current standing with Vince McMahon
Some people said that Vince McMahon wasn’t happy with the questions I was asking (on the podcast). Not true at all. Again, a deal could have been made, a deal was not made, WWE went the direction they went, and I’m going the direction I’m going in. Hey man, if we partner up down the road and do business, that will be gangbusters. Because for the rest of my life, I will have WWE blood running through my veins. When WWE and Steve Austin are in business together, it’s always a good thing and always a fun thing. So, no matter what anyone says, there is no animosity from any standpoint – from WWE’s point of view, from my standpoint.

Jonathan Widro is the owner and founder of Inside Pulse. Over a decade ago he burst onto the scene with a pro-WCW reporting style that earned him the nickname WCWidro. Check him out on Twitter for mostly inane non sequiturs