How Did Stone Cold Steve Austin Come Up with the Iconic 3:16 Promo?

Published 06/23/2021, 9:30 PM EDT

It’s been nearly two decades since Stone Cold Steve Austin wrestled in a WWE ring. He’s made sporadic appearances but remains one of the most important superstars in WWE history. He has many claims to fame, but it all began with the iconic 3:16 promo in 1996.

When did Stone Cold Steve Austin cut the 3:16 promo?

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Austin’s King of the Ring victory began with a ton of controversy. The touted winner of the tournament was Triple H, but the infamous Curtain Call incident led to him receiving a punishment. To imagine the Game in Austin’s role is nothing short of bizarre, especially with the career Austin had.

At the 1996 King of the Ring, Stone Cold Steve Austin beat Marc Mero in the semifinals to book a date with Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts. During Roberts’ semifinal match, Vader dealt a ton of damage to his midsection. He even attacked him after the match, making him simple work for the hungry Austin.

After beating Roberts with the Stone Cold Stunner, Austin walked up the ramp and cut the promo that would begin his rise to superstardom. He called Roberts’ a piece of cr*p and said, “You sit there and you thump your Bible and you say your prayers and it didn’t get you anywhere. Talk about your psalms talk about John 3:16, Austin 3:16 said I just whooped your ass.”

These words began what was the biggest and best push in WWE history.

Watch this story: Best Moments from WWE Hell in a Cell 2021

How did Stone Cold come up with the promo?

In an interview with WWE.com, Austin revealed the origins of his iconic promo. He also claimed he meant no offence with his words.

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“I was told that Jake Roberts just did an interview about me referencing John 3:16. I knew the verse, but I also remembered that at football games there was always a fan in the end zone holding up a sign that said John 3:16. So it was a pretty famous quote to begin with, and after I won the tournament it just came to me on the fly. To me, it was pure luck that Austin 3:16 would become what it did.”

“I can’t tell you how many priests and nuns have asked me for my autograph throughout my career. There was nothing sacrilegious about it. Austin 3:16 says I just whooped your ass was prophetic, and it became a phrase that defined my career. It is still one of the most popular phrases in WWE history, and anyone who doesn’t like it can piss off.”

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Austin got his assessment spot on, as that catchphrase become synonymous with the rest of his WWE career.

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Written by:

Nathan Fulgado is a WWE and AEW author at EssentiallySports. Having published close to 1000 professional wrestling articles, Nathan is currently pursuing his Journalism degree from Xavier's College. He has previously worked at Free Press Journal as a local journalist.

How Did Stone Cold Steve Austin Come Up with the Iconic 3:16 Promo?

When did Stone Cold Steve Austin cut the 3:16 promo?

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How did Stone Cold come up with the promo?