“Hell No”- Jim Ross Reveals Why Steve Austin Did Not Want To Wrestle An Iconic WWE Superstar

Chyna remains one of the greatest female wrestlers of all time. Till her tragic death, WWE celebrated Chyna as the ‘Ninth Wonder of the World.’ While Chyna was the best female wrestler, Stone Cold Steve Austin was paving his way to the top. In his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross talked about how Stone Cold Steve Austin did not want to wrestle Chyna for the WWF Championship.

Steve Austin refused to face Chyna

In 1999, Chyna was breaking out from under the shadow of Triple H and Shawn Michaels. Being a part of D-Generation X helped Chyna’s career take off, but she was mostly second fiddle to Triple H. In 1999, Chyna finally made a name for herself by becoming the number one contender for the WWF Championship.

Stone Cold Steve Austin was the WWF Champion back then. Austin was in red hot form, coming off a big win against the Rock at WrestleMania 15. Facing Chyna meant Austin would have to face an opponent unlike any he’s ever faced before. However, Mankind was given the spot instead of Chyna.

In his podcast, JR revealed that Austin did not want to face Chyna.

“Not no – hell no. Steve was in that original trio of guys [with Shawn Michaels and Triple H] that sat there and talked to Chyna way back in the day when we began this story. I don’t think they ever had a cross word but Steve is old school enough that he’s not gonna do that.”

Austin and Chyna’s careers looked different in 1999

Steve Austin and Chyna’s careers had two different trajectories since they almost crossed paths in 1999. Chyna would enter a feud with the Intercontinental Champion Jeff Jarrett.

She quickly became a fan favorite, mostly because of the intense hatred fans had for Jarrett. Chyna would beat Jarrett for the title at No Mercy, making her the first woman to win the Intercontinental Championship.

Austin would lose the WWE Title to Mankind in a triple threat match also involving Triple H at SummerSlam. He would not win back the title for quite a few months.

He took time off to heal a neck injury that kept him out of WrestleMania 2000. To write him off, WWE had Rikishi run him over with a car.