This Week with Wade Keller
Original Headline: Michaels to pass torch to Austin
Originally Published: March 14, 1998
PWTorch Newsletter #484

Wrestlemania will be the passing of the torch from Shawn Michaels to Steve Austin. Like many big matches in this era, the outcome isn't in question, but how they get there and where they go from there is in question.

Michaels is determined to partake in the main event at Wrestlemania and drop the belt to Austin, in part to silence his critics who think he fakes his injuries (although he's not hyper-sensitive to that aspect of his reputation) and perhaps to create the impression he is more of a professional than Bret Hart (even though the two situations have few parallels). More than anything, though, he realizes there isn't much of a point to fighting the obvious choice of making Steve Austin champion. Austin is the most over babyface in the industry in years and he deserves to be given a title run.

Even if Michaels disagreed, though, his physical condition, based on several reliable sources who have first-hand knowledge, is legitimately a major problem for him. His back injury is definitely not faked, despite justified skepticism by those who have followed his history of coming up with excuses not to drop titles in actual matches. His back is so bad that he needed another cortisone shot after merely superkicking Austin on Raw last week. He is in tremendous pain basically all the time and is doing what is necessary to block out that pain. That includes cutting back on his schedule more so than ever.

The belief is that Michaels will probably need back surgery after Wrestlemania and will be out of action indefinitely. The WWF is not holding out hope that there will be a classic series of rematches between Michaels and Austin immediately after the title change. Their first rematch could be a year later at Wrestlemania 15, not because the WWF shows great patience, but because Michaels might not be ready until a few months before then.

There is also a chance that Michaels literally won't be able to wrestle at Wrestlemania at the end of this month. His back is bad enough that there is still fear the WWF will need a late substitution (and only an Austin vs. Mike Tyson match would be a suitable B-plan). If Michaels can wrestle, but isn't 100 percent, the match at Wrestlemania may not come close to living up to expectations. Austin, rightfully, has a list of things he can't do in the ring and that opponents cannot do to him. That has led to increased tension in recent weeks between Michaels and Austin, who as they have plotted out the match, have run into creative conflicts.

Michaels is in tremendous pain every day, yet he feels pressure to leap tall buildings in order to carry Austin to a great match. Austin, who by all accounts isn't in anywhere near the pain Michaels is, has to be extremely careful in what he does since he has yet to get full-fledged clearance from his doctors. Anyone who's been around Austin since he returned to the road will tell you that he is not taking his injury situation lightly, but believes that now is his time and he has to take advantage of the incredible momentum he has. He waited a long time, dealt with a lot of politics, and fought off injuries enough in the past that now that he has reached the popularity he has, he appreciates it and doesn't want to risk it by waiting. Another chance may never come. Certainly not at this level.

If Michaels does drop the title to Austin at Wrestlemania as is planned, it's not a given that Austin is going to have a successful run with the title. Austin is over so much because he is truly "Everyman." He is a blue collar, beer drinking, regular guy without the typical fancy outfits of other wrestlers. Once reaches the top, some of his fans may feel alienated from him or not identify as much with him.

Even worse for Austin is the lack of obvious heel title contenders. When Hulk Hogan held the WWF Title, he had twentysome territories to draw opponents from. Times were simpler then because monster heels could be moved through the WWF promoting machine and fans paid to see Hogan go though his motions and pose after his predictable victories. With Austin, the more mature audience is going to expect more depth to the storylines and more depth to the matches.

If Michaels isn't around, at least not for several months, that leaves Rocky Maivia, Hunter Hearst Helmsley, and Jeff Jarrett as the heels with the most potential to draw against Austin. Hunter's position in the WWF has improved dramatically since the formation of DX, but he's still a year (and perhaps a feud with Michaels with Michaels putting him over) away from being seen as a legitimate title threat. Rocky is a breakout star, but is also a ways away from being taken seriously as a WWF Title threat. Jarrett hasn't gotten over at all since his arrival in the WWF and there has yet to be a sign of any turnaround (but McMahon has high hopes and will keep trying since Jarrett is young, healthy, and can work a full-time schedule of good matches).

After that threesome comes Vader, who needs major rebuilding to be a title threat. There's Goldust, who is valuable in his new role for entertainment and shock value, but how would they reshape him into a title threat? Barry Windham? Faarooq? Mark Henry? Marc Mero? Ken Shamrock could turn heel. Austin could face Undertaker in one big babyface match-up at a pay-per-view. Kane is a gimmick heel who could occupy Austin for a couple of months. Mike Tyson could be a short-term fix if he agreed to actually get in the ring against Austin. It would expand Austin's mainstream recognition considerably given the publicity that would come with such a match-up. But overall, there are fewer ready and waiting money matches on deck for Austin than for any incumbent champion perhaps in WWF history.

Despite all of that, it's not the wrong decision to make Austin champion. Outside of Undertaker, there is really no other choice that even comes close to being justifiable. The WWF in the past has always had stars around to put over future stars to move them up another level. Now they are short in that category and Austin may pay the price. Amazingly, Austin has become the top merchandise seller, the most popular wrestler in the country, and a one-man ratings machine, despite having yet to get a major clean victory over a top tier star. His most prominent matches were against Bret Hart and he lost those bouts. But he has a hot finisher, incredible charisma, and is perceived as a cool bad-ass who everyone wants on their side.

While Michaels is seen as an unreliable, broken-down, unpredictable, catastrophe-in-waiting by WWF management, Austin isn't considered the dream employee, either. He's seen as somewhat paranoid, someone who questions everything to an almost irrational degree. He is seen as being difficult to work with when it comes to agreeing to how he is used. Then again, who can blame Austin, who literally is risking paralysis for the WWF (and, admittedly, for the huge raise that comes along with being the champion). He has to protect his image carefully now that he can't necessarily pop out two or three four-star matches in a row to rebuild his image to make up for being used poorly or after doing jobs to lesser wrestlers to help them get over (i.e. the Rocky Maivia-IC Title situation). McMahon has talked about how difficult Bret was to work with, and Michaels definitely hasn't been a joy, but Austin isn't guaranteed to be much easier to work with.

Austin is slowly weaning himself back into the ring, first in short gimmick matches, then in short spurts in six-man tag matches, and then longer spurts in six-man tags, and now in longer singles matches but with limitations on what he does. Austin and the WWF will find out whether Austin's more limited style will be a detriment. If all Austin does is put on good "fights," but never has classic "wrestling matches," it will hurt his reputation, but star-power will buffer that.

Roddy Piper and Hulk Hogan can only wrestle once before they have to take time off from their feud. Their matches are so bad, they expose each other's limitations. They have the star power to draw big interest once, but not a series of matches. Because WCW is a television and PPV company, and not reliant on house shows, the champ doesn't need to headline 300 dates a year. The WWF has a much shallower roster and house shows are much more vital to the financial well-being of the company. They have survived pretty well a streak of having Michaels as a champion who was largely inactive at house shows. Will Austin also end up playing it safe and cutting back his house show schedule to a similar level? Can the WWF house show business survive not having a workhorse champ or always having their champ tied up in tags where he sees limited ring time?

The difference between Michaels and Austin is that Michaels wasn't just injured, but he was also burned out from his lifestyle during the road schedule. Austin may not be able to have 20 minute, four-star title matches every night (and, who knows, maybe he will surprise us), but he hasn't been on the road full time anywhere near the length of time Michaels has. He isn't as close to burnout as Michaels was when he won the belt. But the pressure Austin is under changes dramatically the day after Wrestlemania. How will he handle the inevitable bumps in the road?

Austin, no matter what, is an invaluable asset to the WWF and is the obvious choice to make champion, as he showed again with his performance on the Mar. 9 Raw. The WWF, though, would like to have a little more support to help Austin succeed and a fallback plan in case Austin doesn't work out as champion. They don't have those luxuries.

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