2/15 Stone Cold Podcast w/Big Show – Show talks retirement, legacy, Hogan, “horrible” booking, more

The “Steve Austin Show” Live Podcast Interview
Guest: Big Show
Aired February 15, 2016 on WWE Network
Live from Anaheim, Calif.

After Monday’s Raw went off the air, Steve Austin sat down with his former colleague Big Show to discuss Show’s career, early life, struggles as a giant, and legacy. The following are news & notes from the conversation.

– Big Show said he anticipates wrestling two more years before retiring. Asked about the constant calls for him to retire, Show said he’s not going to retire when he’s still able to wrestle at a high level, can make money, and believes he can still contribute to the business.

– Asked about the numerous heel/turn “flips” during his WWE run, Show called out the booking as “horrible.” He said he views it two ways. (1) A lack of respect for his character to have no constitution through the years. (2) A sign of respect that he is versatile enough to be plugged into a spot when needed. For instance, when a key babyface or heel is injured on a house show and they need Show to fill in.

– Show and Austin danced around Show’s financial hardships through the years, but the overall conversation painted the picture of Show struggling with money throughout his life. Show noted he’s just a “small-town kid” who somehow found his way into a chance meeting with Hulk Hogan when he was done with basketball that forever changed his life.

Show also danced around Hogan’s negative influence on his career, as documented by reporter David Bixenspan in an article published in January. However, the conversation painted the picture of Hogan seeing dollar signs right when Hogan first met Show in the mid-1990s. This led to Hogan making the call to “put Show on the map” by having him win the WCW Hvt. Title from Hogan on his first night. Show said he was in super-fan mode after winning the title, and was frightened when he suddenly realized the responsibility that came with it.

– Show shared a story of Austin changing his entire philosophical outlook on how to wrestle with his size at the end of a European Tour about 15 years ago. Show realized he did not have to sell for anyone if he did not want to and could generate an even bigger response when someone conquered a stronger giant.

Show said his mentality was always being a team player, so he would willingly go along with whatever was asked of him. But, Austin taught him to how to take for himself, which in the end meant giving to the whole of a match story.

Show said his “team-first” mentality also led to him doing some stupid things in WWE, like putting on a diaper for a New Year’s commercial. Show said he’s not ultra-protective of his gimmick, like Hogan, because he just wants the “team” to do well.

– Asked how he wants to be remembered, Show said he wants to be respected by his peers. He credited The Undertaker for being an example of that and really thanked Taker for helping him early in his WWE career.

The issue for Show is a lack of respect from the audience. Wrestling fans have been critical of Show through the years, either through his own reputation of slow, plodding matches or through Creative’s fault of the constant face/heel turns with no consistency to the character.

But, Show believes he has earned the respect of the locker room, which was certainly not the case when he first came to WWE almost exactly 17 years ago at the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre PPV on February 14, 1999.

Austin and Show joked about that debut, where Show legitimately shot Austin so hard into the cage before throwing him into the gimmicked part of the cage where Austin fell to the floor to win the famous WWF Title match against Vince McMahon. Show said he was told to over-do the tosses into the cage because Austin wouldn’t sell. Austin took exception, wondering if that was really his reputation at the time.

– Also of note from the interview is how much Triple H and Terry Taylor influenced his career. Show credited Taylor for training him and then telling him to leave WCW for WWF when his contract expired in 1999. He also credited Hunter for training him and being a loyal friend even when it was not the cool thing to show respect to Show when he first joined WWE.

– Overall, Austin was able to get a lot of opinions and perspective from an introspective Big Show reflecting on his career and life. Show’s challenges of being a giant and naturally intimidating people were well-documented in the interview.