Jericho on Stone Cold Return; WWE Rumors on Batista, Steiner Brothers, Candice LeRae

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

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Jericho Talks Austin's WWE Return

AEW star Chris Jericho believes WWE Hall of Famer "Stone Cold" Steve Austin may want to come back for multiple matches.

Austin accepted Kevin Owens' challenge to appear on a special episode of The KO Show at WrestleMania 38, although WWE has stopped short of referring to the confrontation as an official match.

Stone Cold did the same in his acceptance video, noting that he didn't care if it was called a match, brawl or fight, as long as he can get his hands on Owens.

While discussing Austin's WrestleMania involvement during an appearance on The Kurt Angle Show (h/t WrestlingInc's Marco Rovere), Jericho said the following about The Texas Rattlesnake possibly wanting to come back for more than one shot:

"If Steve does come back, he's going to look like a killer. He's going to be so big and so jacked up, he's not going to come back and just be there wearing a shirt and shorts. He always told me, 'If I go back, I don't want to go back as anything less than before. And if I go back, there's going to be so much training going on that I don't want to come back just for one [match].' So maybe he wants to come back for two [matches], I don't know. Maybe he doesn’t want to come back at all, but if he does, who’s he going to work?"

Jericho continued by praising Owens as the best possible opponent for Austin if an actual match occurs:

"If Steve comes in, the best guy for the job is Kevin Owens because Kevin will be able to sell it on the mic, he can go toe-to-toe with Steve, he's got a comedy element to him that Steve has as well and will probably really have if he comes back because he can use that to his advantage, which Kevin will sell perfectly. Can't do that with Roman Reigns. And Kevin will be able to work with Steve exactly the way Steve needs and can work. Which is just meat and potatoes, that's Kevin Owens. Kevin can do some flying and flipping, but if you ask him, he'd probably rather just punch and kick you in the corner, and that's Steve's whole offensive plan.

"That's a great idea and I would still love to see it happen. Kevin has been using [the Stunner] for a while because Steve allowed him to, so there's your story. You want a realistic story, you've got it right there."

Jericho has intimate knowledge of both Austin and Owens, as he worked against Austin on multiple occasions and was in a long-term storyline with Owens that saw them team up before breaking up and having a match at WrestleMania 33.

Owens has essentially been selling his rivalry with Austin on his own, as he took shots at the state of Texas for weeks before officially challenging Austin to appear at WrestleMania.

Austin has not had an official match in 19 years, as his last bout before retirement was against The Rock at WrestleMania 19, but he does look to be in remarkable condition despite being 57 years of age.

Stone Cold is likely fully capable of having matches against Owens and others if he and WWE want to make it happen, and it is difficult to argue with Jericho's assertion that Owens is the ideal opponent for Austin since they work such similar styles.

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WWE HOF Rumors on Steiners, Batista

WWE is reportedly discussing the addition of two big names to the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2022 as well as the continued postponement of another induction.

According to PWInsider.com (h/t WrestlingInc's Marc Middleton), WWE is considering making the Steiner Brothers part of the class of 2022. They would join The Undertaker, Vader and Sharmell.

It was noted that several members of the Steiner family are scheduled to be in Dallas for WrestleMania weekend, perhaps primarily to see Bron Breakker challenge Dolph Ziggler for the NXT Championship at NXT Stand & Deliver.

Breakker is the son of Rick Steiner and nephew of Scott Steiner, and he is among WWE's fastest-rising stars.

Rick and Scott formed one of the greatest tag teams in the history of pro wrestling, holding the WWF Tag Team Championship twice, the WCW Tag Team Championship seven times and the IWGP Tag Team Championship twice.

They also had individual success, as Scott was a one-time WCW world heavyweight champion, while Rick held the WCW Television Championship three times.

Scott was banned from the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony because of issues he had with Hulk Hogan, and it is unclear what his relationship with WWE is like now.

Rick seems to have a good relationship with WWE, though, as he was present when his son won the NXT Championship.

In addition to the Steiner Brothers, there has been speculation about Batista being part of the class of 2022, but that reportedly won't be the case.

Per PWInsider, the plan is for Batista to go in next year as part of the class of 2023 when WrestleMania is in the Los Angeles area.

The Animal was originally supposed to headline the class of 2020, but that ceremony got postponed because of COVID-19. WWE then combined the 2020 and 2021 classes, but Batista asked for his induction to be postponed since he wasn't available for the ceremony.

Even though Batista will have to wait a bit longer for his induction, PWInsider noted that he is expected to be in Dallas to witness The Undertaker's induction.

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LeRae's WWE Contract Reportedly Set to Expire Soon

NXT star Candice LeRae reportedly isn't scheduled to be under contract with WWE much longer.

LeRae gave birth to her first child with former WWE NXT Superstar Johnny Gargano in February, which led to questions about what that would mean for her contract.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Middleton), WWE may have had the option to freeze LeRae's contract while she was out on maternity leave, but it decided against doing so, meaning her deal is set to end during the spring.

Fightful added that LeRae is not expected to be back in the ring by the time her contract expires, and there have not been any extension negotiations between her and WWE.

Gargano's WWE contract expired in December, and he has not signed with another company yet. Instead, the former NXT champion has focused on taking care of his son and producing content on Twitch.

Fightful noted that Gargano and LeRae are believed to be on good terms with WWE and that the company would like to have both of them back.

The 36-year-old LeRae has been under contract with WWE since 2017 and has been part of the NXT brand for the entirety of her time in WWE. While she never held the NXT Women's Championship, she was one half of the NXT women's tag team champions with Indi Hartwell.

LeRae was initially a beloved babyface before turning heel and eventually forming a faction with Gargano, Hartwell and Austin Theory called The Way.

While it is far from guaranteed, Gargano and LeRae could potentially be a package deal when they decide to return to wrestling. Any company would receive a huge boost from signing them, whether that means a WWE return or a move to another promotion like AEW or Impact Wrestling.