WWE Pitches Stone Cold Steve Austin on WrestleMania Return Match

WWE Creative has formed and pitched a storyline to Stone Cold Steve Austin that would lead to a WrestleMania match, according to a report by Wrestling Observer (h/t 411Mania).

According to the report, Stone Cold would be Vince McMahon's representative in a match against Triple H for control of the company. This would be the culmination to a slow-burn, long-running storyline that has begun with the installation of Brad Maddox as the general manager of Raw.

The story is rooted in reality, as most good pro wrestling storylines are. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon have ascended in the WWE front office over the last half-decade to take on more and more of the day-to-day operations. Vince, who has run the company for more than 30 years, is getting closer to retirement age, and he's setting up the next generation of his family to carry on.

In this angle, Vince resists the pressures from Triple H and Stephanie, refusing to give up control over his company until it's wrested away from him. Apparently, WWE Creative thinks it's a good idea that he turns back to his oldest, most vicious nemesis for support. 

WWE has long wanted one more big payday out of Stone Cold. There have been frequent teases that he'd go one-on-one with CM Punk in a natural rivalry between the Straight Edge Savior and the Alcohol-Fueled Redneck. They have had run-ins backstage. They've bantered in social media. They even recorded a lengthy, kayfabe interview with Jim Ross to promote last year's video game.

It looks like they would go in a different direction if it were to happen this year, though.

Many would groan at the thought of Austin facing Triple H of all people if he were to actually come back for one more match. Triple H was hardly Austin's greatest rival. That credit would go to McMahon, The Rock or even The Undertaker. This would appear to be just an excuse for Triple H to be featured in a main event bout at WrestleMania. 

I'd love to see Austin back for another match, but this isn't the way I'd like to see it.