Stone Cold Steve Austin's 15 Greatest WWE Raw Moments

There are few Superstars who have made an impact on WWE Raw like "Stone Cold" Steve Austin did over the course of his career with the company. Instrumental in WWE's resurgence and victory in the Monday Night War, he was an icon the likes of which few Superstars could imagine becoming.

From all-time-great matches to unforgettable moments involving Mr. McMahon, The Rock, Mankind and Brian Pillman, the story of Raw's 25 years cannot be told without the contributions of the WWE Hall of Famer.

In anticipation of his return to the show that made him a household name Monday, relive these 15 moments involving Stone Cold that captivated audiences, thrilled fans across the globe and secured the future and well-being of Vince McMahon's wrestling empire.

15. A Zamboni?

Over the years, Austin developed a habit of driving big, expensive vehicles into arenas across the country, primarily as a way to stick it to Vince McMahon.

Just 24 hours after he was screwed out of the WWE Championship by the chairman of the board in September 1998, The Texas Rattlesnake drove a Zamboni into the arena and up to the edge of the ring. From there, he unleashed hell on the boss.

Even as he was handcuffed by police and placed under arrest, he continued his attack like a tenacious dog attacking its prey.

It was another crowd-popping moment and one that demonstrated the oftentimes over-the-top nature and undeniable badassery of the character.

14. I Saw Stone Cold Stunning Santa Claus

Historically speaking, the December 22, 1997 episode of Raw has little significance. But for fans, it hosted an iconic moment in holiday-themed episodes.

A clearly fraudulent Santa Claus with a thick New York accent insulted a young child. Having seen enough, Austin stomped to the squared circle and confronted the fraud.

Following a brief exchange of unpleasantries, Austin dropped the phony with a Stunner, drawing a big pop and continuing WWE's pattern of irreverence in the early days of the Attitude Era.

That it was pitch-perfect for the Austin character only helped the overall entertainment value and success of the themed segment.

13. Tag Team Champions

One of the best matches in the history of Raw was the May 26, 1997, WWE Tag Team Championships bout that pitted titleholders Owen Hart and The British Bulldog against Austin and reluctant partner Shawn Michaels.

The war between Hart Foundation members and their top two rivals was thrilling, dramatic and electrifying, and it captivated audiences and kept them guessing as to whether they would witness new champions being crowned.

They did, as Austin pinned Bulldog following Sweet Chin Music and scored the titles for him and his attitudinal partner.

The match and partnership would give way to a contest between the competitors at King of the Ring, but the full promise of the storyline would go unrealized as injuries and behind-the-scenes politics prevented a satisfying conclusion.

Still, the victory and overall quality of the match makes this one of the great moments of Austin's early flirtation with main event success.

12. You Get a Stunner, and You Get a Stunner, and You...

The Homecoming addition of Raw on October 3, 2005, not only represented the program's return to USA Network after a five-year spell on Spike TV, but it also served as a reminder to viewers of that cable network what type of show they were in store for.

That night, Austin returned to the flagship, making a special appearance to help bolster the show. And as he had done so many times over the course of his association with the red brand, he left a lasting impression.

He confronted and stunned longtime rival Vince McMahon, and then he dropped Stephanie McMahon, Shane McMahon and even Linda McMahon with his trademark finisher.

The moment marked the first time he had dealt Stone Cold Stunners to every member of professional wrestling's royal family, leaving them strewn across the squared circle before engaging in his customary beer bash.

It was a nice callback for longtime fans and a suitable way to welcome Raw back home.

11. For All Mankind

Mankind may have won his first WWE Championship in Lowell, Massachusetts, in front of a red-hot crowd on the January 4, 1999 episode of Raw, but equally as memorable was the enormous ovation Austin received as he hit the ring to fend off the interfering Corporation and thwart the evil McMahons' plans to once again screw the masked challenger out of the title.

Drawing arguably the loudest pop for any Superstar in the history of the show, Austin hit the ring, with the camera visibly shaking from the thunderous reaction and the energy filling the arena.

Stone Cold stuck it to his employer one more time and helped deliver Mankind the magical moment.

10. Stone Cold Saves Team WWE from The Alliance

Ahead of the historic Invasion pay-per-view, a heel Stone Cold was questioning his place in the WWE Universe. Vince McMahon, the rival-turned-ally to whom he had pledged his allegiance, was beginning to take an interest in Kurt Angle, depriving Austin of attention.

McMahon's determination to see the old Stone Cold and growing frustration with the shell of a man he had become left the Texan dejected.

That is until the July 16 episode of Raw, when Austin roared back on to the scene. Projecting the same B.M.F. attitude that had previously been a staple of his character, he laid waste to any member of the WCW/ECW Alliance in his path.

Ensuring WWE had a captain it could rely on ahead of the winner-takes-all battle with the formidable union, he delivered Stunners and stomped mudholes in a familiar display fans had not had the pleasure of witnessing since the ill-fated heel turn at WrestleMania X-Seven.

9. The Pillman Incident

Austin made plenty of enemies en route to his Survivor Series showdown with Bret Hart in 1996, including longtime friend Brian Pillman.

After assaulting him and breaking his ankle, Austin showed up to Pillman's house on the November 4, 1996, episode of Raw. He pummeled a number of his former tag team partner's friends, raising hell on the front lawn of Pillman's property.

With announcer Kevin Kelly inside conducting an interview, Austin broke in via the back door, only to be confronted by a gun-toting Pillman.

The segment of television, easily the wildest in the history of Monday nights, enraged USA Network officials and rightfully so. It was the first time WWE overstepped the boundaries of acceptable television, but at the same time, it represented the edginess the company would soon embrace in an attempt to defeat WCW and win the Monday Night War.

8. Paging Dr. Austin

Late in 1998, the egomaniacal Mr. McMahon earned himself a first-class ass-whooping courtesy of The Undertaker and Kane. The Brothers of Destruction teamed up to break the chairman's ankle and necessitate a hospital stay.

Waiting for McMahon was the Texas Rattlesnake, disguised in doctor's garb.

Pounding away at the chairman's injured leg and then bashing him over the head with a steel bed pan, Austin hilariously punished his most intense rival.

Just as he was about to finish off the beatdown with a well-placed thermometer, the cameras faded to black. The boss could be heard screaming in agony.

The segment, completely over-the-top, gave viewers a hint of Austin's humorous side—even if it came in the midst of a beating McMahon wishes he could forget.

7. The 2-Man Power Trip Meets Its Match

History repeated itself in 2001, as Austin was once again part of one of Raw's greatest matches while battling for tag team gold. This time, he was one-half of the defending champions with Triple H.

The heel duo was unforgiving in its ruthlessness, but on May 21, 2001, they would meet their match in the team of Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit.

Another stellar tag team title bout, it left fans wondering whether Benoit and Jericho had enough to get over the proverbial hump and beat two all-time greats in a main event match.

They did, thanks in part to the torn quadriceps Triple H suffered.

Austin may not have come out on the winning end of the iconic bout, but his contribution to it once again proved that, when he cast aside the brawling that defined his Attitude Era work, he was still one of the best wrestlers on the roster.

6. Bang 3:16

Austin was known to torment the evil Mr. McMahon character on occasion, and after McMahon fired him at Judgment Day in 1998, the avid hunter decided to have a little fun with his prime tormentor.

Threatening to do bodily harm in a way that would never fly in today's PG landscape, he kidnapped his former employer. Still wheelchair-bound following Kane and Undertaker's savage assault to his leg and ankle, McMahon was defenseless as Austin produced weapons to add levity to the threats.

Screaming and pleading for his life, McMahon even wet himself in the center of the ring as Austin pulled the trigger of a gun. A flag emerged, emblazoned with "BANG 3:16." The fans erupted.

This was another instance of Austin having fun at the expense of his greatest rival.

5. Street Fight vs. Bret Hart

The iconic Submission match vs. Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 cemented Austin as the most popular Superstar on the WWE roster, but his work on the April 21, 1997, episode only further ignited the immense following he had already garnered.

The ruthless Texas Rattlesnake engaged The Hitman in a Street Fight that saw him pummel, pound and batter the newly minted heel with a steel chair and injure Hart's knee.

Taken out of the arena via stretcher, Hart was loaded into a nearby ambulance, but Austin was waiting to inflict further pain and suffering on him.

His antics that night not only lent the show the wild and chaotic feel it would benefit form for the next four years, but it also provided further evidence Austin was the aggressive and rebellious babyface to the lead the charge during the company's budding Attitude Era.

4. The Beer Truck

Just six days from his second consecutive WrestleMania main event, Austin rolled into Raw in a beer truck and interrupted a promo by Vince and Shane McMahon and WWE champion The Rock.

Vowing to check into the SmackDown Hotel and burn it to the ground on the biggest stage in professional wrestling, Austin capped off the superb segment by retrieving a hose from the truck and dousing his rivals with Coors Light.

The images of Rock and Shane slipping and sliding all over the ring were humorous enough, but there is none more memorable than Vince swimming in the booze, arm over arm, as if he were Michael Phelps attempting to win his 24th Olympic gold medal.

The segment, Attitude Era television at its best, is routinely recognized as one of the greatest moments in the history of the WWE flagship. It played to the characters involved, and the chairman of the board's performance was among the smartest and funniest in the show's long and illustrious history.

It also continued the tradition of Austin rolling into arenas in a variety of vehicles to stick it to the authority.

3. Breaking the Streak

For 83 consecutive weeks, WCW Nitro defeated WWE Raw in the Monday Night War.

It was a merciless beatdown that tested the will of Vince McMahon and every other executive and Superstar working for his company. In April 1998, WWE was gaining momentum thanks to a red-hot champion in Austin, a blossoming heel character in the evil Vince McMahon and the desire of fans to see The Texas Rattlesnake get his hands on the white-collar megalomaniac.

On April 13, they got their wish. Sort of.

Austin vs. McMahon was billed as the main event. Stone Cold would compete with one-arm tied behind his back and probably still school the boss, or so fans hoped. It was an electric atmosphere, and though the contest would never get started in earnest thanks to Dude Love's interference, there was enough interest in the match to propel Raw (4.6) past Nitro (4.3) in the ratings war for the first time in nearly two years.

It was the start of a renaissance for WWE and further proof of the magnetic draw that was Austin vs. McMahon. They would next clash in a high-profile one-on-one match at St. Valentine's Day Massacre the following February inside a Steel Cage, demonstrating the value of the slow build.

2. 'Tyson and Austin! Tyson and Austin!'

Mike Tyson may have been the World's Most Dangerous Man, but on January 19, 1998, he locked eyes with the self-proclaimed World's Toughest S.O.B. when he came face-to-face with Austin on the Raw.

Fresh off a victory in the Royal Rumble, Austin was confrontational and dealt the acclaimed boxer a bit of sign language that prompted a pull-apart brawl.

The moment earned WWE coverage across mainstream media thanks to Tyson's polarizing personality.

Austin became a household name among fans and non-fans alike, and as a result, the promotion attracted more viewers.

The moment generated renewed interest in a WWE product that had been thoroughly beaten and dismantled by WCW in the preceding years. It would be key in creating buzz about WrestleMania some two months later and serve as the launching point for Austin as the new face of the promotion.

1. Stunning the Boss in The Mecca

Fresh off a neck injury he suffered at SummerSlam 1997, there were very real questions about whether Austin would be able to wrestle again.

For weeks, he had been on a warpath, delivering his trademark Stone Cold Stunner to everyone who confronted him about his health, well-being and future inside the squared circle.

The weeks of frustration culminated in the historic Madison Square Garden, where he came face-to-face with the owner of WWE.

McMahon attempted to reason with Austin, reminding him of his health and how that was of the utmost importance to the company. On the surface, it appeared as though Austin was heeding McMahon's advice.

And then he dropped him with the Stone Cold Stunner and ignited a rivalry that would carry WWE to the forefront of the Monday Night War.