In 2003, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin opted to retire from professional wrestling after wanting to avoid permanent neck issues, which was caused by the infamous piledriver he took from Owen Hart in 1997. Austin’s WrestleMania 19 match with The Rock marked the end of his full-time career, but nearly 20 years later he returned to the ring for a one-off contest against Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 38. Unfortunately, Owens has suffered a similar fate to Austin, having picked up a career-threatening neck injury after his battle with Sami Zayn at the Elimination Chamber last year. However, “KO” has been given advice and assistance from his WrestleMania opponent, as Austin recently explained in an interview with “The Takedown on SI” that he referred a doctor to Owens.
“I called Kevin a couple of months ago,” Austin said. “I think he’s got a great doctor, according to him, and I threw out a name that I’d heard good things about. I care about the guy. Love the guy. He’s a Hall of Fame talent. I don’t know how he banged his neck up, but he took a lot of bumps. He did a lot of stuff.”
Austin continued to shed light of how easily injuries can happen in the wrestling industry and revealed that he has stayed in contact with Owens throughout his recovery.
“It’s a rough business, right,” Austin stated. “No matter what style you work, you’re going to take a bump. And even the most simple bump can be the devastating bump. Although it looks normal, that sets off some chain reaction, or is the straw that breaks the camel’s back and there’s that injury. So, hey, injuries happen. I stay in touch with him a little bit and I wish him nothing but the best.”
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