In the lead-in to WrestleMania 40, it was heavily implied that “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, arguably the most endearingly popular character WWE has ever produced, would assist Cody Rhodes in his pursuit of Roman Reigns’ Undisputed WWE Universal Championship belt.

On paper, it made sense, right? His image was shown alongside John Cena on a production truck during Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s beatdown of the “American Nightmare,” and considering his history with “The Great One,” Austin could have been the perfect man to stun his former WrestleMania foe on the way to Rhodes’ crowning moment. But why didn’t Austin take his talents to Philadelphia for one more incredible WrestleMania moment?

Though he doesn’t have any first-hand insight into the situation, in Jim Ross’ opinion on his Grillin’ JR podcast, it likely came down to two decisions: cash and creative.

“Yeah, and the reason is to have twofold: cash and creative. Austin is probably the most particular guy as far as who he wrestles as anybody I’ve ever been around. He knows what he needs, he knows what he wants. He knows what will accomplish the best results as an in-ring product. And then, of course, the cash,” Jim Ross explained via 411 Mania.

“I haven’t talked to Steve for several weeks. But I’m assuming that — if I was guessing, and that’s all it would be right now as I sit here in Jacksonville Beach, Florida — I would say that the cash had a major role in why Austin was not at WrestleMania this year. There was a spot there at the end, where all those guys are getting their flowers and their props and their ‘Atta boys’ and getting their stuff over, etc., etc that would fit Steve perfectly. It’s just, I’m guessing that unless he had a commitment of work commitment, which I’m not aware of. Could have, but he would have been the great cherry on the sundae if he had been able to be there for that event.”

If the goal of WrestleMania 40‘s main event was to have one of the most spectacular finishes of all time, you’d think WWE would have paid up to give Austin what he wanted in order to produce the most fantastic event possible. While The Undertaker did a fantastic job of filling that spot, producing a meme of the moment as a result, in the end, one has to wonder what could have been, as it could have been an even more iconic moment than what fans were treated to in the end.

Stone Cold Steve Austin And John Cena Truck At WWE Raw Was Not A Coincidence https://t.co/NS6PCDazet pic.twitter.com/NfitT0Ax2D

— Wrestling News (@WrestlingNewsCo) March 26, 2024

Jim Ross still doesn’t like how WWE runs its draft.

Elsewhere on his Grillin’ JR podcast, Jim Ross commented on the 2024 WWE Draft, which is now officially halfway done after the first half occurred on Friday. While JR likes the concept in theory, as shaking up the roster is useful in establishing new storylines for the future, one thing Ross doesn’t like is that the wrestlers aren’t informed of the moves first, as he thinks it makes things unnecessarily stressful for the wrestlers.

“I think that the concept, the theory behind the Draft is to freshen up both rosters. RAW’s roster and Smackdown’s roster. I think that’s that was always the mission. But then after a very brief while, almost immediately, those brands became integrated. I didn’t think that was the purpose. The purpose was to build two separate strong brands, and on the right occasion, you can have a SmackDown vs. RAW scenario,” Jim Ross explained via Fightful.

“But of course when you do that, Conrad, I mean somebody’s got to push somebody over. And a lot of guys, believe it or not, still have a problem putting others over. Which I don’t get. That’s part of the business. It’s like saying, ‘Well, I didn’t want to wear wrestling tights.’ Would you like to wear? Men’s Wearhouse? I don’t know what you’re doing here. So yeah, I liked the concept of it, but it got b**tardized very quickly. And then compromised, quite honestly. I didn’t like that [keeping talent in the dark], and I still don’t like that.”

On paper, does it really matter that much which performer works which night in WWE? Outside of rearranging some commitments, no, probably not, but when you consider Matt Cardona revealed on social media that he had to check the WWE website on his Razr phone to see which brand he’d be working on moving forward, well, it might just be worth risking a leak or two to avoid keeping employees unnecessarily in the dark about their lives moving forward.