In just a couple of months, WWE Hall of Famer 'Stone Cold' Austin may just come out of retirement for one more match in his home state.
As previously noted, WWE is reportedly trying to bring the 57-year-old Austin back for a match at WrestleMania 38 weekend, which will run on Apr. 2-3 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Austin's last WWE match took place at WrestleMania 19 against The Rock.
Two new reports have provided more details on the Austin return rumors. Speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t WrestlingNews.co), Dave Meltzer said his "impression" is that a match between Austin and Kevin Owens "is on." Meltzer stated this is why Owens cut heel promos on last night's episode of Raw.
"I heard it early in the day and I kept checking around and more people were saying they heard the same thing," Meltzer stated. "I don’t know that it’s a done deal but people were talking like it was. The Owens promo was a dead giveaway."
Meanwhile, Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reports that WWE did in fact reach out to the Hall of Famer "in late December/early January to gauge his interest in doing something at the show." That said, there isn't any "confirmation" that The Texas Rattlesnake "agreed to physically wrestle at" The Show of Shows.
Johnson added that this would be done as a way to increase ticket sales for the two-day WrestleMania event in the massive AT&T Stadium. He also noted that the company "has always planned and intended for Austin to be part of" the WrestleMania weekend. Finally, Johnson noted that the wrestling legend "still has yet to commit to wrestling."
Another interesting note that may fuel the Austin return rumors? The Texas Rattlesnake had a wrestling ring built at his ranch last year, which strongly suggests that he's been training for a return.
WWE Needs Legends For WrestleMania
WWE will seemingly be short on part-timers and legends for WrestleMania 38. Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker are long retired. It's unclear if The Rock and/or John Cena will be involved, either. WrestleMania plans for Shane McMahon were reportedly nixed following creative disagreements over the Royal Rumble. So in short, bringing back Austin would go a long way in generating more ticket sales and hype for WrestleMania 38.