The Rock Reflects on Classic WWE Moment With Steve Austin

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has reflected on his iconic rivalry with Steve Austin multiple times in the past, and did so once again via Twitter on Saturday. The Twitter account @90sWWE uploaded a photo of Rock and Austin toasting in the middle of the ring with beers, which would almost always be followed up by Austin hitting “The People’s Champ” with a Stunner.

Rock saw the post and revealed that the two would recreate this spot on a nightly basis at live events, writing, “Many of you know what’s about to happen in roughly 3 seconds after this beer Clinking beer mugs smash…. And @steveaustinBSR and I did this in a different city EVERY NIGHT. Much less was scripted back then and these were BRILLIANT times!!! What an era as all things ebb and flow in @wwe.”

Johnson looked back on their entire rivalry during an Instagram video back in March 2020.

“Every night was a different match,” Johnson said. “We knew the finish, whether he would win or I would win, but we had to call everything out in the ring. Basically, based on how he would feel… We would have a phenomenal match. The night before we went out for a steak dinner, myself, Austin, Pat Patterson. We were talking about the match, it was a nice quiet before the storm because who knows what would happen the next day.”

He even shared the emotional moment the two had right after WrestleMania XIX, in which Rock finally defeated Austin at Mania and “The Texas Rattlesnake” retired from in-ring competition.

“You can actually see me as I sit up and he’s laying there — in front of everybody — and I whisper to him, ‘I thank you so much for everything that you have done for me.’ And I said, ‘I love you,’ and I heard him say, ‘I love you, too.’”