[This is an archived post originally published in 2009 on the website of a magazine which went out of business long before people stopped asking whether Stone Cold would wrestle again.]
As usual, JR gets asked all the usual questions as to whether Stone Cold Steve Austin will ever lace those black boots and raise some hell between the ropes just one more time.
I can understand why people want to see The Texas Rattlesnake back in the ring, but personally I don't ever want to see him wrestle again.
Of course, Stone Cold Returns would likely draw a tonne of money for any pay per view event he's booked on, not to mention the spike in TV ratings in the build up to said event, but as enticing as that may sound, having Steve return could do more harm than good for the fans, the company, and the man itself.
Just think about it for a second.
To promote Steve's return, you'd need to get him back on TV and get as much mileage out of the man as possible. In doing so, you'd only take away precious television time from those who could potentially shape the future of the company and, in the long run, make more money over all than a one-shot Stone Cold deal could.
I'd wager that those same fans who want to see Steve wrestle again are the same ones who, if he ever did, would only find some other campaign to back, ala:
 Why doesn't CM Punk get more of a push?
Well, because any time WWE could have spent on that push has been taken up by generating interest in Austin and re-introducing him to a new fan base.
And even if Austin did come back, you'd have to think about his opponent too.
Let's say Stone Cold was the pay off for this long, intriguing programme involving Chris Jericho and the Legends, with Austin coming back to fight on behalf of the legends.
Incidentally, I doubt this could work, after all, when did Austin - the character - ever care about anyone other than himself? But if he did, we then have to spend the next few weeks watching Steve and Chris trade promos and the odd physical altercation on the Road to Wrestlemania.
And when we get there, what happens?
Stone Cold goes over because there's probably no way he'd want to come back for one return match just to put someone over.
So Jericho does the job and returns to Raw as the guy who lost to a man who hasn't wrestled in six years and who has a reportedly very bad neck. Don't get me wrong, Y2J is talented enough to bounce right back from such an incident, but in the immediate aftermath, you'd have to believe his stock would diminish somewhat.
What's more, do you really want to see Steve wrestle again?
There's little doubting that he wouldn't be able to pull off the same calibre of match he had back in the day. Like I've said, it's been a long time for the Rattlesnake and apparently isn't in the best physical shape.
So whilst the nostalgia factor of hearing that glass shatter and seeing those all-too-familiar black trunks, black boots and black waistcoat march down to the ring, that's just about where the fun would end.
Instead, why not just leave things as they are; remember fondly all the great matches Steve did have and let the guy enjoy his post-ring career in peace!
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