Steve Austin’s advice to young wrestlers: “Sell – don’t make it look like a dance”
While speaking to Chris Van Vliet, WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin commented on what advice he would give to young wrestlers…
“Sell. And as the business has changed and there’s more time to put together a match, don’t make it look like a dance. Not everything is perfect. Put some struggle in there. Put a little bit of slop in there when slop would be warranted.
Do you ever see Bret Hart deep in a match, maybe 20, 25 minutes in, and he just looks like he’s beat to death? He’s huffing, he’s puffing. He ain’t blown up. That’s him just showing how tired he is from being exhausted. He always had this look on his face, and he could go all night long, but that was him showing you how hard it was on him. This is the toll that it’s taking on him. He’s showing you.
But to go back and answer your question: sell. Learn how to work. Don’t learn how to act. I just think there’s a difference between working and acting.”