Steve Austin vs. Triple H (WWF - 2/25/2001)

Seconded.

Yes. This is going to be on my list. HHH gets a bad rap but There was an 18 month to 2 year span where he was just great in heated brawls with Foley, Austin, Rock and others. I think this is the best match from that span. Its a match with sustained hatred and really I see this as the peak of the Attitude Era.

He won to fuel Steve Austin's doubt in himself that he can't get it done anymore on his own thus needed to make the deal with the Devil Himself to beat The Rock.

This match is way better than I expected it to be. My only criticism is that it gets a little long in the tooth in the 3rd fall. The first fall is amazing!

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs Triple H - WWF No Way Out '01



Last time, I watched this I remember thinking it was really fucking long and besides that I got nothing. The first fall was tremendous, really well-done traditional wrestling match with lots of hate and urgency. Austin was on fire early, a total man possessed that could not be stopped. He whopping ass and HHH was doing all he could to cover up because he was being overwhelmed. Austin came in hard on a Thesz Press near the ropes and gets hotshotted. HHH immediately pounces and tries to go for his big home run, Pedigree, but Austin reverses into a single arm DDT. Austin wrenches HHH's arm around the post. HHH makes this entire segment and fall by selling his left arm the rest of the way even doing little things like raising his right shoulder on kickouts instead of the left. Austin was tenacious. The spinebuster was such an early 00s move everybody was doing it. HHH gets his foot up and jacks Austin's jaw. Swinging neckbreaker, now that's a real relic of the past, definitely a big 90s move. HHH starts on the neck, but eventually decides he wants to take out the leg with a chop block as Austin was mounting a comeback. HHH's selling of the arm was great and Austin always looking for that opening to fight back was also great. HHH goes for wrapping the knee around the post and then Austin pulls HHH shoulder first into the post. Great! Austin limping to create space and another chop block now figure 4. This is sensational. Austin reverses the pressure and here he comes full steam ahead. The finish stretch was a little shaky with them fitting in too much. I really hate when people wait for their opponent to get up to hit a move. HHH goes low coming out of the corner, but Austin catches HHH coming off the middle rope with kick and then STUNNER! I don't like disrespecting the ballshot like that, but the body of the match was flawless. I would say ****1/2, wait there is two more falls. Hmmmmmm, ok, I will keep an open mind.



The best part of the first fall being over is that Lawler wont say "spirit-breaker" for the umpteenth time anymore. Austin is all revved up and kicks HHH's ass from pillar to post. Austin was great in this fall as a force of nature and HHH was on his bicycle trying to back pedal, but kept getting mugged. Austin's version of the Garvin Stomp but with a chair was awesome! HHH finally finds an opening when he cuts Austin open with the Barbed Wired 2x4. He goes for the Pedigree (Sells the arm!) on the announce table to end it, but ends up taking a huge back body drop onto the Spanish Announce Table, which explodes. Austin tries to regain the advantage, but HHH blasts him with ring bell. HHH wants that Pedigree, but takes a HUGE back body drop over the top rope onto floor! HOLY SHIT! Austin blasts HHH with a chair and busts him wide open. Somehow HHH gets control and finds his Sledgehammer, everybody's least favorite weapon. They tussle over it and eventually HHH hits Austin with it and finally gets his Pedigree. Again, I thought the body of this fall was really, really damn good. Austin was a violent maniac and HHH was trying his best to escape his wrath. Strong transitions with some crazy holy shit bumps and awesome violence. Again, I thought the finish was a little shaky. I am sticking with ****1/2. Lets see what happens in the cage.



Here it is the excess. It was inevitable. After the war of the street fight, this more methodical, drawn out violence is logical and to be expected, but at 11 minutes, it is a bit too much. The beginning is fine with Austin still trying to fight back and coming up short. Austin is able to find a nearby chair and smash the Game in the head to stop the barbed wire 2x4 from going into his head. They trade finishers and each can only get two. Even though earlier in the match those were finishers, which is a little shaky. They both go for weapons and nail each other simultaneously with Trips falling on top of Austin.



I actually liked the eveness of the booking of the finish and I forgot who won the match and was actually pretty surprised HHH won. It makes sense. This feeds Austin's self-doubt leading to the heel turn at Mania, which is really logical awesome booking that WWF almost never does! The third fall is one minute shorter than the first fall yet the first fall's paragraph is much longer, which shows you much did not happen in those 11 minutes. I really, really liked the first two falls. The third fall's finish was great booking. I am sticking with ****1/2. The first two falls go by very quickly, but the third falls does drag.