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How do you rank an iconic maneuver, a finishing move that has been used countless times over the course of WWE history? It's an arduous task to rank the top 5 Stunners performed by the master, Stone Cold himself. So many iconic moments, so many epic Stunners.
From the insane ways The Rock has sold the move throughout his career to the countless times he nailed Vince McMahon with it during the Attitude Era, this move has been a mainstay for the last two decades. It is an absolute crowd favorite, which makes ranking more difficult.
With that being said, here is a list of what we believe to be the five most iconic Stone Cold Stunners in WWE history. As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments below and be sure to tell us your favorite as well.
#5 The Entire McMahon family (RAW Homecoming - October 3, 2005)
During the RAW Homecoming event in October 2005, Stone Cold Steve Austin proceeded to lay waste to the entire McMahon family in a matter of minutes. It started, of course, with Vince McMahon, who seemed to know instictively that it was coming and tried to exit the ring before the inevitable happened.
Unfortunately for Mr. McMahon, he was goaded into talking with The Rattlesnake and it resulted in the Stunner we all saw coming. The crowd came absolutely unglued after this and that was only the first offering. Shane McMahon made his way to the ring to fight for his father's honor, but was handed a Stunner of his own as the crowd went nuts again.
Stephanie McMahon was next to come out. She ended up slapping Austin in the face, which was enough provocation for Stone Cold, and she ate a Stunner for her troubles. As if that wasn't crazy enough, Linda McMahon followed the family train and made a rare appearance on TV. She tried to plead with Austin to stop the madness, but in the end, she fell victim to the Stunner just like the rest of the McMahon tribe.
#4 Brock Lesnar & Goldberg (WrestleMania XX - March 14, 2004)
Some circumstances just call for a Stone Cold Stunner.
One of those times was at WrestleMania XX, where Stone Cold Steve Austin was the special guest referee for a match between Goldberg and Brock Lesnar. While this would go on to become a dream match years later when the two locked up again on multiple occasions in 2016 and 2017, the fans were not excited for the bout the first time they stood across the ring from each other.
The crowd in New York City is historically unforgiving, and most fans in attendance were aware that this would be the final match in WWE for both men (for quite a while, at least). Brock Lesnar wanted to test his luck in the NFL, and Goldberg was ready to retire after a fairly forgettable year in the company. The crowd was, as you might expect, not exactly thrilled to see either man, and they were not shy about it.
In the end, the match turned out to be nothing special - unless you count the crowd reaction, which is the reason enough to fire up the WWE Network and check this match out. The fans had nobody to cheer for and just wanted the men to finish the match and leave WWE. Fortunately for everyone involved, Stone Cold Steve Austin decided to finish the segment on a positive note, giving both Lesnar and Goldberg his iconic Stone Cold Stunner and riding out of Madison Square Garden on his ATV much to the delight of the WWE faithful.
#3 Vince McMahon's first Stunner (Monday Night RAW - September 22, 1997)
Do you remember where you were the first time Stone Cold Steve Austin stunned Vince McMahon?
The monumental occurrence took place on a 1997 episode of Monday Night RAW. The series of events leading up to the Stunner heard 'round the world started with a group of police officers trying their best to subdue Austin. That, of course, didn't work out so well, and after a few minutes of a tense verbal altercation, Austin was ushered aside by McMahon to talk it out.
Austing wasn't very big on conversation, however, and before much talking could happen, Austin made it physical when he nailed McMahon with the Stunner of a lifetime. The crowd in attendance came absolutely unglued as they watched McMahon unceremoniously drop to the mat and surely the fans at home were going crazy as well.
This may not go down in history as the most remembered Stone Cold Stunner of all time, but it was a key moment in the Monday Night War, a crucial turning point for the Mr. McMahon character (who had not yet been solidified as the evil owner of the WWF) and the beginning of something special for Stone Cold Steve Austin. Everyone involved looked amazing and it was a moment that will forever be etched in the minds of those who saw it.
#2 Stephanie McMahon (Monday Night RAW - February 19, 2001)
Whether you want to admit it or not, there are just some people that deserve a Stone Cold Stunner in the middle of the squared circle. Unfortunately for Stephanie McMahon, she often turned out to be one of those people. The Billion Dollar Princess gave Stone Cold Steve Austin a slap in the face the previous week on RAW and followed up by starting the following week's episode by attacking her nemesis and her opponent for that Sunday's No Way Out PPV event, Trish Stratus.
McMahon made her way out to the ring to proclaim herself to be the strongest woman in the entire company and challenged Stratus to a brawl right then and there. After the attack earlier on in the evening, she knew Trish wasn' going to show up, but she was set to meet a far worse fate. She soon heard the glass shattering sound of Stone Cold Steve Austin's entrance theme. The boss's daughter was shocked as Austin made his way to the ring.
Austin thanked McMahon for reminding him what she did to him last week on RAW (she showed video clips that included the aforementioned slap in the face) and offered her a present from the bottom of his heart. Of course that present ended up being a Stunner. For a little bit of historical context, Austin was set to face Stephanie's husband, Triple H, that Sunday. Per the stipulation of the contract both men signed, neither The Rattlesnake nor The Game were allowed to lay a hand on the other before the bell that Sunday night. There was nothing in the contract that mentioned anything about spouses, which left Stephanie directly in the crosshairs.
#1 Donald Trump (WrestleMania 23 - April 1, 2007)
Now a WWE Hall of Famer, Donald Trump was once the focus of the ire of Vince McMahon in a 2007 storyline that saw him purchase WWE. This led to WrestleMania 23's "Battle of the Billionaires" which saw Trump's chosen wrestler, Bobby Lashley, take on McMahon's charge, Umaga. If the former were to take home a victory, Vince McMahon would get his head shaved bald. If it were the latter, then the infamous hair of "The Donald" would be shorn.
With Stone Cold Steve Austin as the special guest referee for the contest, Lashley and Umaga fought it out for their respective leaders, surely with a big monetary incentive for the winner. Lashley would come out victorious and while Vince McMahon was still the owner of his billion-dollar franchise, he was no longer the owner of a full head of luxurious hair.
In the end, there are so many Stone Cold Stunners that will stand the test of time, but this one may indeed be the absolute best. It was already great because of the fact that it was a spectacular moment, but it was also possibly the worst Stunner of all time from a visual standpoint. The only other one that comes close is the one taken by Linda McMahon (see entry #5) -- they're almost neck-in-neck, but Trump's flopping folly of a fall probably takes the cake.
