Booker T Reflects on Working With Steve Austin

Booker T recently joined the Steve Austin Show (transcript via Wrestling Inc), and reflected on his time working with Steve Austin and working stiff with each other…

On Working With Steve Austin: “We always enjoyed working together, but one time, it was [Booker] and me in the ring and it was WWE, WWF back in the day.” Steve recalled, “man, we had just started working and, man, you knocked the dog s–t out of me! And I’d always been real patient about sending receipts because, ‘okay, dude was off’ and I like to work snug anyway. But, man, you hit me so damn hard, I said, ‘naw, man!’ I said, ‘I’ve got to send back a receipt now!'”

On Getting a Receipt From Austin: “What I remember about that night is that I whacked you!” Booker exclaimed. “I’ve been known to be a little snug. I wasn’t stiff or anything, but I’m old school. If you hit a guy in the lip and you bust his lip, that’s just part of the [pro wrestling] business. That’s normally in an exchange. That’s normally when guys are going at it, not when things just get started. I don’t know, maybe I was wound up, but I do remember hitting [Austin] and blood came out of your lip. And I go, ‘oh, s–t! I [did not] mean to do that.’ That’s what I’m saying in my mind. But in my mind as well, I’m knowing that I’m going to get a receipt back somewhere in this match and the thing is, what I remember [about] that night is that [Austin] was really, really passionate about giving that receipt back. But the receipt I remember getting back was a stomp right to the face as I was lying down on the ground. And it was a stiff shot right to the nose and the thing was, I felt like I deserved that! Do you know what I mean? It didn’t bust me up or anything, but it was a stiff shot and it was purposely done. Now, in business, a man can only respect that. I mean, that’s the way I remember that going and now should I have been waiting for you behind the curtain after that stiff shot? No, I can deal with a stiff shot and the receipt was there given. So I understand that. I totally understand that.”

On Where He Got ‘Can You Dig It’ Catchphrase: “Hey, man, I’m going to tell you, man, those karate movies that I watched when I was a kid, man, I always had that one mindset because of the boss. In all of those karate movies that I watched, the boss, he was badass and every time someone tests the boss, he showed how real he had to be with all those guys. All those Shaft movies, that I watched, Richard Roundtree, he was badass. Do you know what I mean? He didn’t take [any] s–t from [anybody] and I wanted to be like Shaft. That’s where ‘can you dig it, sucka?’ came from, me watching those movies.” Booker added, “and for me, I always knew my role.”

On Concussions in Wrestling: “I think I may have gotten two [concussions].” Booker explained, “and one was with Perry Saturn. He hit a moonsault off the second rope, backflip, and his knee caught me right on the chin. Boom, he covered me, 1-2, kickout, he grabbed a rear chin lock, and called a spot. He goes, ‘are you ready,’ and I go, ‘yeah, I’m ready,’ but my everything went to get up except my legs. [Laughs] I laid back down there and I go, ‘wait a second,’ and I got myself together. I remember wrestling The Nasty Boys and I got hit in the head with a big jar of mustard and it knocked me silly. Do you know what I mean? But that was it, man. We did go out there to make sure that we [were] able to go out there and perform the following night. We were great entertainers. We were great showmen. We went out there and we pushed it to a certain level.”