Steve Austin Addresses Past CTE Comments on Busted Open

Steve Austin is setting the record straight on comments he made about CTE that previously ignited a firestorm of criticism online. Appearing on Busted Open during his 3:16 Day media appearances, Austin revisited the remarks and offered context around what he actually meant.

The original comments came during a documentary — Austin recalled it being roughly 15 to 20 years ago — when he said that wrestlers getting a lot of concussions were probably doing something wrong, framing it around the classical style of working where big head bumps weren’t commonplace. When the remarks resurfaced, his social media was flooded with criticism from people who interpreted them as a blanket denial of CTE’s existence.

Austin Says He Was Misunderstood and Clarifies His Actual Position

“My Twitter timeline started blowing up and people got mad as hell at me and said, ‘Oh! You don’t believe in CTE?'” Austin recalled. “I was like, ‘God dang.’ I said, ‘No, I believe in CTE. Just not as it really kind of applies technically to pro wrestling.’ It’s gonna be a hot button that everybody starts sounding off on, so I’ll get out of it — but that was just kind of being put on the spot about it and I answered accordingly.”

Austin was candid about the limits of his expertise on the subject. “I’m not a scientist, I’m not a doctor. I took a lot of bumps and took some shots. Do I forget things every now and then? Yeah, well, I’m 61 — I think that kind of comes with the territory,” he said with a laugh. He added that most of the people he knows from his era are doing well.