Stone Cold Steve Austin once delivered a warning to Mr. Kennedy that would ultimately define how Kennedy looks back on his WWE career, revealing not only that his position in the company was in danger, but naming the powerful figures who were actively working against him.
Speaking on René Duprée’s Café de René podcast, Kennedy recalled receiving a phone call from Austin in 2008 that he now considers one of the most important moments of his career. According to Kennedy, Austin didn’t sugarcoat the situation: “He called me one day and he was like, ‘Get the f**k out of there.’ He goes, ‘You got too much heat with the wrong people.’”
Austin didn’t stop there. He went on to name the specific stars Kennedy was clashing with at the highest level. “He goes, ‘Triple H hates your guts. Shawn Michaels hates your guts. John Cena hates your guts. That’s a bad combination, kid,’” Kennedy recalled. Once that many influential figures turn against you, your future in WWE becomes nearly impossible to protect.
“He was like, ‘Go to Japan. Go to TNA. Get yourself over. Do some stuff there. Get away from it for a while. You can always come back,’” Kennedy said.
Despite the urgency of the warning, Kennedy admitted he couldn’t bring himself to leave. “I just couldn’t f**king bring myself to pull that trigger,” he said, noting that the big paychecks made walking away difficult. “Hindsight, I wish I would have listened to him. I honestly do,” he admitted.
He believes the situation escalated significantly after a match with John Cena, where Cena suffered a torn pec following a hip toss. Kennedy recalled Cena confronting him backstage. “He came back through the curtain and in front of Vince (McMahon) and everybody else he was like, ‘I don’t do shoot moves,’” Kennedy said.
Kennedy strongly disputed the accusation, maintaining the injury was not his fault. “I’m convinced I didn’t f**king tear his pec. He happened to be wrestling me when his pec tore. That’s it.”
According to Kennedy, that incident added fuel to an already tense relationship with Cena and further damaged his standing internally. Around the same time, Kennedy recalled a separate incident involving Triple H that left a lasting impression.
While on an overseas tour, Kennedy returned backstage after delivering a promo where he referred to himself as “the future of sports entertainment.” Moments later, he was pulled aside and informed of what had happened behind the curtain. “He was f**king burying you while you were out there, dude,” Kennedy recalled being told. Triple H’s remark, as relayed to him, was cutting: “Well, boys, better f**king save your paychecks if that’s the future of sports entertainment.”
Kennedy admitted he was furious and ready to confront Triple H, but was stopped by Chris Jericho, who offered a reality check. “He was like, ‘That guy has Sunday brunch with the boss every week,’” Kennedy said. “He’s like, ‘Don’t do it.’” The phrase became a running joke between them. Triple H’s political power made retaliation pointless.
Also Read: Mr. Kennedy On Why His United States Title Run Was Cut Short
