Stone Cold earns title shot at Rumble

Stone Cold Steve Austin has earned a chance for the title at Wrestlemania. At the Royal Rumble, Austin survived the 30-man fiasco to deserve a shot at the belt. Kurt Angle is still the champion after Austin interfered in the title match Sunday, but this does not mean he will be the one to face Austin, as the belt might change hands in the interim. \nAngle has had the title for quite a while now, and with turning him face, a loss to a heel would make him even more popular. Slowly, Angle is gaining respect from the fans by poking fun at Triple H. Having Trish Stratus by his side is also winning him over with the more "macho" crowd. The main event at the Rumble was Angle and Trish versus Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley and Triple H. Austin decided to rain on the main event parade by stunning Triple H — big surprise (notice a hint of sarcasm there). This was more predictable then a backyard match between T-Bone and Hart Forrest, where T-Bone always gets the last laugh. But all laughing aside, I find it is time for a match between Triple H and Austin to be in order. \nSo, who does Angle fight then? I think the millions of people who read this article, or at least the guys in my fraternity, would agree that The Rock should get into title contention. The Big Show has made his return, and should definitely be a big timer, but he needs to get back in the swing of things a little more. Undertaker has not impressed me in the past few weeks, and I think the alliance with Kane is a good thing. These two together are more dangerous than a freshman with a fake ID. What these two scenarios have in common is that they raise hell, whether on Kirkwood or in the wrestling ring.\nAnd speaking of raising hell, where has Shane McMahon been? He has been out of the picture for quite some time. With Shane-O-Mack in the picture, it is worth more than a thousand words. Shane is known for bringing wrestlers to the top, and an alliance with him is almost guaranteeing controversy. So here is a controversial scenario I have come up with: Shane comes back at the next Raw and aligns himself with Angle. Angle then gets to hold his title until No Way Out. A family feud sparks up with Stephanie being "married" to Triple H. Shane then turns on Angle at No Way Out, bringing the family back together and giving the title to Triple H. \nAt the following Raw, The Rock works his way back to the title hunt. Wrestlemania then cards a triple-threat match between The Rock, Triple H and Austin. This scenario might not work, but I think it would be cool to see.\nIn other news, who do you think the masked man is that is helping Raven? I sense a flock coming, but I could be wrong. E-mail me with your guesses; I am curious to know your opinions. If a flock does come about, I think they could greatly rival Right To Censor.\nI wanted to finish this column today by talking about the ladder match at the Royal Rumble, featuring Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit for the Intercontinental Title. In all my years watching wrestling, this was one of the greatest matches I have seen. It is right up with Hulk Hogan versus Andre the Giant. Jericho won, but not easily. These two took bumps and bruises like no other. This is all I have for the week. If it were up to me, the whole Sports section would cover wrestling news. But I am not the editor, and probably never will be. Besides, I think the basketball team played some state school last night.