LogFAQs > #961752335

If anything, Austin, in his first year eligible, is only shocking because he didn't draw the highest percentage of those making it since he figured to be the strongest candidate not only on the ballot, but the strongest candidate since we started doing balloting. If anything, it was a surprise that Austin's percentage didn't challenge the record 95% put on the board last year by Jushin Liger, but apparently the longevity at the top factor worked against him, because more than any other wrestler, Austin is the one who was the key in the WWF's turnaround in three years from being a company losing millions every year, to a company that is more profitable in one year than perhaps any other wrestling company has been in its entire history. No wrestler in history ever sold merchandise like Austin or drew the money he did, and even if he wasn't a strong performer in the ring, a category he doesn't fit into at all, those are credentials pretty hard to argue with.