5 WWE Matches with the Most Controversial Finishes

#4 Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Vince and Shane McMahon

Stone Cold Steve Austin has a long history of Stunning McMahons, but the finish to his ladder match with Vince and Shane left some fans unsatisfied.

At King of the Ring 1999, WWE promoted an oddball main event of Stone Cold Steve Austin in a handicap situation against both Vince and Shane McMahon, in a Ladder Match for (kayfabe) control of the company. There was a way in which the stipulation would appear to paint Austin into a corner, outnumbered against two enemies.

However, there was also a more practical sense in which Austin could declare open season on the McMahons, beating up both of them in the confines of a sanctioned match with ostensibly hardcore rules. There was an added wrinkle that with two team members, one McMahon could theoretically occupy Austin while other won the Ladder Match.

Instead of that more obvious outcome, the match instead culminated in an unseen presence jerking the briefcase out of Austin’s reach when he was about to win. The finish felt pretty hokey, as well as unresolved. It was heavily hinted that The Big Boss Man was the one pulling the briefcase, but he was never clearly revealed, generally leaving fans less interested in the swerve finish and more confused.