Scott Steiner: Did The Wrestling Legend Ever Use Steroids?

• The use of performance-enhancing drugs is a well-documented part of wrestling history.
• Acts like Hulk Hogan with superhuman physiques motivated more wrestlers to "get on the gas" in hopes of stardom.
• Scott Steiner's physique was impressive enough for fans to understandably suspect him of steroid usage.

It’s no secret that pro wrestling is a work and, as such, performance-enhancing drugs have a long history in the business, up to and including arguably having been pushed by management. Indeed, in an enterprise that’s all about showmanship and where the in-ring competition has predetermined outcomes, it makes all the sense in the world that steroids would be a part of giving fans the most entertaining spectacle possible. Acts like Hulk Hogan, who were champions and faces of the Golden Era, embodied these principles.

Indeed, amidst WWE's exploding popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s, an emphasis on superhuman physiques and, accordingly, steroid use spread to other promotions as well as they tried to keep up with what made WWE such a juggernaut. Though Scott Steiner didn’t start his first WWE stint until steroids were out of style (as the steroid trial took hold), it nonetheless stands to reason that a guy as jacked as he was may have been juicing.

Scott Steiner Had An Incredible Physique

Even Before The Big Poppa Pump Era, Steiner Was Jacked

• Scott Steiner was already incredibly muscular as half of the Steiner Brothers tag team.
• Steiner focused on getting more cut as he transitioned to the Big Poppa Pump persona.
• Even as his in-ring abilities fell off a little, Steiner looked sensational.

Even in his days as a tag team wrestler, Scott Steiner had some of the most impressive musculature in wrestling. Indeed, in an interview with Chris Van Vliet, Steiner discussed that the transformation to his Big Poppa Pump persona in the late 1990s didn’t actually see him get that much bigger, but rather he focused on getting more cut to accentuate his muscles and the new gimmick focused on him flexing biceps and physically dominating with power moves and holds in ways that drew attention to his physique.

Indeed, even in the least impressive in-ring stretches of Steiner’s career—the tail end of the Monday Night War with WCW and his year back in WWE afterward—The Big Bad Booty Daddy boasted one of the most remarkable looks of all time in the professional wrestling business.

Scott Steiner’s Comments On Steroid Usage

Big Poppa Pump Has Offered A Tongue-In-Cheek Answer To The Question

• Scott Steiner has claimed to have never failed a drug test.
• Steiner did recount WWE asking him to test for steroids and the humorous way he played Triple H against them.
• Though Steiner hasn't outright admitted to steroid use, his comments do heavily imply it.

While Scott Steiner has not directly stated that he used performance-enhancing drugs, he also hasn’t been all that subtle in alluding that this was the case. He has emphasized that he never failed a drug test, but has not denied that he was actually using the drugs. His most famous account occurred in an interview with Slam Sports, wherein he explained that WWE tried to have him test during his 2002-2003 run. Steiner articulated:

"I've never failed a drug test in my life. When WWE told me to take one, I told them to have Triple H pick me up in a limo, then we could go test together … They never asked again.” (h/t Fightful)

While there’s a little room for interpretation, the gist seems to be that WWE played favorites on whom it compelled to test for steroids. Steiner could recognize his rival World Heavyweight Champion Triple H was probably on the gas, so he called them out on his own willingness to test if the proverbial golden goose did so at the same time. The choice not to test either man seems like a tacit acceptance all around that both Steiner and Helmsley were using, or that’s at least Big Poppa Pump’s perspective on the matter.