WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin spoke with Sports Illustrated this week and praised new RAW Executive Director Paul Heyman. Austin said he believes the show is in the right hands with Heyman in charge.

“That is the right guy for the job,” Austin said. “Paul E. has a vision of what this business should be. He’s working under the watchful eye of Vince McMahon, but Vince is looking at so many big pictures while Paul is going to focus on this.

“Paul E. is really close to the pulse of the product. He understands where and why the business should be, and how it should feel. You should feel something when you watch that show. Paul E. is hungry to bring back this industry to its heyday. There is already more of a sense of urgency and importance of the world title.”

Regarding the current WWE product, Austin said he’s impressed with it. He was asked to offer one critique of the product, and paused for a moment before articulating the point.

“Emotion sells tickets and draws ratings,” Austin said. “If you don’t care, then why watch? If you care, you’re invested in those characters. So slow it down a little bit. You can move as fast as you want in the ring, but to me, the business is built on characters, emotions, and depth. When you have great action on top of it, that’s even better. Right now, those guys and gals are operating at such a high speed and high level of athleticism. It can’t get any higher than it is right now, so they need to keep finding ways to make people care about them. That will elevate the business and make it resonate with the audience.”