Watching them in their prime, they were sort'a equal. Austin probably gets a little ahead because he was the first. But in their prime, both were megastars and the top faces in the company.
Depends on the situation. I really like them both.
Now: The Rock. I think The Rock has more to give because he gives out great promos.
Back in their primes: It depends on your taste. Stone Cold was more raw and a little less cheesy than The Rock. The Rock was always the better trash talker to me.
In 1999, both of them were attacking face and heels. And in 2000/early 2001, both were equal. The Rock was getting slightly stale, but only slightly. Both were great, so it depends on your style.
Who was better on the mic and in the ring?
The Rock on the mic. Stone Cold in the ring. I think Stone Cold had better and more legendary matches, but The Rock had some underrated matches too. His run with Triple H and Angle were my favorites. And the Lesnar match. The Rock can sell, lol.
Who had the better feuds?
Stone Cold had better feuds. Vince, Bret, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H were the first to my mind.
The Rock didn't have bad feuds though. Triple H was a looong ass feud, but a great one. Triple H feud with the Rock is probably one of the most underrated. They have a history. They feuded back when in their mid-card days, when they battling for the IC belt. They were almost anyways in the same line, battling for a spot.
Other than Triple H, The Rock feuded with Mick Foley, Big Show and Angle. Those were the major feuds that I remember. He did feud with Vince, Benoit, Jericho, Taker and others.
But I always felt that the Stone Cold character had better storylines because they always made it a bit personal and something that you can relate too. I cared more, and they were more epic to me. Even with Triple H, who I felt was The Rock's main antagonist, Stone Cold feud with Triple H was more epic and more personal than The Rock's feud with Triple H.
However, The Rock vs Stone Cold feud was great. They go at it a few times, which makes it more special. They never overdid it. They were the top of their era.
Both were great, and they were the top gimmicks of their era. And they are the top 3 wrestlers ever. But all gimmicks get kind'a stale depending on the situation. Like my least favorite version of both Stone Cold and The Rock were 2001 and 2002. They tweak their gimmicks a bit and it wasn't as cool back in 1998-2000.
Back then: With both at their peak, both were equal. They both were similar in results, but different ways of getting there. The Rock was the better talker, Stone Cold kicked more ass.
Now: I think I would take The Rock's gimmick than Stone Cold. The Rock makes me laugh and entertain me more. The Rock is more versatile and can impact in different ways without even throwing a punch. Stone Cold could be funny, but not like The Rock. Plus Stone Cold specialty is to be a badass and a rebel.
But it depends on what I want. Stone Cold is probably still capable of giving a great performance to the crowd. But The Rock is probably the best wrestler on the mic in history. But it's really hard to choose, and you really can't go wrong either way.
