You might be wondering where Mario's been all this time, while Bowser's out rockin' the world. Well, a certain adorable minion of Bowser's thought to give him a present: namely, the Koopa King's greatest foe, irreversibly turned to stone and made into a footrest, forever trapped and aware of his degrading fate! Quite a jaw-dropping revelation, hmm? Mario certainly seems to think so!
You can bet Bowser's gonna be lording his status as a proper stone golem over his little immobile footstool for the rest of time; Bowser getting petrified ultimately led to him being a big, sexy living statue, while Mario's petrification ended the former hero's career for good! You could say he learned the true agony of de feet!