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JR's Blog: ITV/World of Sport, AXSTV/NJPW, RINGSIDE w/ Jim Ross Shows, JR to Nashville/Zanies This Wednesday Night

Posted: Nov 7th 2016 By: Jim Ross

After being on the road for what seemed like days on end, it is great to be back home in Oklahoma if only for a few days before heading to Nashville for our RINGSIDE Show this Wednesday night at Zanies. Travel is no fun but there isn't one project in which we are currently engaged that I'm not loving being associated.

BTW...I updated the Q&A's that made the cut elsewhere on our site.

Absolutely loved my experience in England working with ITV and some mighty talented athletes for the taping of the two hour, World of Sport TV special that will air in December I'm told. The exact day/date/time is to be determined but I'm certain that wrestling fans that watch it will enjoy what our team accomplished. I've never worked with a more professional and accommodating production crew in years as I experienced in Manchester this past Tuesday night.

My fingers are crossed that ITV picks up this series and returns WOS to the airwaves in Britain in 2017. I'm ready to help ITV rebuild this iconic brand. Without a doubt, Britain is loaded with excellent pro wrestling talent.

Josh Barnett and I voiced over seven NJPW shows this past Thursday and Friday in Los Angeles including Naito winning the NJPW Heavyweight title from Okada.

The in ring presentation, at times, in NJPW is changing which many old school fans will likely notice.

AXSTV is planning on some major developments as it relates to Wrestle Kingdom come January 2017 of which we are excited to be a part.

BTW, Josh and I called our first Will Ospreay bout during this production session and NJPW has a real star in the making on their hands as the 23 year old Brit is special without question.

The deadline for completing our manuscript for our autobiography that Paul O'Brien and I are writing has been extended to February 1 and our finished work will be hitting shelves in the fall of 2017 in time for the holidays that ensue.

Word on the street has it that WWE is attempting to bring a high profile, UFC talent to perform at WM33 in Orlando. Seems as if the most likely choices would be Ronda Rousey or Paige VanZant while Conor McGregor would be a huge 'get' as well. No matter who WWE may recruit, I'd expect this to 'one off' booking.

I spoke personally to Ms VanZant in Vegas at UFC 200 and she's definitely a WWE fan and seems like she'd love the opportunity to team with WWE for a big event. McGregor seems like he'd be a longer shot but the Irishman certainly would being the 'Attitude Era' with him.

We will be in Orlando for WM33 with two, RINGSIDE with Jim Ross shows at Plaza Live in Orlando and tickets are on sale now at ticketfly.com. Get yours before they're all gone as VIP tickets are still available and General Admission ducats start at only $25.

The TNA Impact Wrestling fiasco is still in play in Nashville and I for one am certainly pulling for the company to rebound and get back on their feet but under the current incarnation, no matter one's preference, that is going to be extremely challenging.

To think that any leadership group can resurrect the beleaguered brand on POP TV is somewhat far fetched in my opinion.

The company needs one decision maker in charge and not so many cooks in the kitchen and that decision maker has to have infinite, product knowledge or TNA under any name simply will continue to fail and bleed money.

TNA lost their UK TV clearance while I was in England this past week and from what I'm being told are having a problem attempting to regain a TV home there.

One can easily surmise that when TNA left Spike TV in the States that their fortunes took a drastic turn for the worse. I have no dog in the hunt but for anyone to actually think that POP TV can cure what ails TNA is ridiculous.

The current Ross Report podcast features ROH's Dalton Castle and WWE legend Hillbilly JIm which is a legit 'odd couple' if there ever was one at www.podcastone.com and iTunes.

This week on a new, TRR podcast I will talk with both NJPW's Mike Elgin and Shane Douglas who joins me for the first time.

Plus, Monday night I'm talking with my old friend Kevin Kelly, the voice of ROH, for a podcast that drops one week from this Tuesday night.

It is a sign of the times, as in what have you done for me lately, as a week ago the talk of the wresting biz was that two ladies were closing the show inside HIAC for WWE and now that development, largely overthought by many fans IMO, is a faint memory. I'm still not an against the WWE trying what they did even if some fans feel that the match that should have ended the show was Owens vs Rollins.

At some point we all have to understand that booking three, HIAC bouts with any talents in those matches is daunting to say the least plus having such a violent environment with such a history of blood and guts is also challenging to translate in a more PG format.

I'm not advocating the use of blood for dramatic affect but the HIAC presentation seems somewhat lacking without something like that. Getting by with one HIAC bout w/o the 'gore' might work fine but three, PG HIAC bouts is more daunting.

I was asked the question in our recent Q&A's here but I would not have Goldberg and Lesnar "touch' until Sunday November 20 in Toronto at Survivor Series. Yes, I do think that the match will likely exceed the expectations of some fans who feel that the ring rust of Goldberg will be impossible to overcome.

World class athletes have a way of rising to the occasion and that's what I'm feeling about this bout that looks like it will be the main event of the evening. I see a straight forward, 15 minutes bell to bell Slobber Knocker that lessens the focus on ring rust.

Hmm....would WWE be so bold to have a future, Lesnar opponent seek and destroy after the physical, main event at Survivor Series to set up Lesnar vs. ___________ at WM33 in Orlando?

';m excited to be in Toronto on Survivor Series Sunday for RINGSIDE with Jim Ross at The Second City with a 2:30 pm show that will end by 4 pm and is only a short walk from the ACC where WWE has sold out the Survivor Series. RINGSIDE Tickets will be available at the door but you can also score tickets in advance via Ticketmaster.ca and at www.livenation.com. Make it a double header in TO and join us for a fun afternoon prior to the much anticipated Survivor Series. Go VIP in Toronto!

Several of my friends from the wrestling biz will likely be joining us this Wednesday night at Zanies in Nashville where we bring our RINGSIDE Show to Music City for the first time. General Admission tickets are only $25 and will be available at the door and in advance at www.zanies.nashville.com. Go VIP for the early entry, meet/greet/photo op tickets and I assure you that you won't regret it.

​I will be attending the Nashville Predators game this Tuesday night as a guest of the team of which I am excited to attend.

Like us on Facebook at JimRossBBQ.

My Oklahoma Sooners football team are in the hunt for another Big 12 Title and I'm so happy that I will be able to get back on the Sooner sideline this Saturday in Norman to support them. Travel for work has interrupted my attendance which actually has me feeling guilty.

Boomer Sooner!

J.R. @JRsBBQ