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Jim Ross Staying In WWE

Posted: Jun 6th 2010 By: CMBurnham

Jim Ross recently ended months-long speculation concerning his future in the wrestling business.

Ross, whose contract recently expired, will continue to work for WWE behind the scenes ? but not behind the announcer?s desk.

?Going forward, I will be focusing on a variety of talent relations matters, essentially as a consultant, of which will not require weekly travel,? Ross wrote in a blog on jrsbarbq.com. ?I will be visiting FCW in Tampa on a regular basis to observe the development of the young men and women who, I hope, all want to headline Wrestlemania some day.?

The Hall of Fame announcer, who at one time was head of WWE?s talent relations division, is known for having a keen eye when it comes to finding and recruiting new prospects.

?This area of the company has always been of particular interest to me including when we opened developmental areas years ago in Louisville, Cincinnati, Memphis and Southern California. Many of the WWE?s biggest stars of this generation came from those areas.?

Ross says he also will be traveling to WWE?s monthly pay-per-views to help behind the scenes as part of his new working role in the company.

?Planning on going to WWE?s next PPV to help out behind the scenes, and that will likely become a monthly road trip,? Ross blogged. ?Once a month sure as hell beats 51 weeks a year.?

Many fans had hoped Ross might take a high-ranking management position with TNA that could have improved the fortunes of that company. Ross reportedly had conversations with TNA officials, but conceded that it would take more than one person to significantly impact that company.

?I sincerely hope TNA survives and thrives, but their announcing is the least of the issues that need addressing in my opinion,? said Ross. ?I have many, many friends who work in TNA and I am pulling for them without question. Competition is good for all businesses and I will continue to follow them just as I always have.?

Some disappointed fans went so far as to accuse Ross of ?selling out? by opting to remain in WWE where, they rightfully contend, he hasn?t always been accorded the utmost respect.

Ross, however, feels he made the right decision for himself and his family.

?Too many assumptions have been made about any talks I had with TNA. I did not ?sell out? but merely made the best business decision that I could make at this time. I don?t and will not live my life on how this person ?treated me? or my personal feelings toward anyone in the business. This is a business deal, plain and simple. People buy into the Internet BS and consider it gospel. I?m happy with the decision I made, which should be good enough for those outside looking in, or so I feel.?

Ross? new deal with WWE allows him to pursue other broadcasting opportunities that are non-wrestling related including MMA. Ross is a big fan of that genre and has spoken with HDNet about handling play-by-play for some shows.

The real question, however, is this:

Is Vince McMahon wrong to keep Jim Ross off TV?

The answer is fairly obvious. J. R. was, is, and for the foreseeable future will be, the best announcer in professional wrestling. Period.

-- WWE deserves high marks for its one-night elevation of Evan Bourne last week on Raw.

Hopefully it?s more than a flash-in-the-pan move that the company will forget about in a week or two. The undersized Bourne is an exciting performer to watch, and his signature Air Bourne finisher was a great way to end Raw and a pleasant change of pace from the overly predictable closes to most shows.

John Cena also deserves credit for giving the rub to Bourne and sharing some of his considerable spotlight.

?Evan is for real. I have always felt he has been overlooked, and it was a privilege to be his teammate,? Cena said on Twitter after the match.

-- The Undertaker has been removed from the Fatal Four Way pay-per-view after suffering an orbital bone injury during a recent match with Rey Mysterio.

Undertaker was written off television when Teddy Long announced Friday night on Smackdown that Taker was found in a vegetative state by ?brother? Kane over the Memorial Day weekend. Kane delivered a stirring eulogy later on the show and vowed ?cold, hard, calculated vengeance? on the unnamed perpetrator.

Rey Mysterio has been tapped to replace Taker at the pay-per-view. World champion Jack Swagger will face off with Rey, C.M. Punk and Big Show. WWE champion John Cena will defend his title against Edge, Randy Orton and Sheamus on the same bill.

Taker is expected to be out of action through the summer.

-- Ric Flair, in the United Kingdom to promote TNA?s tour there in early 2011, told The Mirror that he is still in the business because he enjoys performing.

?Without a shadow of a doubt,? Flair said. ?I don?t make anywhere near the money right now that I made the past. I have outside sources of income, but when you go through two divorces, you can always use more. Paying for weddings and stuff like that requires more. It?s about my love of the business.?

-- ?Stone Cold? Steve Austin is pulling for TNA to succeed, but he wasn?t very impressed with the short-lived ?Monday Night Wars? with WWE.

?Just brutal,? he said in a recent interview with IGN. ?I?ve always wished TNA all the luck in the world. I mean, they?ll never be able to compete on a level platform with the WWE, but I still just want the company to do well because I have a lot of friends over there. It?s a good place for guys to work. It?s a little bit different of a product. I think they need to differentiate the product even more from what the WWE is because they?ll never be able to compete with that. But, that being said, they?ve got some interesting storylines and some interesting talent over there. It?s an alternative.?

-- WWE star Edge (Adam Copeland) recently bought a home in Asheville, N.C., and plans to move there soon with girlfriend Charissa and their four dogs.

The Toronto, Canada, native has been living in Tampa, but grew tired of the heat and the big-city life, he recently told the Asheville Citizen-Times.

?I?ve always liked this town,? he said. ?We walked around the downtown and really got a feel for what it?s like ? an old-fashioned downtown, not a super-duper Walmart kind of downtown. We liked the art, and it seemed like it was pretty cool culturally ? and we love the mountains and the seasons.?

?This?ll end up being home base; we?re on the road so much,? he added. ?We came up over the holidays, and we were here for the big snowfall. We?ll be here for the summer, and as of next summer we?ll be here full-time.?

Edge said he?s coming up on his 20th year in the business, and injuries have taken a toll.

?I?ve definitely had some injuries that have shortened my career,? he said. ?That?s part of the reason I bought up here ? we want to retire and listen to the wind in the trees, and we want to do it fairly soon. I may have two more years. With each injury, it?s harder and harder to come back.?

Jim Ross praised Edge for his willingness to consider an early retirement that too many in the business forego for a number of reasons.

?I think many in Edge?s generation who have made big money, and he has, and have wisely saved and invested it, and I suspect that he has, will not hang around the business too long simply so that they can preserve what physical health that they can.

?Edge has had significant injuries in his illustrious career, specifically his neck surgery, and if asked, and I haven?t, I would advise him to call it a career sooner than later if he can financially afford it. Too many wrestlers have to stay longer than they need or should because of financial issues, but I would be shocked if Edge even remotely comes close to that syndrome.?

-- WWE star Chris Jericho has been tapped to host a new ABC reality game show, ?Downfall,? a six-episode series featuring contestants trying to answer questions while on the roof of a 10-story Los Angeles high rise. ?The largest conveyor belt ever seen on TV? will send potential winnings (cash and prizes), the player?s personal possessions, and even friends and family over the side of the building.

The extreme reality contest premieres June 22.

-- Bruce Beresford-Redman, the former producer of ?Survivor? who has been charged with his wife?s murder in Mexico, was apparently working on a pro wrestling-themed reality project with former WWE diva Stacy Carter in the months prior to the crime Mexican authorities charged him with.

According to a TMZ report, Beresford-Redman had contacted Carter, who worked as ?Kat? and ?Miss Kitty,? a couple of years ago about doing a show that would have focused on her making the transition from pro wrestling to real estate broker. The project would have centered on wrestlers? jobs after leaving the pro wrestling ranks.

Beresford-Redman was charged with his wife?s murder after she was reported missing and found dead several days later.

Carter told TMZ that calls from Beresford-Redman discussing the new show stopped in April when the producer?s wife was found dead.

-- Good news for Spike TV and its new ?Half Pint Brawlers? show. The debut edition on Wednesday night registered an impressive 0.7 rating for its 11 p.m. EST slot, attracting 837,000 viewers, with the replay that followed doing a 0.5 rating, with 598,000 viewers.

-- Latest to come out of the Samoan pipeline in WWE are Jimmy and Jules Uso. They are the twin sons of former WWE performer Rikishi. Their sidekick, Tamina, is the daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy Snuka.

-- Former WWE couple Charlie Haas and Jackie Gayda celebrated the birth of their third child and first son, Thomas Russell Hass II, on June 1.

The boy was named after Charlie?s brother, Russ Haas, who died at 27 of a heart attack in 2001 during his run as a WWE developmental wrestler.

-- Ultra Fighter America, a mixed martial arts promotion company, is bringing ?UFA 1: The Clash at the Coliseum? to the North Charleston Coliseum for a night of pro-am MMA on June 11.

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Houston Alexander will meet Charleston?s David Griffin in the main event.

Griffin, a former collegiate baseball star at The Citadel and now a local firefighter, will play the role of underdog.

?Getting the opportunity to fight Houston Alexander is a huge honor. Fighting someone of his caliber will be a big challenge, but I wouldn?t have it any other way. Believe in me, because I was made for chasing dreams,? says Griffin.

Also scheduled to compete are Matt Jaggers (15-7, former King of the Cage world champion and two-time Sengoku participant), Joe Jordan (47-11, UFC veteran) and Olympic silver medalist Sara McMann making her MMA debut at UFA 1. McMann, from Marion, N.C., is the first American woman in history to receive a silver medal in women?s wrestling at the 2004 Summer Olympics games in Greece.

Appearing as a special guest will be Jens Pulver, the first-ever lightweight champion in the UFC, who also is known for his stint on the reality show ?The Ultimate Fighter.? Members of Joe Gibbs Racing will be with Pulver and will be available to sign autographs and pose for photos.

Tickets for UFA 1 are available through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com. Prices range from $31-$101.

Tags: Jim Ross, WWE, TNA, Ric Flair, Rikishi, Charlie Haas, Russ Haas