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WWE Hall of Famer Jerry "The King" Lawler on Auburn show, announcing, rise of Seth Rollins and other young WWE stars

Posted: Nov 5th 2015 By: Robert Harding - AustinPub.com

A car crash won't keep WWE Hall of Famer Jerry "The King" Lawler away from the ring at Northeast Wrestling's Prison City Slam Friday in Auburn.

Lawler and his girlfriend were involved in a head-on collision Saturday night in Arizona. The driver of the other vehicle ran a red light and struck Lawler's car.

The couple was lucky. Lawler was uninjured, while his girlfriend received treatment for minor injuries.

"I'm definitely fine and I'll be in Auburn Friday night," he said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Lawler is one of the big names on the card for Friday's show at Auburn High School. He is scheduled to wrestle Robbie E, a member of TNA's roster since 2010.

The venue will be a change of pace for Lawler, who typically spends his time working in big arenas as a color commentator for WWE. Going from a large, 18,000-seat arena to a high school gym doesn't bother the Memphis native. He says shows at smaller sites give fans an opportunity to get closer to the wrestlers.

"With WWE, it's such a big operation," he said. "Most of our shows, it's just impossible to have that kind of close interaction with thousands of fans at a show. I really enjoy doing the smaller shows. I do these at least once or twice a week still."

Lawler's wrestling career began in the early 1970s. He competed for a mix of promotions, including AWA, NWA and USWA in Tennessee. One of his career highlights is a feud he had with the late Andy Kaufman, which included a confrontation between the two on an episode of "Late Night with David Letterman."

After he joined WWE in the early 1990s, he was asked by Vince McMahon, the company's owner, to join the announce team after "Macho Man" Randy Savage's departure.

Becoming an announcer wasn't part of Lawler's plan, but it has paid off. He was a longtime color commentator on "Monday Night Raw," WWE's top TV program, and has called several pay-per-view events over the years. He's now an announcer on "Smackdown," another weekly WWE TV show.

Lawler attributed his success as a commentator to his broadcast partners ? fellow WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross and Michael Cole, the company's current lead announcer.

"Their main responsibility was knowing the holds, knowing all the wrestlers, knowing the background, knowing the storylines and all that sort of stuff," he said. "My job, as a color commentator, I always looked at it as just basically going out there and reacting to what I saw."

As an announcer, Lawler sees WWE's talent on a regular basis. With the company's top star, John Cena, approaching his 39th birthday, there are opportunities for younger wrestlers.

One WWE superstar who Lawler singled out was Seth Rollins, the current WWE world heavyweight champion.

"He could be around a long, long time," Lawler said.

As for who could be the next Cena, Lawler believes Roman Reigns, who won this year's Royal Rumble and wrestled in the main event at WrestleMania 31, will fill that spot.

There are other wrestlers who could have successful careers, Lawler said. He noted that NXT, a brand created by WWE to develop talent, is a success and garnering attention worldwide. He said that will help bolster WWE's roster.

"The company is in good hands because there's so many young, good superstars out there who are on the rise," he said. "I don't have any doubt that there's going to be some major stars developing over the next few years."

While wrestling fans focus on the present and future, it's easy to forget the past. Lawler has been a major figure in pro wrestling for five decades. He's worked for promotions big and small and is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame.

For Lawler, any talk about his legacy isn't important. Instead, he's grateful for being given an opportunity to have a long, fruitful career.

"I honestly feel that the success that I've enjoyed was just something that happened to me," he said. "I never even think about how I'll be remembered or if I'll be remembered."