The charm of Jim Ross (JR) on the AEW broadcast is certainly part of AEW’s appeal to the nostalgic fanbase. God bless AEW for pairing JR with his longtime rival, Tony Schiavone. These two distinct voices of my childhood are back together again. They even called the 1991 WCW Halloween Havoc together, where we got the legendary Jim Ross call, “Rick Steiner’s got that chainsaw!”
Unlike Schiavone, JR has the unique ability to elevate the in-ring product through his commentary. While Schiavone holds a special place in my heart for nostalgia’s sake, he doesn’t quite reach the broadcasting heights that JR does. Perhaps it was the WCW protocol, but Schiavone often seemed preoccupied with weaving together existing storylines and justifying each move performed.
JR, on the other hand, has a talent for making viewers more emotionally invested in a match by becoming emotionally invested himself. His passion is palpable, and it comes through the headset. I’m still upset that JR wasn’t on the call for Mick Foley’s big world title win on Raw—an event that more people tuned in for, including myself, thanks to Schiavone giving it away on Nitro. Today, I’m looking back at five times Jim Ross made a great wrestling moment even better because he called it, damn it.
Good god, the jobber is missing in today’s wrestling world. Don’t get me wrong—there are plenty of wrestlers who lose more than they win. But the real jobber, the guy with the worse tights, duller colors, a basic name, and no announced entrance, seems to be a thing of the past. Vince Russo probably killed it by drawing attention to it with the J.O.B. Squad. It wouldn’t be the first time Russo ruined something by making it part of the visible storyline.
No jobber was more jobby in the 90s than Barry Horowitz. He was a regular loser on Superstar tapings and only ever made it to pay-per-views in multi-man matches, like the 1996 Royal Rumble, or under a mask and gimmick (see Survivor Series 1993, where he wrestled as the Red Knight under a black mask). Horowitz stayed mired in the ranks of television losers like Reno Riggins, the Brooklyn Brawler, and Duke “The Dumpster” Droese.
However, one time in 1995, he got the W. As part of a heel character build for Bodydonna Skip (aka Chris Candido), the cocky but absent-minded Skip was pinned by jobber Horowitz. Unlike Vince Russo, Jim Ross didn’t need to mention the word “jobber” to convey the unlikelihood and significance of the moment.
Even though the match occurred on WWF Action Zone, JR didn’t hold back, putting it over like a pay-per-view moment. A shocked JR declared:
“Horowitz wins! Horowitz wins!”
Said as iconically as Harry Caray used to exclaim “Cubs win!” What was supposed to be a simple “get the best of cocky Skip” angle was superbly elevated by JR, becoming the defining moment of Horowitz’s career and, really, the most memorable jobber win in history. A great call, a great quote, rises beyond the moment and becomes metaphoric.
Enter Jeff Hardy in a ladder match for the world title against The Undertaker on Raw in 2002. After a grueling big man versus little guy match, Jeff Hardy knocked ‘Taker out with a chair shot. Then JR made his call:
“Climb the ladder, kid! Make yourself famous!”
I don’t know how these things work, but it seems there are two approaches to preparing for a match: broadcasters can brainstorm lines based on likely scenarios, or it all comes off the top of their heads. Surely, each broadcaster approaches this differently. Whether JR had this one planned or it came in the moment, he nailed it.
The exclamation is directed at Jeff Hardy, but it makes the highlight reels (and this list) for its metaphorical quality. Climb the ladder—whatever the obstacle, you climb, you make yourself famous. No doubt, it made Hardy’s rise to prominence even bigger. It made this more than just a highlight; it made it an iconic moment. Gawsh, Jim Ross, that’s good stuff.
WrestleMania XIV was the crowning moment of Stone Cold Steve Austin’s phenomenal rise. While I think the 1996 Royal Rumble is his defining moment—when he lay sprawled on the mat, motioning for the next challenger—and his match with Bret Hart, where he passed out in the Sharpshooter, is probably his best match, WrestleMania XIV was when Stone Cold was finally crowned champ.
JR’s call for the Austin Era was infused with enthusiasm, knowing that he had lobbied for WWE to sign Steve Austin. To set up the match between Austin and champion Shawn Michaels, Mike Tyson was famously brought in as a guest enforcer (to another famous JR call of “Tyson and Austin!” as the two inevitably collided on Raw).
While Tyson had been spotted in a DX shirt, he swerved at WrestleMania and went for his man, “Cold Stone,” as Tyson called him afterward. But more awesome than all that was JR’s glee when Austin finally won his world title. Once Tyson counted the three, JR elated:
“Austin is the champion! Stone Cold! Stone Cold! Stone Cold!”
What an emphatic triple stamp on one of the most singularly important moments of the Attitude Era.
Good ‘Ol JR found the perfect pitch for this one. Thanks to the legendary sit-down, kayfabe-breaking interviews Ross did with Mick Foley on Raw earlier in 1998, there was an extra layer of investment on Ross’s part in the match. This was a guy he knew personally and was rooting for. In addition, Ross was able to find the perfect space between awe and genuine concern for Foley as the crazy Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker unfolded at King of the Ring 1998.
“Good God almighty! That killed him!… As God is my witness, he is broken in half!” – JR’s first look at Mick Foley after he’s fallen off the cell
“Look at this! He’s got a smile on his face, for God’s sake! Are you kidding me? He wants to go back up!” – after Foley gets up off the stretcher, minutes after being thrown off the cell
“Enough’s enough! The poor son of a—he’s broken in half! Will somebody stop the damn match!?” – after Foley is chokeslammed through the roof of the cell
That perfect mixture of personal investment, concern, and awe moved from JR’s mouth through the screen and into the viewer. JR’s feelings became the viewer’s feelings. We’d all come to love Foley on some level; no one doubted his hardcore credentials, and we watched with concern, but not so much concern that we weren’t in awe of what might and did happen next. Jim Ross gave voice to the viewing experience perfectly.
When Ron Simmons faced Vader in August 1992 for the WCW World Title, no mention was made of the lack of black champions in wrestling history. While Bearcat Wright had won the WWA (World Wrestling Associates) World Heavyweight Title in California in August 1963 by beating Freddie Blassie, no black world champion had ever been crowned in the two biggest wrestling promotions: WWF/E and NWA/WCW. Frankly, the WWF didn’t even have a black wrestler hold a singles title until Ahmed Johnson won the Intercontinental title in 1996. None of this was spoken by Jim Ross on the broadcast.
And yet, Ross certainly brought his commentary up to the moment it deserved. When Simmons powerslammed Vader and pinned him, Jim Ross went nuts on the broadcast. While he never explicitly stated that Simmons had become the first black world champion in a major promotion, every bit of the import of that moment was in Jim Ross’s voice. He screamed into the mic:
“Simmons has won the match! Simmons is the champion! Simmons has won the world title!”
The audience, too, rose to a fever pitch, and combined with JR’s emotional call, I’d say it’s likely the most overlooked great moment in recent wrestling history. And, of course, it was made better because Jim Ross was on the call.
