Jim Ross To Part Ways With WWE At End Of March, Believes He Won't Be Out Of Work Long
Good Ol' JR is moving on...
Longtime pro wrestling announcer and institution Jim Ross announced on his latest edition of The Ross Report podcast that he will be leaving WWE at the end of this month.
Ross' WWE contract expires effective March 29.
In his announcement, Ross noted that he did not expect to be unemployed long, and added, “I’m 67, I still feel I can get the job done doing wrestling play-by-play and I want to explore that opportunity and possibility. I’ll be moving on in a positive way."
Ross also added that the next month following will be, ."..very interesting in (his) life."
For the last 26 years, Ross has maintained some sort of tether with WWE, even when he's worked in other places, such as Smoky Mountain Wrestling in 1994, and New Japan Pro Wrestling in recent years.
The most prolific period of Ross' WWE run was when he became the primary voice of Raw is War, after Vince McMahon removed himself from the announce table in November 1997. For more than ten years following, Ross was the undisputed voice of WWE through his Monday night placement, before swapping places with SmackDown announcer Michael Cole in June 2008.
Ross' last appearance on a WWE program was as part of the Kickoff panel at Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia last April.
Ross' WWE contract expires effective March 29.
In his announcement, Ross noted that he did not expect to be unemployed long, and added, “I’m 67, I still feel I can get the job done doing wrestling play-by-play and I want to explore that opportunity and possibility. I’ll be moving on in a positive way."
Ross also added that the next month following will be, ."..very interesting in (his) life."
For the last 26 years, Ross has maintained some sort of tether with WWE, even when he's worked in other places, such as Smoky Mountain Wrestling in 1994, and New Japan Pro Wrestling in recent years.
The most prolific period of Ross' WWE run was when he became the primary voice of Raw is War, after Vince McMahon removed himself from the announce table in November 1997. For more than ten years following, Ross was the undisputed voice of WWE through his Monday night placement, before swapping places with SmackDown announcer Michael Cole in June 2008.
Ross' last appearance on a WWE program was as part of the Kickoff panel at Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia last April.
Written by Justin Henry
In addition to writing lists and commentaries for Cultaholic, Justin is also a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine, and is co-author of the WWE-related book Titan Screwed: Lost Smiles, Stunners, and Screwjobs.