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WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has worked alongside some of the biggest legends of the wrestling business, but he was infuriated when backstage politics got in the way of potentially one of the biggest matches of the early 2000s. The match in question involved the legendary Hulk Hogan and Brock Lesnar.
The AEW commentator recently sat down with Conrad Thompson to discuss WWE Survivor Series 2002 on his podcast, Grilling JR. That night, WWE Champion Brock Lesnar was allegedly supposed to defend his title against Hulk Hogan. However, after losing a singles match against The Beast in August 2002, The Hulkster seemingly didn't want to put the young star over again.
Jim Ross expressed anger over Hogan refusing to lose to Lesnar, pointing out that a loss wouldn't have hurt the legendary star at that stage of his career:
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"See there? Really? You're s***ting me; you're f***ing Hulk Hogan," said Ross. "You're over; you're gonna be over for eternity and beyond. And in three or four days, a normal dude is gonna forget, really, it's not gonna become a big issue whatsoever about who won and who lost – especially who lost." (4:03 - 4:22)
Ross further claimed that it may have been a good thing the match didn't happen, as he never liked the idea of putting Hogan against Lesnar:
"Embellish the winner and all that good stuff, but I don't know, I never had a good feeling about that pairing. It might have been a blessing in disguise that the match didn't happen." (4:23 - 4:37)
Conrad Thompson went on to mention that Hogan was replaced with Big Show, who defeated Lesnar via dirty methods after Paul Heyman turned on The Beast.
Jim Ross gives major health update ahead of AEW Revolution
Legendary commentator Jim Ross has been struggling with health issues over the last couple of years. The WWE Hall of Famer's battle with skin cancer has limited his appearances with All Elite Wrestling. However, he recently had a positive update ahead of the historic 2024 edition of AEW Revolution.
Ross previously confirmed that he'd been given the green light by Tony Khan to sit at the commentary desk for Sting's final match at the pay-per-view on March 3. With only a couple of weeks left until the big event, JR took to X to announce that he was out of the rehab facility and recovering well:
Jim Ross underwent surgery on his hip as part of his cancer treatment. Although he's currently having to use a cane to get around, it looks like the legendary commentator will be able to fulfill his duties at AEW Revolution 2024.
Do you think Jim Ross is the greatest commentator in wrestling history? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below!
When using quotes from this article, please credit Grilling JR and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.
