On Monday night, Corey Graves wrote on social media, "Imagine chasing your dream. Then being TOLD (not deciding) that you’re no longer physically able to pursue your dream. Then you dedicate your life to something “dream adjacent” and being pretty fucking awesome at it. And then, when it’s time to enjoy the fruits of your labor, being told you’re not famous enough for your own job. Just in case you’ve wondered where I’ve been."
Graves was previously in the booth for WWE SmackDown, but when WWE Raw moved to Netflix, Graves moved to NXT for NXT New Year's Evil. It was not clear if the move was permanent. Michael Cole and Pat McAfee called WWE Raw while Joe Tessitore and Wade Barrett called WWE SmackDown.
Graves was not on Tuesday's NXT.
Speaking on his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross commented on Graves' situation.
“How many times has that happened to me? [Co-host Conrad Thompson says several.] Yes, and here I am, jolly, happy, healthy as an old horse, and I got nothing to bitch about. It’s just part of the…I remember this classic line from ‘The Sopranos,' where Tony was talking to his cousin Tony. Cousin Tony, he wanted to start a massage parlor, a legit therapeutic massage parlor. He just got out of prison, was trying to get his life started, but he needed some extra cash. Extra cash came in the form of a hit. He started complaining about that life, and this classic line from Tony Soprano was, ‘This is the life we chose.’ That is very synonymous with some issues in wrestling that many of us have gone through. So I feel badly that he feels like he’s been left behind, and maybe he has. Would you trade Pat McAfee and his broadcast platform for Corey Graves? I wouldn’t, to be honest with you, and Corey Graves is more learned, and has a better skillset in terms of his internal knowledge than Pat McAfee, but Pat McAfee’s got a platform that reaches from border to border. He’s got a huge footprint. I applaud Pat McAfee for his entrepreneurship and his promotional instincts. So it’s a good deal. I wish he wasn’t unhappy, I’ll say that," said Ross.
Asked if the situation could be an angle for WrestleMania, Ross replied, “I’d be surprised if that happened. The responsibilities of the broadcast team and broadcasters like Pat, who doesn’t have years of experience, he’s still getting his footing but doing a hell of a job, it’s a load that day for the announcers. It’s a crazy world, so that day is not the day you want to be adding new projects in a skillset that you’re not totally first in."
Fightful Select has more details on Graves' situation.
Elsewhere during the podcast, Ross commented on Penta's WWE debut. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
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