Jim Ross comments on John Cena's heel turn and fans' desires to have his voice on the call.
Jim Ross' voice has been on the call of so many iconic moments in wrestling history, especially modern wrestling history. From the rise of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin to the many dastardly deeds of Triple H, JR's voice is embedded in the minds of so many wrestling fans. Therefore, it's natural that some will try to imagine what moments that don't feature JR's voice on the call would be like if Ross was there.
When John Cena turned heel at WWE Elimination Chamber 2025, fans on social media created content describing what it would have been like if Ross had been in Toronto and on the call.
On the latest episode of his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross commented on these types of videos. He says it's nice that fans connect with his brand of announcing so strongly, but he feels bad that it takes away from Michael Cole's work.
"Yeah, it's nice. I saw the same thing. It's nice. I feel bad because it takes away from Michael Cole, and that's not the objective, but everybody's got their taste. My delivery and my presentation in moments like that are different, and I don't think that you can replicate them. That's just me."
Speaking on the actual heel turn, Jim Ross says he's a fan and believes it was well-executed.
"I liked the hell out of it. I thought it was timely. I thought it made sense. I thought it added to the show. It was a jaw-dropper, to say the least. So, I had no issues with it at all. I thought it was fabulous."
When asked if a John Cena heel turn was ever discussed during his time with WWE, Ross said that many people brought up the idea, but Vince McMahon was hesitant to pull the trigger.
"A lot of people wanted it to happen, but Vince was always very, very reticent in pulling the string on that deal. One of the reasons is what you mentioned, Cena's merchandise numbers were astonishing."
Fans can read Triple H's comments on the turn here.
Fans can read The Rock's comments on the turn here.
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