Jim Ross believes Paul Heyman belongs in the WWE Hall of Fame and hopes he gets the nod in Philadelphia.
Paul Heyman has often credited Jim Ross as a mentor. Heyman once stated that he learned more about the performance and how to be a manager by being the color commentator to Jim Ross' play-by-play announcer in WCW. Through the years, Ross and Heyman have had their ups and downs, as Ross has admitted that sometimes Heyman's abrasiveness would get under his skin. Still, Ross has a lot of love for Paul and says he will always root for him.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Grillin' JR podcast, Ross answered a question regarding Paul Heyman potentially being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2024 when WrestleMania takes over the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Ross admits that no matter where Paul gets inducted, it will be a successful induction because of how entertaining Paul Heyman can be while giving his speech. Still, Ross understands the sentimentality of potential Paul Heyman induction in Philadelphia as it is the birthplace of Heyman's ECW.
"Any time is a good time for Paul Heyman to be inducted because he certainly earned those accolades. I have heard no talk about that. It's an interesting question, and it certainly could happen. Heyman is Hall of Fame-bound. There's no doubt about that. But I don't know what the game plan is there. They seem to keep that the Hall of Fame thing kind of under wraps, which I think is great," said JR, who went into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007. "It's just hard to say who's gonna go where when you hear all these rumors, but Heyman deserves to go in anybody's Hall of Fame. Whether it be whether it happens in Philadelphia, it'd be fine with me. I just don't know. I don't know the answer to that, I wish I did, but he's deserving, and it wouldn't shock me if they did it in Philadelphia. So we'll see. I always wish good for Heyman, even though it can be a pain in the ass sometimes."
Conrad Thompson would ask if there are any other ECW wrestlers that Jim Ross believes are deserving of a potential nod by WWE in Philadelphia. Ross noted that of the ECW alumni not yet inducted, he would like to see Taz go into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Then, he returned his attention to Paul Heyman.
"As far as Paul Heyman is concerned, he could go in any time, and it would work. So, fingers crossed for Paul. Hopefully, he gets in, and it'll be a fun thing for him, and the audience in Philadelphia would be entertained. He'd have a great speech, so we will see how it all works out," said Ross.
This year's WWE Hall of Fame class was smaller than traditional classes. Jim Ross noted that he likes the idea of smaller Hall of Fame classes because he believes it keeps things more prestigious, similar to how championship belts should be kept prestigious.
Recently, Tommy Dreamer, arguably the heart and soul of ECW, noted that he would appreciate being inducted into the Hall of Fame in Philadelphia. Read more here.
Elsewhere on this podcast, Ross spoke about Cody Rhodes potentially dealing with his brother Dustin in the future. Read more here.
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