All Elite Wrestling Senior Advisor and Commentator “Good Ole’ J.R.” Jim Ross recently took to his Grilling JR Podcast, where he discussed the career of The Ultimate Warrior.
JR said that Warrior didn’t factor into the rest of the roster and that he always seemed to be out of place. JR also said that Warrior never seemed to be happy and that he never saw Warrior have a genuinely happy day.
This is what Jim Ross said:
“He didn’t factor into the rest of the roster, he always seemed to be out of place.” “He was not a locker room savvy guy. Sometimes it just seemed to me like [wrestling] was plan B or C for him, not what he set out to be but the route took him there. He needed the spotlight on him.”
“He never seemed happy to me, I never saw him have a genuinely happy day. People will say ‘Wait a minute JR, he headlined WrestleMania 6 with Hulk Hogan though?’ Yeah, he sure did but that doesn’t mean he’s a perfect fit, he was never a perfect fit for pro wrestling. He was a downer, he wasn’t a team player, all about himself and people knew he was a little strange.”
JR then talked about the current roster in AEW not getting to work enough and some of them making enough money where they don’t want to work anymore.
This is what Jim Ross said:
“I don’t believe a lot of the talents we have get to work enough.” “Some of them are making enough money where they don’t want to work anymore, they’re in a comfort zone which is a danger area to me.”
JR then talked about if he could have seen Sting and Warrior switching places with NWA and WWE during the 1985-86 era when they wrestled in Mid South Wrestling for about 6 months.
This is what Jim Ross said:
“No.” “I thought Warrior’s [WWE] push was aesthetic oriented, the colorful attire, the face paint was all creative, a lot of energy. I have a hard time comparing Sting and Warrior. Sting wanted to learn, he was willing to learn, he had patience, he had time for everybody, he was respectful and Warrior was none of those things. Crockett got the better deal with Sting, by far.”
JR then talked about what Vince McMahon could have done if Sting would have gone to WWE in those days as he could have been a bigger star.
This is what Jim Ross said:
“Oh hell yes.” “WWE was being viewed as the big dog in the yard and Sting kept evolving, his game got better. Over time he learned to connect all the dots, I never saw Warrior get any better after he went to WWE then he was in any other territory. Sting was a star and so god damn loyal to WCW, he could’ve went to WWE at any time and would’ve been a major star there but he’s a quality human being.”
“Sting was a perfect locker room guy and then you have Warrior who would demand his own locker room. I can’t stress this enough, smoke and mirrors and great marketing, that’s what made Ultimate Warrior a star.”
