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Ah, it's here, it's finally here: AEW All In at Wembley Stadium.
With nine matches on the main card plus two more loaded efforts on Zero Hour to help fill out the afternoon for fans in London, fans of professional wrestling will be treated to a show absolutely filled to the gills with championship implications, grudge match feuds, and what could be the final match of the “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson, who is slated for the main event of the show.
And who, you may wonder, will be calling the match? Now that would be WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross, who has been on and off of AEW programming for months now due to a list of health issues.
While Ross is excited to call the action in the main event of the show, the moment will be bittersweet for the long-time voice of wrestling, as he knows it could be one of his last chances to call a match in front of 50,000 screaming fans.
“I’m looking forward to Bryan Danielson challenging Swerve Strickland for the AEW Title. I’m sure it’s gonna go on last. Where else would it go? But I’m looking forward to that because I’m calling it. I think that’s the only match I’m calling is that main event. But there are a lot of main-event level matches booked. Loaded card. There’s a lot of talent [on the graphic]. I’m excited about that,” Ross explained via Fightful.
“I gotta be honest about my future. At my age, through health concerns that are being addressed, and they’re getting better, by the way, I don’t know how many more great opportunities like this that I’ll have to do what I love doing in front of 50,000. Physically, I got plenty, but I don’t know. Mother Nature has her own way of doing business, so I’m gonna make the most of this opportunity, and I look at it as a genuine opportunity for a veteran like me to be able to what he does and go call that one massive match that is so important to both the talents involved. I’m very excited and honored about the opportunity.
“Looking forward to this weekend. It’s a bucket list weekend for me, and it could not come quick enough. Let’s have a h*ll of a show, a h*ll of a weekend, and have fun. It’s all about having fun. This s**t ain’t rocket science. Come on, pro wrestling, enjoy it.”
As unfortunate as it may be for JR to admit, his own run through professional wrestling is likely coming to a rapid end, with the potential for his own grand farewell in the vein of the “American Dragon” or John Cena later this year. Still, at 72, he still, by his own admission, has a few more good calls left in him before he calls it a career, including in the main event of All In, where his signature drawl will surely add color to one of the most important matches in AEW history.
Jim Ross has been thinking about his end in AEW for months
While Ross declaring that his All In appearance may be his final chance to do his thing in front of a stadium filled with fans has some in his feelings, this isn't the first time he's discussed the prospects of his commentary career coming to an end, with good old JR telling fans on his podcast, Grilling JR, that 2024 would likely be his final year on the mic back in March.
“I think so. It's realistic to think that. I'm 72 years old, I feel good, I get healthier every day, which is great, but I have to think realistically this could be my last year and more than likely will. It's to be determined. That's between me, my health, and Tony Khan,” Ross explained via Fightful.
“Right now it's a good plan because I'm essentially working, as I understand, pay-per-views only. That's where you'll find me, as the plan goes, as we speak. As we know, in pro wrestling, things change and could be different, but I don't think so with this occasion. I think it's what I'll be doing, and that's fine with me. I get to go to big shows, call big matches on big shows. Tony Khan has a good feel for what he'd like me to do, and my skill set. Right now, my situation is, I'm going to be married to the pay-per-views. That's good. Maybe it'll help the buy rates a bit. Storytelling will be a little sounder and different.”
While JR has earned some work in AEW outside of the Pay-Per-Views, with the WWE Hall of Famer having sitdown interviews with Danielson and Strickland ahead of All In, for the most part, he's been tasked with using his iconic voice to add drama to some of the promotion's most important matches. At All In, it's safe to say he will do just that.
