Though he hasn't called a Royal Rumble match – or any match, really – for WWE in quite some time, AEW commentator Jim Ross still tunes into his former employer's programming from time to time to see how things are going, especially when one of his long-time friends, Cody Rhodes, was slated to return to the ring as a favorite to win the strap.
“I watched in and out of it. I had company here, so I didn’t dwell on it. But I did watch pieces of it,” Ross said via Fightful. “I thought it was an amazing production. It looked great, sounded good on my TV. So it was an interesting event. Certainly [I’ll] congratulate Cody Rhodes for winning it. It’s not a huge surprise, but does that matter? He was the right guy for the job. Now he’s gonna be able to help the company build their way to WrestleMania in a few weeks. So I thought it was a good show. I thought there were some moments in there. I thought it was interesting that they started out with the Royal Rumble match for the men. Didn’t have a problem with it. I thought it was an interesting way to start, and it captured my attention right off the bat.”
While Ross obviously has a soft spot for Rhodes dating back to their time in AEW, the performer who really impressed JR was the man who stood opposite him once the other 28 entrants were eliminated, GUNTHER.
“He’s a freak, and [he] had a h*ll of a night, no doubt about it,” Ross said. “Probably the best night of his career ever. It’s arguable to say that Gunther was the MVP of that show because he went well over an hour. But he’s a lean, mean fighting machine, there’s no doubt about that. So hat’s off to him as well. It’s just great to see wrestlers having the opportunity on a major stage to succeed, and their effort dictates their success. If that is true, which I believe it to be, Gunther had a h*ll of a night. He had a very successful night, even though he didn’t win. It’s one of those classic situations where the guy that goes over doesn’t always get over, and in this scenario, I fully believe that Gunther got over, even though he didn’t win the Rumble. So he’s an interesting prospect. I would expect great things for him, especially after Saturday night.”
The current holder of the Intercontinental Championship, GUNTHER set a record for the longest time in a 30-man Royal Rumble for his 70-plus minutes of action on Saturday, besting the previous high-water mark held by Rey Mysterio by a full 10 minutes. Even if GUNTHER's current spot appears more or less set for now, it's safe to say WWE isn't looking to immediately job him out of his belt anytime soon, as the leaner, meaner, don't-call-him-WALTER is just getting started.
Jim Ross explains why he doesn't love the WWE Royal Rumble.
For all of the excitement a Royal Rumble can bring, JR has never been a fan of the battle royal match type, because it's a tricky match to book, as he detailed on his podcast leading into the show.
“My issue has always been, in this respect, I’ve never been a fan of battle royals,” Ross said. “I’ve [seen] so many of them, and it’s almost sometimes to be embarrassed to be in the ring with guys that were just half-assing it. Sometimes a battle royal is a lazy night, for some talents. They only get good at the very end. I’m just not a big fan… it’s like the Royal Rumble. It’s gotta be good all the way through, and you gotta have peaks and valleys, and you gotta load it up and unload it. That’s how you get guys quote-on-quote over, as they come in and they’re devastating and they do great things. But you just can’t maintain that for an hour. You gotta have peaks and valleys. There’s gonna be slow spots. There’s dead spots in these matches because it’s inevitable. So we’ll see. The booking of a Royal Rumble is really challenging, and it was Pat Patterson’s idea to have the Royal Rumble, he created the concept, which is a tribute to Pat. He’ll always be remembered for it, as he should.”
Fortunately, the 2023 iteration of the Royal Rumble appears to have gone over well with Ross, and he thought the match had good flow, the ring albeit predictable winner, and a star-making performance by GUNTHER. All-in-all, not a bad way to spend a Saturday night.
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