When WWF Champion/NWO founder/Kliq member Kevin Nash made the bold claim that LA Knight is nothing but a rip-off of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and/or Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, it created a clear divide among fans of professional wrestling of WWE's resident “Megastar.”

For some, the comparison was apt; Knight has a certain type of delivery that most definitely has Rocky inspirations, and when you factor in his “macho man” – not that Macho Man – attitude, it's hard not to look at the 41-year-old as a clear throwback to the Attitude Era of WWE.

And yet, is that really a bad thing? WWE has never been more popular than in the Attitude Era, and having a performer who harkens back to that vibe has clearly gotten over with more than a few fans of the promotion, with Knight himself famously noting that “nine out of ten fans” wanted him to win Money in the Bank at the O2 Arena in London.

“There’s so many different things, they start as something and completely pivot, and that’s kind of the recipe to success is adapting as you go, that, ‘Oh, wow, that didn’t work, so let’s try that,’” Jarrett said on My World via Fightful. “While I’m talking about [LA Knight], when did he start? He’s not a young guy. When he worked for [TNA], that’s six years ago, he’s 35, and they had told me, ‘Yeah, he actually was in the WWE developmental, and it didn’t work out.’ I’m like, ‘That’s interesting. Where did I miss this guy?’

“So he’s been around, and by osmosis and trial and error and sometimes the almighty word ‘timing’ doesn’t work out, sometimes it works perfect, sometimes it doesn’t work perfect at all. But to your point, absolutely, everything is inspired in a certain way. The folks that can take a little inspiration here and a little inspiration and a little inspiration there and mash it up and make it authentic to themselves, then they’re not just uber successful, but innovators, if you will. Getting into the philosophy, everything starts as a thought, and what are thoughts made of? In a lot of ways, divine inspiration, but intuitive thought, it’s all kind of what you’ve seen before, and how can I do something a little different.”

To LA's credit, the comparisons to Austin and Johnson are far from new, as he himself has suggested that he would like to get on their level at some point in the future, but Jarrett appreciates anyone who has put in the miles along the professional wrestling road to get where they want to be. After years of hard work, LA Knight deserves his flowers.

Jeff Jarrett tips his hat to LA Knight for grinding out a career.

Continuing his conversation with My World co-host Conrad Thompson, Jeff Jarrett noted that he wasn't too surprised to hear Kevin Nash comments, as the group would joke about similar topics back in the day on the road, before doubling down on his praise for LA Knight.

“Kevin, I read that, and it took me back to being in the car,” Jarrett said. “I could see Kevin Nash saying that riding down the road, and I guarantee you, if he had a couple of tall ones in him, he would shift doing impersonations, and then we would really laugh our a**es off. But hat’s off to LA. They’ve given him the platform, and when you give a guy who has, look, he’s been four, five characters on national TV, whatever it may be, but a seasoned guy versus a guy who’s got three, four, five years in the business, that’s where you can immediately tell the difference. It’s like here in Nashville, the musicians that get on stage. The guys that can really do it off the cuff, that doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time to develop that talent. So he’s been grinding for a lot of years. Congrats to a guy who has persistence, passion, and perseverance.”

After spending 20 years on the road, wrestling under monikers like Eli Drake, Slate Randell, Deuce, and Max Dupri before finally landing on the LA Knight gimmick that has made him one of WWE's top merch movers, it's safe to say the performer born Shaun Ricker has worked the road, paid his dues, and is now reaping the benefits of his success in the biggest professional wrestling promotion in the world today. While that sort of overnight success 20 years in the making can draw a hater or two, including some who are in the WWE Hall of Fame, that's just part of the game; a game currently run by LA Knight, yeah!