Subscribe
Follow Us
Former WWE/AEW star Chris Jericho is old.
Years removed from running an angle centered around no longer being in the “key demo,” fiesty fans beg “The Nueve” to retire on the regular during his in-ring appearances, and his longevity has transformed from an asset to a liability as a result as a result.
Need proof? Well look no further than recent comments from Hulk Hogan on The Pat McAfee Show, where the NWO founder sent strays at his apparent friend for being an old man.
“No, bro. A lot of the guys don't like me, but I got respect for them. I understand, they're going to go through a period…perfect example; when I was working at WCW, there was a whole group of young guys, who are all my friends now. Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, a whole bunch of young guys, that where they didn't want anybody in the business over 40,” Hogan declared via Fightful.
“I love Chris Jericho. How old is Jericho now? He's one of my favorite friends. Things will change, but they didn't understand at the time, ‘Hogan is the oldest one, let's get rid of him.' There was a lot of that going on back then. The thing is, to get rid of me, I was a star in the 80s. Here goes the ego. To get rid of me, I should have been gone in the 90s. They had 10 years to replace me and they didn't. So, I was a star in the 90s. When that didn't happen, guess what happened, I still rolled in the 2000s.”
Goodness, if Jericho and Hogan were friends before, I don't know if they still are now, as that came out of the blue.
Chris Jericho is unphased by “please retire” chants
Speaking of crowds begging Jericho to retire during his AEW segments, “Le Champion” discussed his reactions from fans in an appearance on Insight with Chris VanVliet, noting that he doesn't take it to heart, as it's the opinions of his peers that he holds above all others
“No, I don't take it personally. Nobody who really knows me that says that stuff. And probably, if I saw them on the street they'd probably say hi,” Jericho noted via Wrestle Zone. “Whenever I do a convention or something like that, my lines are down the street. That's not from an egotistical standpoint, but I've been doing this a long time, and a lot of people have great memories from the different eras that I've been in.”
While Jericho's current schtick has rubbed some fans the wrong way, with a portion of that group using those feelings as a way to have some fun at his expense at shows, when he eventually does retire, those same fans will have to look at his career on a more macro level. From Corazón de León, to Y2J, the List of Jericho, the Inner Circle, and yes, even the “Learning Tree,” Jericho has turned in a Hall of Fame-caliber career and will earn his flowers as a result.
