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WWE announced shortly after the 2018 Royal Rumble that Jonathan Coachman would be returning to the company as a commentator, replacing Booker T on the Monday Night Raw broadcast team.
While "The Coach" is best remembered by WWE fans for his interview segments during the Attitude Era with the likes of Chris Jericho and The Rock, many will remember him as the announcer-turned-performer who competed against stars like Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, Triple H and John Cena.
Of course, he wasn't victorious against any of those current and future Hall of Famers, but he was still able to win five matches on WWE television between 2003 and 2007.
In this article, we take a trip down memory lane and look at who the latest member of Raw’s announce team defeated during his previous tenure with the company.
#5 Jerry Lawler
The 1 September 2003 episode of Monday Night Raw largely centred around the intense rivalry between Shane McMahon and the recently unmasked Kane, while Evolution battled the unlikely trio of Goldberg, Shawn Michaels and Maven in the main event.
However, before those storylines were addressed, the show actually began with a match between Jerry “The King” Lawler and WWE in-ring debutant Jonathan Coachman.
The previous week, Lawler was one second away from winning the Intercontinental title from Christian until his pinfall was broken up by “The Coach”. As a result, he was given the chance to get some revenge in a one-on-one match with his broadcast colleague.
Lawler was in charge for most of the short match, of course, but interference from Al Snow allowed Coachman to pick up a shock victory.
#4 Jerry Lawler & Jim Ross
Three weeks on from his in-ring debut, Jonathan Coachman donned his wrestling gear again to team with Al Snow against fellow announcers Jerry “The King” Lawler and Jim Ross, with the Monday Night Raw commentary duties on the line.
The match went on second-to-last at the Unforgiven 2003 pay-per-view, taking place before Goldberg vs. Triple H, and was won by “The Coach” and Snow after Chris Jericho interfered by drop-kicking “Good Ol’ JR” when the referee’s back was turned.
With fellow commentators Michael Cole and Tazz contracted to SmackDown at the time, WWE decided to have nobody at the announce desk for the duration of the eight-minute match between the four members of the broadcast team.
#3 Tajiri
Backlash 2004 saw Chris Benoit retain his World Heavyweight Championship in a 30-minute WrestleMania XX rematch against Shawn Michaels and Triple H – and it also saw Jonathan Coachman face Tajiri.
By this point, “The Coach” had been involved in five matches in his career (two wins, three losses) and he was in noticeably better shape than he was seven months earlier in his battles against Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross.
The build-up to the match centred around Tajiri spraying Green Mist in Coachman’s face on Raw, which prompted the announcer to cost “The Japanese Buzzsaw” in a match the following week against Christian.
At Backlash, Coachman was fortunate enough to have Garrison Cade by his side to throw a cheap right hand at Tajiri when the referee wasn’t looking, allowing the announcer to roll his opponent up for a shock 1-2-3 victory.
It's been so long since we've seen Tajiri. Even his return in 2017 beginning was a one-off appearance and he left right after to Japan.
#2 Rhyno & Tajiri
If 2011 was “The Summer of CM Punk” and 2015 was “The Summer of Seth Rollins”, then perhaps 2004 should be called “The Summer of Jonathan Coachman”.
The announcer-turned-performer featured in two pay-per-view matches that summer (vs. Eugene at Bad Blood and vs. Rhyno and Tajiri at Vengeance), while he also had a match against Eugene at Madison Square Garden.
On the 30 August episode of Monday Night Raw, he was back to winning ways when he teamed with villainous duo La Résistance, represented at the time by Rob Conway and Sylvain Grenier, to defeat Rhyno and Tajiri in a 3-on-2 handicap match.
#1 Jerry Lawler(again)
Six days before the 2006 Royal Rumble, Jonathan Coachman faced broadcast partner Jerry “The King” Lawler in a qualifying match to determine which of them would take part in that year’s Rumble.
Just when it looked like Lawler would get the win, five male cheerleaders made their first appearance on WWE television (yep, this was The Spirit Squad’s debut!) and provided a distraction, allowing “The Coach” to roll his opponent up for the win.
As for the Rumble match, won by entrant #2 Rey Mysterio, Coachman entered at #7 and only lasted 30 seconds before he was eliminated by Big Show.
What makes Sting special? His first AEW opponent opens up RIGHT HERE.
