Jim Ross reveals the truth about his WWE firing

Jim Ross has given his take on what really happened when WWE fired him after he hosted a video game panel in 2013.

On the week of SummerSlam 2013, Jim Ross moderated a WWE 2K14 roster announcement with various WWE legends. The then-WWE commentator was suspected of being drunk during the panel, while questions were also raised about Ric Flair’s behavior. Flair ended up keeping his job in WWE, but Jim Ross was let go by the company one month later.

Speaking on this week’s episode of his Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross admitted that he had too much to drink before the panel discussion.

“Well, that was bad decisions on my part,” Jim Ross said. “‘I had a couple of drinks but I wasn’t drunk.’ That was the story – that was a lie. That was cover your a**, s***. When I got to the shoot, I was the host, moderator, whatever, and I went to the ‘green room’. The liquor was flowing like water. I thought, ‘Oh, this is gonna be interesting.’ A lot of the guys that did drink had drank too much. Naitch [Ric Flair] and I, I guess, were considered two of those guys.”

Jim Ross went on to say that the event, which can be viewed above, was badly organized. He added that he understood why WWE chose to fire him instead of someone who is regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers ever.

Please credit Grilling JR and give a H/T to SK Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

Jim Ross’ WWE return

Jim Ross commentated for various wrestling promotions between 2013 and 2017, including NJPW and World of Sport Wrestling. He then made his return to WWE in 2017 to commentate on the main event of WrestleMania 33 between Roman Reigns and The Undertaker.

After leaving WWE in March 2019, Jim Ross agreed a three-year deal with AEW to become a commentator and senior advisor for the company.