Jim Ross on Nakamura, “Woken” Matt, Vince McMahon, & Indie Free Agents

Recent episode of the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast show had Jim Ross as the guest discussing Ross’ thoughts on Shinsuke Nakamura and “Woken” Matt Hardy, talent developing bonds with Vince McMahon, and who he would sign from the indies to be in the WWE.

On the topic of Shinsuke Nakamura on Smackdown, Ross stated the biggest problem is the WWE has not done a good job showcasing during matches why Nakamura is meant to be special and a big star.

“It’s bell to bell, we are lacking what we know is there, we are not getting. I would love to see him return to that. Remember the match where he finally squared off with AJ, that’s your match and maybe AJ Is the best in the world. I got to call a match or two of theirs and they were unbelievable. I understand Kenny Omega who WWE I am sure would love to sig. He has proven he is sound and connects with an audience, he will want to get there some day because the older you get, you can’t work that crazy style with multiple big bumps per match and they do a lot of bumps on the apron which is very dangerous. Omega and Okada had three great matches this year but I thought that the Nakamura/AJ matches that I called were up there with them so it’s subjective right.”

On the topic of “Woken” Matt Hardy, Ross stated he likes the gimmick but also knows Matt only has one real chance to make it successful in the WWE.

“Matt has been around long enough to know where opportunities come and how fleeting they can be. He has one chance to make ‘Woken’ Matt Hardy work because it won’t get a second reboot, I like the persona, it feels organic and it’s interesting.”

On the topic of WWE talent bonding with Vince McMahon, Ross believes it is very important for younger stars to develop a strong working bond with Vince even if it seems intimidating at first. He also believes younger stars need to keep a competitive mindset regardless of their spot on the roster in order to be successful in the WWE.

Sam Roberts – “I know you’re not plugged in to the everyday, but based on what you saw at WrestleMania, what you see now, is that still accurate advice, can a young guy still establish that relationship?”

Jim Ross – “I think Vince would be very adamant by saying yes, are those opportunities every day and easy to attain, probably not because of the work load, but I don’t believe and he shouldn’t, let go of his relationship with the talent. Sometimes it’s intimidating for them.”

Sam Roberts – “There’s also that feeling of I can’t believe I am here, if I keep to myself nobody will notice me and they won’t throw me out the door, but that’s not a great strategy.”

Jim Ross – “That isn’t a great strategy and it’s also not good for the locker room. The one thing that happened when we signed all those guys in the Attitude Era, we had a very competitive group, they all wanted to be the top dog. I booked Austin in a tag match once at Vince’s suggestion right before intermission to give him a break before TV. I got a call from the agent who had Austin and I figured out, A) he doesn’t like tag matches and B) he couldn’t figure out why he wasn’t going on last. I said, that tag match would give him a break and going on before the intermission would get you on the road earlier to get to Raw. He gave me a speech about how he had worked his whole life for this to be a top guy and that top guys go on last and that is what top guys do, that was him. That was the way some talents were in that word, so I un-booked the tag and I put him on last.”

When asked who currently from the indies he would want to sign to the WWE, Ross mentioned Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega, Okada, Cody Rhodes, and The Young Bucks as his top choices. He also mentioned signing CM Punk with the idea to have his official return occur at Wrestlemania.

“I am going to certainly work out a way to bring Chris Jericho back, I am looking at Kenny Omega and finding the interest out from Okada, he is a good looking young man, he’s really good. I would certainly welcome Cody Rhodes with open arms and Young Bucks because I like those kids, as many shirts as they are selling now, get under that WWE umbrella and see how many you sell. I would try to figure out a way if there is one more run in CM Punk, and one more run means one WrestleMania, the only other way I would do him is have him return at WrestleMania and that way there is no pressure on anybody. ”