WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross knew his time as Head of Talent Relations could not last forever but wasn’t prepared to be replaced by John Laurinaitis.
Laurinaitis was hired by the WWF in 2001 after the demise of WCW and would replace Ross as WWE’s Head of Talent Relations in 2004.
On his “Grilling JR” podcast, Ross reflected on being replaced by ‘Johnny Ace.’ He said,
“I had originally hired Laurinaitis to be my replacement, I just wasn’t ready to be replaced at that time.
“When I got replaced in [the Talent Relations] role, … that thought came up prominently — that maybe it’s time. Maybe this is an omen. I had to look myself in the mirror and say, ‘Look, you’re not invincible. You’re not getting any younger.’ … I had to think about it in some of those terms because I was pissed off that I got shown the door.”
Laurinaitis was fired from WWE last year due to his role in the Vince McMahon hush-money scandal, a firing that JR took great pleasure in.
