During a recent edition of his “Grilling JR” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer and AEW commentator Jim Ross discussed Paul Heyman and their friendship.
Ross shared his thoughts on Heyman’s contributions to the wrestling business behind the scenes and on-screen as a manager. Ross says he can see how Heyman is in the conversation of being the greatest manager of all time. He said,
“We never rose to violence, but there were a lot of heart-to-heart talks after the show because he couldn’t stand that and I didn’t like doing it, but sometimes you’ve just got to put your foot down and say, ‘No, we can’t go there. Here’s where you should have cut that off, and I gave you a segway to something else, another topic, and you ignored it.
“So one thing is perhaps you’re not listening,’ which sounds very egocentric for me to say. ‘You’re not listening to me, and I’m JR. What the hell? Who do you think you are, buddy?’”
“He’s the best manager maybe ever. I can see him being compared to [Jim] Cornette. I can see Paul being compared to Bobby Heenan because of his mind, his instincts. His feel for the game is still prevalent in a major way. So he’s just absolutely brilliant. I love the fact that we got to work together, and I love the fact we maintained our friendship because it wasn’t always easy.”
