Current AEW ring announcer Justin Roberts is known for his grandiose introductions of the bigger names in the promotions he’s worked for.
During a recent appearance on the “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, Roberts recalled a time when now-former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon wanted him to tone down his introductions for several Superstars, including the Undertaker and John Cena.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On McMahon telling him to tone down introductions: “You go back to how Vince thinks vs. how I think. I got called literally out of the ring before we did the biggest Royal Rumble in history in Boston. I think he had just seen UFC, this is what I was told, that he had just seen UFC and he did not like Bruce Buffer and thought he was too over the top. So he talked to me about toning everything down. Which, once in a while I would have that conversation with him, ‘Tone it down, don’t give Sabu that big introduction, don’t give John Cena that big introduction, don’t give The Undertaker the big– And it’s like, I didn’t do it for everybody, but I did it where I needed to make something feel special. And it was always something that was built organically. The John Cena didn’t happen overnight, it was from doing it at house shows, doing it at TVs. And over time it’s just something that built up. It was a big introduction, right? It was special to John, and John was the top guy.
“And he called me into his office right before this Royal Rumble. And I go, ‘So you want me to introduce John, Undertaker and everyone the same way that I introduce everyone else?’ And he said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, ‘Okay.’ And you know, his company, it’s what he wanted.”
On trying to sneak it in leading up to WrestleManias: “So I would try to bring it out like a little bit as we got closer to a WrestleMania. Because like, The Undertaker’s introduction was special, you know? I got chewed out for introducing The Rock when it was Rock and Punk at Royal Rumble in Phoenix. You know, he’s The Rock! He’s the biggest name in entertainment and in wrestling! And I was so proud of that introduction too… I wanted to give him an introduction, and Vince didn’t like that. So yeah, I personally think for bigger events, yeah you wanna go big on those.”
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