Great day in Oklahoma, bright sunshine, weather in the 80's and the OKC Thunder begin their NBA Championship series with the Miami Heat tonight. WWEShop is still offering 25% off JR's products at http://www/wweshop.com/Category/JimRoss. Let's start the grill....
Random Thoughts on things hither and yon:
Three hour TV shows are daunting and must be approached with extensive, long term planning and preparation. I enjoyed many elements of Monday Night Raw but watching ANY TV show for three hours isn't easy for me.
Hopefully, three hour Monday Night Raw's will provide more multiple segment wrestling matches and not more talk. Yep, old school guy here...I like the wrestling, drama, athleticism, and personal issues better than most talk.
Don't get me wrong, a focused, passionate, entertaining in ring promo that engages the live audience and takes us fans on a ride and closer to the talent's intended destination is still money. Unfortunately, an adlibbed, spontaneous promo is becoming a lost art.
Huge night for AJ who I thought was one of the standouts of the night in Hartford. Her TV persona is one of the more intriguing ones on WWE programming and AJ, for my money, is the most interesting female in WWE at this time.
@HeelZiggler aka Dolph Ziggler had a significant night. Opportunity knocks for Ziggler and I hope that he capitalizes on it. I've long been an advocate of Ziggler's and have felt that he's deserving of main event opportunities. I hope Ziggler and Sheamus, another one of my favorites, blow the PPV up on Sunday. That's how you don't get put on ignore...steal the show.
It's all about maximizing those minutes and seizing the moment when opportunity knocks.
Ziggler and Christian had a helluva outing in the waning moments of the Fatal Fourway. @Christian4Peeps is vastly underrated by some who aren't as smart as they perceive that they actually are.
Loved the return of Vader on Raw. Leon White aka Vader has lost a bunch of weight after getting north or the 400 pound mark and looked to be 330ish the last time that I saw him which was down in Tampa a few weeks ago. Vader's son is 'Jake Carter' who is one half of the Florida Tag Team Champions along with Cory Graves.
For those asking I have no idea if Vader's appearance is a one off or if he will be back occasionally. I can't see him in full time but, again, I don't know.
Big Show showed amazing restraint listening to John Cena verbally brow beat the World's Largest Athlete before physicality broke out. I'd expect that the newly minted, giant sized villain will be particularly impressive come No Way Out Sunday on PPV.
'Jim Ross' Trending on Twitter during Raw was a surprise. The Hornswoggle/Mr. McMahon skit impersonating yours truly must have struck a nerve with some folks. The Boss and 'Swoggle made for a comedic pair. Sell 'da Sauce!
By the way, you can follow me on Twitter @JRsBBQ.
This just in....several items of JR's products are currently out of stock at WWEShop due to the heavy increase in sales/orders. Fresh inventory is in route and it will be business as usual in a mere matter of days. Order yours at http://www.wweshop.com/Category/JimRoss. I apologize for any inconvenience as there is no excuse for running out of inventory this time of the year, or anytime for that matter, including it being Father's Day upcoming.
The 1000 episode of Raw is Monday July 23 in St. Louis and I'd expect that the fans in attendance and watching at home will enjoy many nostalgic and surprising moments. I'm asked daily if I'm going to be there and I can only answer that if invited that I will certainly attend. My best days in WWE were sitting at ringside for Monday Night Raw during some of the most challenging and crucial times WWE ever experienced. Loved those days and consider them the best days of my career...so far. I'm only hoping that the fans in St. Louis pack the place.
The FCW tryout camp last week was really a positive experience for me and I'm anxious to see who out of that group of 20 something athletes got offers. I saw a handful of individuals who I think just might have something special. No one can say for sure until each athlete begins training.
Looking forward to heading to Orlando this week for the NXT taping at Full Sail University on Thursday evening. I expect a faster paced, more audience friendly taping with some great action Thursday night. I love the atmosphere there and the passion that the talents bring to Full Sail as the rebranding of NXT continues. If you can join us, I think that you will have a great time.
Wish my pal John Layfield aka JBL @jclayfield the very best of luck in his mountain climbing challenge that starts in a matter of days in Russia. John and I have often talked about how we 'think' that we would have kicked ass had we ever worked regularly together at the announce table. John's work with at risk kids in Bermuda is heartwarming. JBL is a guy who reinvented himself multiple times in WWE and his athletic competitive spirit pushed him to become one of the best performers ever in WWE. A true success story and one of my luckiest hires. When one hires highly motivated, extroverted, talented jocks, often times the results are favorable for all involved.
Off topic...but steel cage matches were one can win via escaping the cage is akin to calling grilling "BBQ'ing." It's somewhat close but not actually the real deal....in one guy's opinion.
I thought that @JerryLawler and @MichaelCole both had solid nights at the announce table on Raw in Hartford. Folks don't realize how hard it is to navigate a live, three hour TV show with commercials. Better them than me unless there was a porta potty nearby.
King's Domino's Pizza was delivered backstage last night and apparently @wwejoshmathews ate it. Josh is a big JR's Beef Jerky fan. The Domino's thing is more good product placement by WWE. Smart marketing by Domino's.
Wife Jan made some badass, egg salad a day or so ago using JR's All Purpose Seasoning and Main Event Mustard. Couldn't sit still and eat it. Last night it was grilled Salmon with a JR's Original BBQ Sauce glaze.
Q&A's are updated on this website that is the best kept secret on the internet.
Getting ready to do some more writing for WWE.com. I kid them but good luck in finding my passages on the Classics section. Seriously, I enjoy writing missives for WWE.com.
Thanks for stopping by.
Boomer Sooner!
J.R.