Did Paul Heyman hate his WWE broadcast partner? A former member of WWE management offers surprising new intel.
During The Attitude Era, the number-one announce team in wrestling was indisputably “Good Ol’ JR” Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler on Monday nights. With few exceptions, the duo’s run is unparalleled and has become the industry standard.
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However, their tenure was hardly ever uninterrupted. For a time, Ross had to step away and leave his duties to Michael Cole while he battled Bell’s palsy. Then around a year later, it was Lawler’s turn to take a leave of absence.
Following his ex-wife Stacy “The Kat” Carter out the door after her stint in WWE ended abruptly, King left a rather large vacancy. Fortunately, someone was lying in wait to fill it. As ECW sank, its owner Paul Heyman made a gambit and jumped ship.
On March 5th, 2001, Heyman shockingly took over as the color guy on the broadcast team, which might have only been the first step in his mind. According to another famed former WWE manager, member of creative, and personality with a podcast, Heyman had greater ambitions.
Did Paul Heyman try to take Jim Ross’ job?
Dutch Mantell believes Heyman was after JR’s job, adding that the two didn’t get along and it could get heated. “Paul Heyman and Jim Ross didn’t get along behind that camera. You could tell when Jim’s temper would run a little bit short with Paul,” Mantell said on his Storytime with Dutch podcast.
“Paul didn’t give a crap and you know Paul, he could never tell what Paul was up to. I think Paul was actually trying- going after Jim’s job for a while and Paul was very good at play-by-play,” Mantell continued.
“He’s good, but play-by-play as a heel? You’re trying to get yourself and the talent over. But a play-by-play as a straight-up commentator? You’ve got to get the whole show over,” Mantell explained. He would reiterate, “Paul and Jim did have some words spoken in anger out there all the time.”
Heyman’s time in the booth came to an end in July of ‘01 at the height of the Invasion angle. Lawler was immediately reinstated and almost everything was right in the wrestling world again. “Almost” because WWE still had the Invasion to botch.
They didn’t keep anything sober or level-headed with their treatment of JR either. He would be routinely humiliated, brutalized, and kayfabe set on fire over the next few years until his release came unexpectedly in 2013.
Ross would go to Japan to ply his trade before All Elite Wrestling started and signed him in 2019. The veteran announcer, whose career spans generations and multiple territories, has stated the AEW deal will be his last.
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