As
previously noted, current IWGP Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho was recently
a guest on The Jim Ross Report with WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross. Among many other
things, Jericho talked about his upcoming Rock 'N' Wrestling Rager At Sea, how
difficult it was to get NJPW, Impact Wrestling, and Ring Of Honor to work together
on the project, and what he makes of the joint ROH/NJPW G1 Supercard event at
Madison Square Garden.
According
to Jericho, he approached WWE with his idea for the cruise first, as he imagined
the cruise hosting NXT initially. Apparently, ROH accepted his offer 10 minutes
after WWE passed on the idea.
"I
did offer this to WWE at first." Jericho explained, "my vision at first
was to do NXT, but pretty much knowing that they'd probably say, 'no' because
we know if Vince [McMahon] wants to do a cruise, he doesn't need Chris Jericho
to do a cruise, he'll do it himself. But, I wanted at least to do my due diligence
and give them the offer and the courtesy, which I did. And then, when it came
back that they decided not to go for it, I think Ring Of Honor agreed 10 minutes
later."
During
the interview, Jericho stated that his close personal friend, Don Callis, who
is also a commentator for NJPW and an executive for Impact, pitched him the idea
of having ROH versus Impact on the Jericruise. The Fozzy frontman claimed that
getting the different promotions to work together was easier than he thought,
though none of it would have come together if he was not contracted to NJPW at
present.
"It's
interesting because it's a lot easier than I expected and I think a lot of it
is because I'm in New Japan now." Jericho continued, "and, once again,
[Ross] know[s] me, and I'm always thinking. And don't think that wasn't one of
the ideas I had when I decided to sign with New Japan. Yes, it was a big match,
Jericho versus [Kenny] Omega, but also, now I can get close to these guys and
see, kind of, what they're all about. Alpha Club versus Bullet Club never would
have happened if I wasn't working in New Japan and my relationship with The Young
Bucks, and with Kenny Omega, and, of course, with Cody who I've known for years.
"The
whole Ring Of Honor/Impact thing, it actually came from an idea from Don Callis,
who kind of called me and pitched me the idea. And I said, 'well, I'm not sure
if they'll go for it, if it'll work, but I'll give it a try.' It really didn't
take too long because what I've noticed, and [Ross] said this to me months ago,
Jim, when I had [him] as the host and I said, 'if 'The King' wants to come, can
I make you guys co-hosts?' and [Ross] said, 'you do what you want - you're the
booker.' And because I'm the 'booker', I'm basically saying to Ring Of Honor,
'this is my cruise, I'm paying you X amount of dollars to be here, and I want
a couple of Impact/Ring Of Honor matches, so let's ditch the bulls--t politics
and let's just make it happen.' And I think because I have a pretty good reputation
and I'm still involved at a high level, but they said, 'do you know what? Let's
give it a shot. Let's hear what he has to say,' and I know how companies work,
who's going to go over and who's not going to go over, who's going to look good
and who's not going to look good, and kind of smooth over any issues amongst the
brass because I still understand… [Ross] know[s] how it is, man. [He has]
done the same thing for years. You've got to smooth out everybody's ego and make
everybody think they've got one over on the other guy."
In
Jericho's view, smaller promotions should work together to keep their buzz going.
"The
[pro wrestling] business is so healthy right now." Jericho added, "there
are so many great guys out there outside of the WWE system and there [are] a lot
of opportunities for guys to make money, which is great, but let's not kid ourselves.
WWE is still the A1 juggernaut. You cannot beat it. You won't beat it. You'll
never beat it. So if that's the case, then why no do what New Japan did years
ago? It was always All Japan versus New Japan, Tokyo Dome matches and Sumo Arena
matches, going all the way back to [Giant] Baba and [Antonio] Inoki. They realized
if they work 'together', they could really do some great business. I think if
you're working outside of the Vince [McMahon] universe, why not band together?
Like Ring Of Honor, or Impact, or New Japan, or PROGRESS, or whoever you want
to throw in the mix, will never be bigger than WWE, so why not have a couple of
special matches when you're working together to continue the buzz?"
In
Jericho's estimation, the NJPW/ROH Madison Square Garden event could not have
happened 10 or 15 years ago. Jericho went on to hypothesize that WWE Chairman
Vince McMahon is probably glad that the pro wrestling business is thriving right
now.
"It
is a ballsy deal and that couldn't have happened 10 years ago [or] 15 years ago.
And I honestly think… I've been around 30 years and [Ross] [has] been around
even longer than that. I think the [pro wrestling] business is healthier, maybe
not bigger, but healthier that it [has] ever been and that's exciting. I bet you,
even deep down inside even Vince would say, 'okay, this is good.' This is good
for business because it makes everybody work a little bit harder, it gives the
fans more options, it gives the [performers] more options. It makes the business
healthier overall."
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If you use any of the quotes from this article, please credit The Jim Ross Report
with an H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
