Jim Ross doesn't shy away from sharing his brutally honest thoughts about WWE on his Grilling JR podcast, particularly in regards to how some of those treated him once upon a time. Over the years, Michael Cole has taken what many fans perceive to be shots at his old colleague, and JR has now opened up on his relationship with WWE's lead announcer.
"I don’t know that we’ve talked in the last several years," Ross admitted. "We do engage in text messages here or there during the holidays. He’s got a great family, sometime this month, I’m sure we’ll exchange text messages but that’s the extent of it. He’s on the road a lot, he’s got a lot of responsibilities."
"There’s that competitive nature that some people have with WWE and AEW, I don’t think Cole is in that league. I don’t think he cares," the WWE Hall of Famer continued. "I say we text each other once or twice a year and I wish it were more, but it’s just hard. I would love for things to be different and Michael and I to have conversations about things in general.
"Football, family, holidays, food — there’s a lot of things we enjoy chatting about but the opportunity is not there and we don’t create that opportunity. I wish with all the things that are different with Cole and I, I just wish that we had the opportunity today to communicate more. I’d like to let him know how much I respect what he’s done and what he’s doing. And he’s become a hell of an announcer, he’s done a hell of a job."
It's a real shame to hear about the distance between the two men, but still good to hear that they remain in touch. Ross wasn't happy with how he was treated during his final WWE run, but that's down to Vince and other executives rather than anything Cole did. It's also interesting to hear that the WWE stalwart isn't necessarily bothered by the comparisons between that company and AEW (Jim Cornette has sold Cole has never been a longtime wrestling fan, so perhaps it just doesn't mean as much).
In the same interview, Ross said he hopes to return to AEW soon and reveal that he regularly hears from Stone Cold Steve Austin and CM Punk, something that means an awful lot to him.