WWE Hall of Famer says wrestlers must not "wh*re" out iconic move
A legendary commentator and WWE Hall of Famer has expressed his opinion on a historic wrestling move being overused and diminished in the modern era.
Jim Ross is widely considered one of the best announcers that pro wrestling has ever seen. Throughout his career spanning over 30 years, JR has worked for various promotions like WWE, NJPW, and the independent circuit. He spent the majority of his career in WWE and was also inducted into the company's Hall of Fame in 2007. He is currently signed with AEW.
Speaking on his Podcast Grilling JR, Jim Ross expressed his displeasure about the DDT being used as a transitional spot.
The WWE Hall of Famer said that DDT is getting so overused by wrestlers in a meaningless way that it has no excitement left anymore, and therefore, it should be banned for most except for some select guys.
“I agree that the transition spot bullsh*t is true. I also believe that if we were doing our correct due diligence, that there were certain moves that would be banned except for certain guys. Everybody can’t use the DDT because they’re just going to wh*re it out, prostitute it out as, you know, a transitional thing. Meaningless. It has no pop."
JR remembered the days when the DDT was a killer finishing move, and everybody loved it. The legendary announcer added that he does not like the strategy of using the DDT as a transitional move, i.e. to get to the next spot rather than a finishing move. He said:
"So I told somebody that one time not that long ago, maybe six months ago in AEW. I said, ‘You can’t beat anybody with a DDT, or you haven’t. Is that because you don’t do it well, or what is the reason? Because it’s the same move, looks the same, everything’s the same, and it used to be a killer and everybody used to be in awe of it. Now, talented guys like you can’t even beat anybody with it. Explain that to me so I can understand how to explain it on television.’ They couldn’t. It’s just a spot to get them to the next spot and that’s not a good strategy.” (H/t : PW Mania)
Jim Ross is right in his observation that due to its overuse, DDT does not get a major pop when delivered, despite being highly effective. Today only a few old-school wrestlers, like WWE Superstar Randy Orton, succeed in getting a crowd reaction out of a DDT.
WWE veteran Jim Ross detailed his visit to the emergency room
On the same podcast, Jim Ross spoke about a recent visit to the emergency room. The 71-year-old WWE veteran detailed that his visit to the ER was due to the redness in his wounded leg.
As he recently fought off skin cancer, he was extra cautious about the condition. However, he was told by the doctors that it was nothing serious. He said:
“I had to go the emergency room this morning because I was concerned that the redness in my wounded leg was moving and I’ve been warned about that, that, you know, you don’t want to see this thing get out control. If you see it moves over past a certain spot on your leg, you need to go to the emergency room right away and have them look at it, and I did. They looked at it and they did nothing. It didn’t need anything." (H/t : PW Mania)
Jim Ross is currently out of action due to multiple health issues. However, he wants to return before the AEW All-In pay-per-view at Wembley Stadium in the UK on August 27.