Jim Ross On Johnny Ace Replacing Him As WWE Head Of Talent Relations

In addition to acting as commentator of "WWE Raw," Jim Ross famously served in the role of the WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations for a number of years. However, in the early 2000s, Ross was replaced as the head of Talent Relations by wrestler John "Johnny Ace" Laurinaitis, a man that he had hired in the first place. Speaking on "Grilling JR," the AEW commentator detailed how the transition took place.

"I had originally hired Laurinaitis to be my replacement," Ross said. "I just wasn't ready to be replaced at that time." Ross spoke about how he felt after being removed from his Talent Relations role, and how deeply it affected him.

"When I got replaced in [the Talent Relations] role, ... that thought came up prominently — that maybe it's time. Maybe this is an omen," Ross stated. "I had to look myself in the mirror and say, 'Look, you're not invincible. You're not getting any younger.' ... I had to think about it in some of those terms, because I was pissed off that I got showed the door."

Speaking about Laurinaitis, Ross said that brought him on because he needed help in the Talent Relations department. The commentator saw that Lauriniaitis was doing something similar in WCW, so he recruited him.

"I wanted him to be my number two guy," Ross continued. "Vince liked him, because he was fresh. ... I wanted to help Johnny get up to speed, and then all of a sudden he supplanted me as the head of Talent Relations. I found out like everybody else. No warning, no heads-up, no nothing. That's what frustrated me." Ross now says that he doesn't regret hiring Laurinaitis, and that getting out of the Talent Relations job at that time wound up being great for him.