AEW Star Jeff Jarrett Discusses The Goal Of Pro Wrestling
AEW star and WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrett has detailed what, he believes, is the true goal of pro wrestling.
In a recent episode of his "My World" podcast, the veteran star delved into the details of achieving success in pro wrestling. He also shared an anecdote about a time when Stone Cold Steve Austin was angry with him for something he said in a promo.
"The old adage, 'always punch up,' I'm a big believer in that. But I also think no matter where you are at, whether you're the number one brand or the number two brand, whatever it may be, I think the goal of professional wrestling is to blur the lines. Always," declared Jarrett.
The legendary star explained simply that the ultimate objective of pro wrestling is the suspension of disbelief. He believes that to have a long career, it's key to make the audience believe that what goes on in the ring is real.
"It's like the art of truly the essence of what we do, sometimes gets completely lost in the most simplistic things. I can hear my old man in my ear or Dutch [Mantel] in my ear, it's like, hey guys the art of this is to suspend this belief, to make it look real. You can't legitimately beat the crap out of each other or yourself night after night or you don't have a career, you don't have longevity," said the Hall of Famer.
Jarrett recalls Steve Austin's furious reaction to his promo
Jeff Jarrett then discussed the importance of promos and blurring the lines between kayfabe and reality. He recalled an infamous promo that he directed at Stone Cold Steve Austin back in 1997 that blurred those lines, which legitimately didn't go down well with "The Texas Rattlesnake."
"When I went back to the WWF — and look, you know, there was so much debate and it set a lightning rod and I got to go out and do Stone Cold's show, we had our chats and all that, but he was furious that night, when I took, as a character, but [in reality] that's really Jeff talking, [saying] Stone Cold's being blasphemous," recalled Jarrett. "I'm a heel saying that and this is a business. It was scripted for me to bring up Austin first, Brett second, and I think Shawn third or something like that. I said, 'No, Austin's red hot, I'm saving him for last and go home,' because that's kind of the cadence in the promo."
Jarrett's controversial promo resulted in Austin refusing to work with the Hall of Famer, with them never facing each other in a singles match in WWE. The AEW star revealed during an appearance on Austin's show that their disliking each other is untrue. The promo in question happened on an episode of "Raw" in October 1997, where Jarrett took shots at Austin, Vince McMahon, and Eric Bischoff, calling Austin's gimmick blasphemous.