WWE Hall Of Famer Ted DiBiase Talks About Former Colleague Virgil, AKA Michael Jones

It was announced yesterday that former WWE and WCW star Michael Jones, known in the business as Virgil, Vincent, and Soul Train Jones, has died at the age of 61. One of the figures in wrestling that Jones was most closely associated with was Ted DiBiase, to whom Virgil was an onscreen assistant and bodyguard for several years. Speaking on "Busted Open Radio," DiBiase offered his thoughts on Jones' career.

"The way that Vince [McMahon] laid it out was the biggest point," DiBiase said. "He made Virgil understand what his job was and he did it very well. ... It wasn't that he did a whole lot but [he had] presence and the fact that he was this great, big, muscled-up guy."

In DiBiase's eyes, one of Jones' better traits as a performer was his dedication to maintaining his look. "The Million Dollar Man" also noted that the culmination of the relationship between himself and Virgil, when Virgil finally turned on DiBiase, was an "awesome" moment in wrestling. However, DiBiase also reiterated that he didn't think highly of Virgil's wrestling talent.

"The reality is: Virgil was a great guy but he wasn't really a great wrestler," DiBiase continued. "If he'd have had a little more wrestling talent, we could've got a little more out of it, but what we got out of it was great."

Recalling the WWE SummerSlam bout that saw Virgil defeat DiBiase for the Million Dollar Championship, DiBiase said he had to work very hard to have a good match. He went on to state again that Jones was a nice person and, despite not seeing him a lot over the years, he will miss him. The WWE Hall of Famer relayed a conversation with Jones at a comic convention where DiBiase invited Jones to sit with him any time they appeared at a convention together.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.