Chris Jericho Talks About What Match He Can’t Watch Anymore

“What was voted the best match in Raw history by a lot of people, Jericho and Benoit vs. Triple H and Austin, so famous for being the night H tore his quad during the match, the crowd going bananas and the first time anybody had vanquished the evil Steve Austin and Triple H. It was a huge night in WWE history, a huge moment in the history of the Tag Team Championships and a huge moment in the history of my career, and I can’t ever see that match really. I can’t watch that match. I think I’ve watched it once and it’s good, it’s a great classic five star match, but it’s always tainted when I see Chris Benoit.”

The Very Latest on Justin Roberts’ WWE Release: Reportedly Seen Arguing with Cole, Ring Announce Changes Expected, Y2J Podcast

According to PWInsider.com, below are the latest updates on the WWE release of Justin Roberts:

Roberts was informed of his WWE release right after Raw last night, and he was told by WWE Exec Kevin Dunn. With Roberts gone, it is expected that Lilian Garcia will handle ring announcing for Raw and Eden might be brought in to do ring announcing for Smackdown.

There was talk amongst fans on social media last night that Roberts could be seen arguing with Michael Cole during the Randy Orton vs Dolph Ziggler match, and at one point Roberts “flipped Cole off.” Whether or not the incident was a catalyst for Roberts’ release is unknown.

Roberts will be the special guest on Chris Jericho’s “Talk is Jericho” podcast on Friday.

Batista Talks Joining Evolution, Triple H Thinking He Would Get Heat For It, Almost Being Replaced

During the second edition of his interview series on Talk is Jericho, Batista and host Chris Jericho discussed how Batista was almost replaced in Evolution, a move that would have changed wrestling forever.

Jericho and Batista were speaking about how much Randy Orton had changed over the past decade, and how instrumental Evolution was to both Orton and Batista himself. Jericho also noted that Orton had tried to start fights with him three or four times.

Batista says he was warned by Triple H ahead of forming Evolution that the two inexperienced starts would get a lot of heat for riding the coattails of Helmsley and Flair. An injury almost eliminated him from the stable altogether, as Mark Jindrak was slated to replace him.

"They were considering him replacing me when I was injured. Hunter wanted it to be the four of us, he was pretty adamant. He fought for us," Batista said of nearly being replaced.

"I get injured, and Randy (Orton) was back before I was and they wanted that fourth member," Batista said

Batista and Jericho spoke about how much the business had changed since Evolution, citing a change in Vince McMahon's demeanor. Part two of Batista's interview on Talk is Jericho can be found at this link.

Batista Talks Getting Fined 100K By WWE, Said He Knew That Things Would Never Be The Same

In the second installment of his recent appearance on Talk is Jericho, Batista and Jericho touched upon the fact that wrestlers occasionally butt heads with Vince McMahon, prompting a thorough discussion of an incident in 2008 when Batista was hit with a substantial fine by McMahon.

Jericho set up the tale, explaining that he was scheduled to go up against Batista in a cage match in Tampa, Florida with the understanding that he'd win the World Title back from Batista after having won the belt at Cyber Sunday the week before.

Batista added that he thought about in-ring storytelling in a relatively "old school" frame of mind, believing that if someone would, say, get hit over the head with a pipe, he'd be expected to bleed. Indeed, that was the agreed upon finish for the match, with Jericho garnering the win after belting Batista with a metal pipe he'd stashed atop the steel cage.

"This was a point where we weren't shedding blood any more," Batista recalled. "We were PG and that didn't make any sense to me. I just didn't want to hear that, especially when there's a title match involved."

Batista implied that he employed a blade to "shed a little blood for the business" and then added that he was also busted open "the hard way" during the match. Both men agreed that it was an exceptional match.

"I can't believe we had to deal with grief over that," said Batista.

Jericho then noted that as they came back through the curtain after the match, "there was a lot of yelling and screaming going on," ostensibly because Batista had bled during the match. He said Vince declined to discuss the matter in depth, indicating he'd address it the following week and decide on a punishment for both wrestlers. Jericho said he tried to discuss the issue with Vince in a subsequent phone call that lasted only 18 seconds and included Vince telling Jericho to "shut up" and "F off."

Batista picked up the story and said that the following Monday, Jericho and he met with McMahon and that Dean Malenko, who produced the match, and referee Mike Chioda were also present at the meeting. Vince apparently played the match back for them multiple times in slow motion and with footage from various angles to show the moment at which Batista had apparently initiated his own bloodletting. Jericho noted that he'd known through some conversations with Batista that Batista was looking to bleed in the match but he didn't know exactly what he had in mind.

"I knew we weren't supposed to do it…I knew I would get consequences but I thought I would get the consequences and I didn't think they'd be as harsh as they were," Batista said.

Jericho recalled that Vince contemplated firing Batista but felt like that would be the easy way out.

"Then he starts passing out fines," said Batista. "So my fine was $100,000…My heart dropped. I thought it would be like $25,000…When he said $100,000, I was just heartbroken. I literally think that he sucked the life out of me that day. I think that's the day that I knew things were never going to be the same."

He expressed some degree of lingering bitterness about the incident to this day, indicating that he felt Vince was unnecessarily heavy-handed in the situation.

"I did the right thing. It was good business," Batista added.

Despite having written about this story in one of his books, Jericho said he was very surprised to hear Batista's reflections on the incident because he'd never discussed the matter in detail with Jericho.

Jericho was only fined $5,000 by McMahon and Vince leveled the same fines against Malenko and Chioda. In addition to paying his own fine, Batista also paid the other fines.

Batista continued, stating that he felt like the PG Era was killing the art form of professional wrestling and that this contributed to his decision to leave WWE in 2010.

Part Two of Triple H's Interview on Chris Jericho's Podcast

Part One of Triple H's Interview on Chris Jericho's Podcast

Triple H to be Interviwed on Chris Jericho's Podcast

Chris Jericho revealed that Triple H will be appearing on his podcast this week on both Wednesday and Friday.

No WWE Guests On JR's Podcast

WWE has allowed several of their talents to appear on podcasts for Steve Austin and Chris Jericho but not Jim Ross. A fan on Twitter asked Ross about Ric Flair possibly appearing on The Ross Report and JR replied with the following:

"No. Flair's a wwe guy. WWE hasn't approved any podcast guests for me."

Batista Talks Not Being Happy With Latest WWE Return

Batista is Chris Jericho's guest on the latest episode of the Talk Is Jericho podcast, which you can listen to here. During the interview, Batista talked about his latest WWE run being "bad from the start."

"It was just bad from right off the bat," Batista admitted (props to MStarz for the transcription). "They said, 'We want you to come out and do this thing with Hunter and Steph and Randy,' and I was like, 'First night back and you can't give me five minutes in the ring by myself in front if the fans?

"I told them from the very beginning [making me a babyface] isn't going to work. They said, 'Nah, man. They love you. They love you. They miss you.' That's going to last for 30 seconds. I said, 'They want to hate me and I'm good at that.'"

Chris Jericho Reveals How His WWE Return Happened, How He Stayed Hidden In Hartford, More

Chris Jericho spoke about his return to WWE on RAW this week during his latest Talk Is Jericho podcast, which also features Vinnie Paul from Hellyeah.

Jericho said Fozzy is his priority but when there's time, when he ideas work out and everything else works out, he returns to WWE. Jericho said he's always in talks with WWE but wanted a purpose for this return. He talked with WWE earlier this year and late last year about wrestling Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania XXX but obviously that didn't work out. Jericho was also interested in working with Bray Wyatt but he was feuding with John Cena.

Jericho said he got a call a month ago and one of WWE's writers wanted to speak with him. Fozzy was planning to work a tour this summer but they didn't get on it, so he had free time. WWE mentioned working with Bray Wyatt again and Jericho was into it. He said three weeks went by and he didn't hear back from them. Jericho supplied WWE with dates he was free and finally got the call to return on Friday, just a few days before RAW.

Jericho flew into Boston on Monday to keep it a secret. He drove to Hartford and arrived around 5:30pm to the arena. He waited until fans outside of the arena left before driving down to enter the building. Jericho sat in a production bus for over 4 hours, meeting with agent Dean Malenko to go over ideas for the angle. Malenko took some of Jericho's ideas back to Vince McMahon for approval. Jericho said he then met with The Wyatt Family and The Miz to go over some things before going to the gorilla position.

Jericho said the whole deal for his return was made in about 5 minutes with Triple H on Friday.

The Miz and Chris Jericho Return on Raw

As was advertised, a former WWE Champion has just returned to Monday Night Raw. After much speculation as to who this returning Superstar would be, it was revealed to be The Miz.

In a shocking turn of events, Chris Jericho returned to WWE Monday Night Raw immediately after the return of another former WWE Champion, The Miz. Jericho interrupted The Miz's mid-ring return promo.

After Jericho disposed of The Miz, The Wyatt Family appeared out of nowhere and attacked Jericho, finishing him off with a Sister Abigail from Bray Wyatt.

The 100 Most Obsessed-Over People on the Web

George W. Bush is more popular than Obama, Beyonce beats the Pope--and the mysterious clout of professional wrestlers. The ultimate online power list. Plus see how 20,000 of the world's best known people stack up. Click here.

1. George W. Bush
17. Hulk Hogan
24. Big Show
34. John Cena
35. The Undertaker
38. Kane
47. Kurt Angle
50. The Rock
56. CM Punk
57. Bret Hart
71. Chris Jericho
73. Edge
81. Rey Mysterio
83. Rob Van Dam
86. Triple H
94. Ric Flair
100. Lance Armstrong

source: time.com

Chris Jericho Giving Fans The Chance To Pen The Foreword To His New Book

Chris Jericho is giving his fans a chance to write the foreword to his new book. He posted the following on his Facebook page:

ATTENTION ALL JERICHOHOLICS! – I want YOU to write the foreword for my next BOOK! All you have to do to win is compose up to a 1,000 word essay on why you are a fan of mine, what I’ve meant to your life, how my previous books have influenced you…basically whatever you want to write about! I’ll choose one winner and that person’s foreword will be included in my next book, due to be released in September of this year.

Email your entries to jerichoforewords@gmail.com and I’ll read them all and make my decision. The winner won’t be announced until the book is published, so it will be quite the surprise! Also make sure to include your name and where you are from. Happy writing and good luck to all of you!! (By emailing your entry you give permission for it to be used for the book. Entries may be edited and must be submitted by Feb 24, 2014.)

This Day In Wrestling History

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson makes his WWF(E) debut. At that time he was known as Rocky Maivia.
November 17, 1996

Shawn Michaels defeats Triple H, Kane, Chris Jericho, Booker T & Rob Van Dam in an Elimination Chamber to capture the World Heavyweight Title.
November 17, 2002

This was the first Elimination Chamber match and was Triple H's idea. An except from wwe.com:

There are many stipulation matches in WWE designed to intimidate, threaten and menace the Superstars chosen to compete in them — but there's only one that inspires actual terror.

Sitting in his stately office inside Titan Tower, Triple H cuts the same imposing figure now as the man who won a record four Chamber bouts in the past. "What people don't understand is the metal grating outside the ring is the same grating they make the stage with," he explains. "It's designed to support thousands of pounds, so there's no give at all. Then there are the walls themselves, which are made of thick metal chain. And at first, you think, 'Oh well, the chain moves a little bit.' But it's actually worse, because the chain shifts about an inch and a half, even though it's all connected, so it's like you're hitting a steel wall. And it's a bumpy steel wall that digs into you everywhere."

Interestingly, WWE's most hated and feared stipulation match was spawned from the mind of The Cerebral Assassin himself a decade ago. The company was looking for concepts for matches that might spin off into yearly events similar to the Royal Rumble, and The Game was ready with a winning idea.

The ambitious concept was well received, and the creative team set about turning Triple H's vision into reality. Of course, when he saw it, Triple H realized that he'd gotten far more than he had bargained for. "In typical WWE form, it was twice as big as I envisioned it and twice as elaborate," he remembers. "We don't do anything small, so I should have known better. When I stood in it for the first time, I thought, 'Jeez. Please don't tell anybody this was my idea!' "

Fans Pick Chris Jericho Over Triple H

In what has to be the largest difference in WWE.com poll history, they currently have a poll up asking fans who's better - Triple H or Chris Jericho and 98% have voted for Jericho as of this posting. Jericho responded on Twitter:

Haha OUCH! @Rubbishy_Blood: Who is better @IAmJericho or @TripleH? OMG the largest difference in #WWEPoll history pic.twitter.com/zDNf0JVsyD

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) November 2, 2013

Chris Jericho talks retirement and responds to Triple H

Chris Jericho admits to drunk-tweeting his reply to Triple H's Raw dig, offers new response

Part-time WWE star Chris Jericho admitted to drunk-tweeting when he responded to Triple H's storyline-driven dig at Edge, Rob Van Dam, and Jericho on Raw TV last month.

"The funny thing was had I not been drinking Grey Goose vodka and not been completely loaded when I heard about it, I wouldn’t had bothered twitting about it but I was like: 'Screw him, I’m going to tweet back,'" Jericho said on the Busted Open satellite radio show promoting his band "Fozzy."

Jericho's October tweet responding to Hunter labeling the trio as capable stars but not "The Guy" in WWE read: "Thing is @tripleh despite ur major push, u never were either. Good luck in ur future endeavours." Jericho added: "Time to move on guys. Bye bye @wwe! Now time for more important things...any doubt that #DayInTheLife is the best @thebeatles song ever?"

The next night, Jericho downplayed his reaction to Triple H's dig, tweeting: "No big deal. Always nice to be mentioned on Raw."

Jericho also expanded on his thoughts about Hunter's comment during the Busted Open interview.

"That’s Triple H being Triple H. It’s just the way he is and whether he believes it or not, it’s part of the show. I don’t feel that way and I never did feel that way. It’s funny throughout our careers, Triple H and I were almost at the same level. We were always the guy that worked with 'the guy.' Triple H is a huge star, one of the greatest of all time but also never really 'the guy.' Who really has been 'the guy' over the last ten years? I can think of three. Rock, Stone Cold, and John Cena. There you go."

Jim Ross Comments on Hunter's Promo

Retired former WWE announcer Jim Ross published a new blog at jrsbarbq.com offering his thoughts on Triple H's heelish potshot toward Chris Jericho, Edge, and Rob Van Dam during the final segment of Raw:

"Hunter plays the role of a villain a la a version of Mr. McMahon and is expected to verbally bash fan favorites. Surely you did not take that as being real."

Triple H's Raw promo ruffles more than a few feathers

By Scott Fishman

The last segment of Raw featured the contract signing between Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan at Hell in a Cell on Sunday.

During the proceedings Triple H delivered a promo that has gotten a mixed reaction from not only fans, but superstars themselves.

The one part of his verbal SmackDown on Daniel Bryan was putting him in the same category as Rob Van Dam, Edge and Chris Jericho as talented stars who made it, but were never "the guy" for the company. He then went on to say that if any of them had been the face of WWE years ago everyone would be working for Ted Turner.

Those words were seen as stinging jabs to some and part of the show for others. Chris Jericho was less than amused on Twitter with an initial tweet. However, he then sent another saying, “No big deal. Always nice to be mentioned on Raw.”

At the same time Edge didn't seem bothered by it saying, "I think everyone's forgets it's entertainment." RVD tweeted he had missed it, but it, "sounds strong."

Regardless on the fence you stand on, you can't deny it garnered the reaction Triple H was going for. There a lot of angry folks at him, but if there weren't he wouldn't be doing his job. In the world of sports entertainment you have to take what you see as part of a storyline. You also have to take what is seen on social media with a grain of salt. When the lines between reality and story are blurred make it that much more fun to watch.

More?

Chris Jericho's New Web Comedy Series - 'But I'm Chris Jericho!'

WWE SUPERSTAR CHRIS JERICHO RETURNS TO SCREENS IN NEW SCRIPTED COMEDY WEB SERIES BUT I'M CHRIS JERICHO!

New webisodes launch on butimchrisjericho.com and Shaw Media's Action YouTube Channel, every Tuesday, starting October 29

Bonus webisodes, behind the scenes footage and #BICJ Game available on butimchrisjericho.com

For Immediate Release

TORONTO, October 22, 2013 – He was the wrestling champion of the world, until he lost it all. Now he's starting over and is going to be the greatest actor of all time. Insight Productions, in association with Shaw Media, announce But I'm Chris Jericho!, a scripted comedy web series built around WWE superstar and multi-faceted performer Chris Jericho. Featuring 10 webisodes, the series premieres Tuesday, October 29, simultaneously on butimchrisjericho.com and Action's YouTube Channel: youtube.com/actiontv.

The series stars Chris Jericho as a fictionalized version of himself. In this tongue-in-cheek portrayal of his life, Chris is a former wrestler struggling to make it big as an actor. Despite being on top in the wrestling ring, Chris now clings to the bottom of the acting rung, and must try to contain his frustrations in the face of absurdities in the entertainment industry, as well as the ineptitude of well-intentioned supporters. Also featured in the web series is Andy Kindler (Bob's Burgers, Last Comic Standing) as Chris's bumbling agent, Phil Blank and Canadian comedy legend Scott Thompson (The Kids in the Hall) as Chris's over-the-top acting teacher, A.J. Mirkin.

More?