Jim Ross has thanked all of the fans for their well wishes.
Following a lengthy absence to allow his leg to heal, the legendary announcer made his return to TV on the December 20th edition of AEW Dynamite. Receiving a very warm welcome from his hometown Oklahoma crowd, Ross would call the action in the main event match that saw Jay White defeat Jon Moxley.
Speaking on the Grilling JR podcast, Ross described how the return came together, noting that the original plan was not for him to be on Dynamite but the idea organically grew into the appearance:
“I knew when Oklahoma City was booked that I would go to the show if I was healing up and felt well enough because I would be here for the holidays for my grandkids and my daughters,” he said. “I just sent out a tweet, casually saying, ‘I look forward to seeing all the guys’ because I was just going to do a little drive-by in the afternoon and say hello to everybody, which I was perfectly fine doing. Then, it kind of grew into a booking idea, apparently. The response on social media, on Twitter especially, was overwhelming, and that influences a lot of people and their decision-making sometimes. So all of a sudden, it became a thing.
“I didn’t know until we started to walk out before my music played, that he was going to introduce me. He just came up and he wanted to do it. So, cool,”
Will Jim Ross Be At AEW Worlds End?
Jim Ross had previously noted that his original goal was to be back behind the desk at the Worlds End pay-per-view on December 30th. Ross has previously noted that he is not currently travelling great distances as this will make his leg injury worse. When asked if he still intends to be in Long Island for the final show of 2023, Ross responded that nothing has been firmly decided but plans could change:
“I think it’s doubtful, but I don’t know. That’s entirely up to Tony. We haven’t discussed it and going to Long Island in December when I haven’t had a trip that long in a while is not something I would relish. However, if called upon, I will come play and I will play as best I can. So, I don’t know. I’m not being evasive. I’d like to say, ‘Yeah, I’m going to be there. Buy the pay-per-view,’ but I don’t know. You should still buy the pay-per-view.”
Also on the show, Ross noted that AEW senior producer and coach Dean Malenko has recently undergone successful brain surgery.
H/t to Fightful.