It Was Good Knowing You Chris

You and your Slammy had a great second run.

You and your Slammy had a great second run.

Evidently Jeff Hardy may not be the only big name leaving the company this weekend.  (Was that a spoiler?  Tough cookies.) Chris Jericho decided to open his mouth a little too wide when he did this interview with the Baltimore Sun (Thanks to Prowrestling.net). The whole interview itself is a good read but there is a small part that may land Chris on the “Future Endeavors” list –

When you were in WCW, it seemed as if the guys at the top were reluctant to work with and elevate guys who had potential such as yourself. Now that you are in the position of being a top guy, did what you experienced in WCW influence how you approach working with younger guys?

It wasn’t reluctance; it was just denial. They just wouldn’t do it and it [ticked] me off so much because there was a lot of money left on the table. It’s something that I said that I would never do. We’re in a crisis period in WWE and we need to build new guys. When Shawn Michaels came back to Raw, he said, “Whose been built since I left?” On Smackdown we’ve built [John] Morrison and [Dolph] Ziggler and Cryme Tyme. The Intercontinetal title has been rebuilt now with Rey Mysterio. But I can’t tell you on Raw who has been built over the last six months. They better do it soon, because when this generation of performers is gone, who will replace them?

I think he’s absolutely right but the idea that Vince McMahon can tolerate dissension makes me laugh. Vince and USA view the increased ratings on Raw as proof that guest GM role is working well. If they came around to Jericho’s thinking, the ratings would be even higher because the new fans would get to latch on to young stars and follow them for a long time. It’s a laughable thought though that this blunt assessment of the state of Raw would be a catalyst for change. If Shawn Michaels and HHH are so mesmerized by the writing that they actually participated in those awful skits last week, we can all be pretty sure that Jericho will be pushed out like so many others for voicing his negative opinion. At least he has VH1 and a new Fozzy album to fall back on. -Kevin

2 Responses to “It Was Good Knowing You Chris”

  1. Awesome Dude 2009-08-21 at 12:42 pm #

    Chris is too valuable to fire. He’s not like Mr Kennedy, a walking medical triage with a big mouth or Bobby Lashley, a million dollar body and a tiny bitch voice with the personality of a beached whale. Jericho knows he pretty much untouchable due to the lack of marketable stars in WWE. Most of the veterans outside the usual suspects are looking for new blood in the Main event picture. Jim Ross also expressed concern about the current scene. If HHH, Orton, Cena,or Michaels get injured; Raw is screwed. Everybody else has been presented as inferior to them. They have the future stars. Now just boost them before they too damaged to fix.

    • Fanatic 2009-08-21 at 9:47 pm #

      Very true, Jericho has the money to run his mouth and walk away.

      Jericho hasn’t exactly been someone who has worked with the young guys since he’s been back though. He’s had feuds with Orton, JBL, HBK, Cena & Mysterio. The stuff with Cryme Tyme has just started in the last month and it might be done after Summerslam if they move on to a feud with DX.

      Part of it is the writers, but I also think some of the top talent has to request to start working guys on the houseshows and show management they have potential to get the green light for tv.

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