That's good news for me. I have grown tired of his commentating the last couple years. I found that he never had chemistry with anyone other than Lawler. He never understood or played along with jokes or pop culture references made by the younger guys. It was time for a change and I'm glad WWE finally pulled the plug.

Kevin,
I truly believe a role outside of announcing is a waste of his talent. Good Ol' JR not announcing is like Tiger not playing golf...

Hmmm...this just indicates to me that a "changing of the guard" is in full tilt. THD works their way into a title hunt as Bret prepares to exit, Swagger wins the title, and now we learn that JR was left on the sidelines so the other announcers can call WM...With HBK's departure and Taker's surely-reduced schedule, I think we're seeing WWE in panic mode to create new stars faster than ever.

What the hell is Vince thinking? I mean, moving into a new era, promoting new stars... I get that. But everyone from Stone Cold Steve Austin to Sports Guy to the everyday fans wanted Jim Ross to broadcast that event. Nobody can convince me that Michael Cole (everybody's favorite whipping boy) and Matt Striker (whom I like even less) did a better job than he could have. I understand keeping a product fresh, but this is wrongheaded. You can't compare Taker's streak to DiMaggio's, but you can compare Ross to Vin Scully and other classic announcers.

I have spent th e last 30 yrs of my life with Jim Ross as a part of my weekly life. I grew up watching JR doing wrestling matches from Mid-South to UWF to WCW to WWE. He is what made wrestling exciting and seem real. I do know that everyone at some time must hang it up and set off into the sunset. I will miss good Ole JR and wish him the best and a happy life with his family and his BBQ business and whatever role he might play in wrestling. He has so much to give to new and rising stars on how to take it up a notch.

BOOMER SOONER

This to me is a shame, because he is the best announcer in the world today, and has 10 good years left. Horrible. I hope he goes to TNA.

Oh I can believe they didn't let him call HBK vs. Taker 2. And correct me if I'm wrong, and I think JR mentioned it on his blog once; but didn't HBK want JR to call his last match? Instead we had Cole do a terrible job like he does all the time. Good thing Vince likes him cause no one else does.

Along with there being too many people in the MITB, I feel the biggest flaw at Wrestlemania 26 was Jim Ross not being in the announce position.

that sucks jr is wwe and i think im done with WWE! they are making stupid decisions maybe thats the reason fewer people are going to their shows and ratings droping

I agree about Ross calling HBK-Undertaker. But there is another consideration, that WWE needs to be careful about putting too much emphasis on various "legends" leaving the company so it doesn't create the impression that its best days are behind. Putting emphasis on Ross adds another ounce on that side of the scale; and from a pure business standpoint, it's something you can put off because he's not visible right now.

Also, might Ross calling the match have given the result (not the ending) away? I expected Shawn to lose, but not to actually retire.

I just can't imagine having Michael Cole and Matt Striker as the main WWE announcers for the next 15 years. Those two clowns are going to drive away legions of fans.

IF the WWE were smart...(okay, even if they were to exhibit some "Wrestling ingenuity" instead of their typical "ADD Sports Entertainment") they would use JR much like ABC used Keith Jackson to come back & call only high profile events....thus the perfect time to have begun would have been HBK/Taker 2, however again-even in the middle of scare 'can't miss WWE moment', Vince & Company manages to drop the ball....again.

Speaking of futures, is there no future for Christopher Daniels in TNA? Lots of reports the past couple days that he has been released. If it's true, it's another sign that Hogan does not care about TNA fans!
As for Ross, one of the better wrestling announcers I ever heard. My personal favorite was Gordon Solie, who Ross has said he looked up to. No one out there today comes close.

Kevin--have you in the past, or might you in the future do a piece on specifically what is involved in the day to day liffe on the road of a typical wrestler? The latest on Jim Ross got me to thinking about not only Chris Kanyon, but others who have died far too early in the wrestling industry. I realize each case should be viewed on its individual circumstances, yet I can't help but wonder if the stresses and hectic schedule are just beyond what is reasonable. Would the wrestlers be better served doing a slightly reduced schedule in order to add years to the life of their active careers? Wouldn't say the WWE be better served to reduce talent slightly on the lower card level, reduce their travel schedule slightly, in order to have their biggest money makers available to them for a longer period of time? When was the last time at least one of the WWE's biggest stars wasn't on the shelf due to an injury? Their bodies are simply wearing down! They all can't be as fortunate as The Rock to be able to go into another field that is more lucrative, and FAR less demanding from a travel standpoint, not to mention far less strenuous on the body!

It was McMahon's decision on whether or not Ross calls the Michaels-Undertaker and he said No. He can be a real a**hole when he wants to be.

The greatest announcer of all time in my book. Amazing career.

This would actually be good news if I thought Vince was even remotely capable of building stars that aren't in their position because:

a. they make 12 year old boys wet. As soon as those kids hormones switch target to teenage girls, Cena is over.

b. they were made famous by means other than their mat skills

Even with announcers, if Stryker & Cole represent the best students of Vince's school of TV talent, I truly weep for the future.

I have always watched WWE and been loyal to it. Grown up watching all the Attitude Era and the 2000's. Jim Ross made everyone so much more entertaining. I always thought the WWE cared about its fans (or WWE Universe (!)), but after years of bad decision and neglecting the fans, this has to be the final straw. Not letting an announcer who is possibly the greatest ever announce a WrestleMania even though he was fit and well is a diabolical decision. A good announcer helps to keep the viewer watching and I can honestly say since October 2009 I have mostly fast-forwarded through the matches to save myself hearing Michael Cole or Matt Striker. The future of WWE commentary looks bleak. JR will be missed and never fully got the respect he deserved. Jim Ross = a broadcasting legend!

I was really disappointed when I realised Jim Ross wouldn't be calling at least the main event for WrestleMania. I thought for sure that they would bring him back just for that one match, like they did when a similar incident occurred and they brought him in to call the main event between The Rock and Steve Austin at WrestleMania XV. It'll be a huge loss to the business if Ross is done with announcing full time, but I'm sure it's the right thing to do as far as his health's concerned. Hopefully he'll take up another roll with the company and still be involved in some way.

JR is the most overrated announcer ever. I always found him to be so annoying. No wonder he lost his job to Michael Cole on Raw.

One thing missing from this era of wrestling, Announcing!

Grisham and Cole seem to bury the talent way too often. Lawler is just uninteresting. Striker is the best they have now. JR calls matches like wrestling matches were called in the '80's. Which was great announcing. The TNA booth of Tenay and Don West was a booth JR could have been proud of. Old school and styled after the way "wrestling" needs to be told! Good luck JR

I also began watching JR back in the UWF days and followed him to NWA/WCW and now to WWF (I refuse to call it WWE) and I agree that he's the best to ever do it with Gordon Solie being a close second. Even if he is off TV on a weekly basis, he should be calling the two biggest PPV's in the company. Summerslam and Wrestlemania PERIOD.

I hate to hear this about JR. I grew up watching him call the old NWA/WCW matches on TBS (local here in Atlanta so we got to see JR a lot in his early days) and then again when he moved over to the big show, the WWF/WWE. He is one of the greatest announcers of all time and I had a chance to hear some of them - JR, Gordon Solie, Bobby Heenan, and the late, great Gorilla Monsoon. JR will be missed and I wished Vince would put more emphasis on his announcing teams as they are in desperate need of an overhaul. Entertaining is also giving us announcers who capture the moments in the ring and promos.