9. He Nearly Quit After Being Drafted To Smackdown In 2008
In June 2008, after serving as the main voice on Raw for over a decade, Ross was drafted to Smackdown as part of WWE's annual "draft lottery" where they moved people that were on Raw, Smackdown and ECW. Ross was not told of the move beforehand. Following the draft, Ross wrote about it on his JRsBBQ.com website in a blog post that featured these comments: "I am not happy about this surprise development. I also contemplated calling it a career Monday night and not going to Houston to tape SD. After speaking with my wife and thinking on this matter until 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, I have decided to do the right thing for the fans who care and the talent who care and begin my new assignment. It has been explained to me that the WWEs Smackdown tenure on My Network is a high priority within the corporation. Allegedly, my presence is needed in that effort." In a 2013 blog post, he also expressed his displeasure about it: "I wasn't enthralled about that creative move which I think was an inside joke that someone in creative sold upper management on just to see my reaction. Of course, I could be wrong but I did not, and still do not, see any reason for breaking Jerry Lawler and me up." The fact that he nearly quit after the move shows how upset he was. Years later, he discussed how much it upset him in part because he was told the night before that he wasn't going to be moved. He figured he would be staying with Jerry Lawler on Raw until they retired together. That didn't happen. While they did work together after that, it was the never the same post June 2008.
John wrote at WhatCulture from December 2013 to December 2015. It was fun, but it's over for now. Follow him on Twitter @johnreport. You can also send an email to mrjohncanton@gmail.com with any questions or comments as well.
