Jim Ross Suffers His Third Bells Palsy Attack

[Hammy]

- Below is part of a blog that Jim Ross wrote on jrsbarbq.com earlier:

It was an interesting plane ride from OKC to Columbia, South Carolina Monday night. On my flight from OKC to Atlanta I had my 3rd Bells palsy attack.

I was able to reach WWE doctors who were in Jacksonville for Raw and they were able to call in the medicines I needed to get started on to slow down the paralysis. Now we just wait and see how the meds work and Mother Nature takes her course.

My plans are to tape SD tonite working with the King and perhaps even Michael Cole so we can make sure we can do the job that the product and the talents deserve.

Ross came back a few hours later with this update:

This is an update on my previous blog. Not the news I wanted to share.

It has been decided that I should not risk further issues by working tonight and I am in the process of arranging a flight back to OKC so I can see a neurologist on Wednesday.

Life is about facing the challenges we encounter so I am going to do all I can to get better and back at the announce desk asap. I wish I had more answers but I simply don’t at this time.

I want to be a part of Bragging Rights but only time will tell if that will be physically possible. My passion and love for the game is in tact but I have to do what’s best for my long term health.

WWE has been tremendously supportive of my situatiion of which I am very grateful.

Never count me out of the game as this isn’t the first mountain that I have had to climb. Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole will handle SD from Columbia. My thanks to every one for understanding this matter. Better days are on the horizon.

Hopefully he recovers and gets back soon as!

[Izzy]

JR's contract is about to expire - this is bad news for a sick man

JR's commentary was the er...soundtrack... to the best of WWF/WWE, he made moments

He sounds bored now - he doesn't care

I think a move to TNA would help him and TNA

[BlowUpYourVideo]

^JR may not be as great as he once was but he's still the best announcer they've got IMO.

Hope he gets well soon.

[Rankin]

^JR may not be as great as he once was but he's still the best announcer they've got IMO.

Hope he gets well soon.

You obviously haven't watched much ECW, Matt Striker is fantastic (especially with his old school references).

Hope JR gets well, not a nice thing to deal with.

[Axl4Life]

^JR may not be as great as he once was but he's still the best announcer they've got IMO.

Hope he gets well soon.

You obviously haven't watched much ECW, Matt Striker is fantastic (especially with his old school references).

Hope JR gets well, not a nice thing to deal with.

Aye, he even throws in quite a few music references. Guns N' Roses and Chinese Democracy being two. 

Best regards to J.R. Hope he isn't rushed back though. I'm sure things like that take more than a week or two.

[Hammy]

I think he has sounded good since his move to the blue brand despite not being happy about it intially, its just his kind of show, wrestling based, I quite enjoy how he puts people over.  "I don't like Dolph Ziggler, but the kid has a tremendous upside" or the old school one I remember, "Billy Gunn may be the best pure athlete in the WWF".  Praise be to Ross, he speaks the truth!

As for Striker, the dude references Duke "The Dumpster" Droese and Alex Wright and chances are only the IWC get who he is on about, its great and I'm shocked Vince lets him do it, clearly he pays not attention to the brand 

[Hammy]

After suffering a third bout of Bell’s Palsy on Monday, WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has posted an update on his health via http://www.jrsbarbq.com/:

“I saw my neurologist today in Norman and had a long consultation and some testing. He diagnosed me, as expected with full blown Bells palsy. It is on the right side of my face and has adversely affected my vision in my right eye more than previous bouts. We are concerned about the cornea in my right eye being damaged which is why I am using a ton of artificial tears and having to tape my eye shut at night to sleep along with using a gel in my eye under the eye patch.

Talk about tough and committed….wife Jan has to not only sleep with me wearing my sleep apnea mask but now I’m wearing an eye patch, to boot.

I can talk pretty well out of the left side of my mouth, perhaps I should consider a radio career…that was a joke…but my face has drooped some on the right side making me not TV friendly…if I ever was…..that was another joke.

We have a MRI scheduled for Friday morning to…insert your own joke here….to check out my brain to make sure that there isn’t any thing going on that shouldn’t be.

My time line on returning to work is unknown as I write this. I wish it was going to be this Sunday in Pittsburgh as I wanted to be a part of Bragging Rights on PPV. I think it will be a fun and a unique show that will be showcasing some new talents in key bouts. How well they perform is up to them but I hope that they take advantage of their opportunities no matter their roles. It’s easy to “get lost” in a 7 man tag, for instance, but it is up to every man in the match to make their presence felt. Quality minutes is just as important as quantity of minutes.

So, Sunday night I will be at home in Norman watching Bragging Rights on PPV. I don’t know the announcer lineup but it “might” be a three man team of Cole, King, and Todd Grisham but that’s only an educated guess. It could be something else altogether but obviously Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler will be figured in the mix prominently.”

[timothy]

Hope they man gets better. But think this is a wake up call that it's time to retire from the announcers booth.

[nightrain]

Good news!!

JIM ROSS will be back to call WrestleMania, according to his colleague and best pal Jerry 'The King' Lawler.

The WWE Smackdown commentator suffered a Bell's Palsy attack last month and hasn't been able to work since.

It was the third time he has been struck down with the condition, which paralyses the facial nerve leaving victims unable to control their muscles on the affected side.

Fans were worried they may never hear Ross — considered the best wrestling announcer of all time — commentate on a match again.

But Lawler insists he is recovering well and will be back for the WWE's showpiece event on March 28 next year.

Lawler told SunSport: "Bell's Palsy almost has the same effect on a person, as far as your facial features, as a stroke.

"But the only good thing about it is that in 90 per cent of the cases, over time, the nerves regenerate and it corrects itself.

"This was JR's third attack of Bell's Palsy and this was a pretty major one.

"I texted him last night, and spoke with him this past week, and he's doing better but says it will probably be a few months before he's facially ready to be back on television.

"It takes that long for those nerves in your faces to regenerate. He is basically talking out one side of his mouth right now.

"But when you talk to him, when you just hear his voice, you can't tell. He doesn't have slurred speech any more.

"There's a strong possibility that WrestleMania could be when he makes a return.

"Even if it's a situation where he could return a little bit before that, it might be best to just wait and let him come back at Mania — as the comeback of JR would be a big draw.

"He is the voice of the WWE and WrestleMania wouldn't be the same without hearing him."

Raw commentator Lawler also spoke to us about the return of another legend — Hulk Hogan.

The Hulkster will soon start work for WWE's rival firm TNA — but The King insists few people in Vince McMahon's promotion are fussed.

Lawler added: "I've told this to a lot of people, and I don't know if they believe it, but no one in the WWE ever talks about TNA.

"There is no concern whatsoever.

"They don't acknowledge, think or worry about them, they're not even a blip on the radar screen.

"Even with Hulk Hogan, I don't think the WWE feel they are any threat at all.

"Maybe they don't worry if TNA does well as competition is a good thing.

"The best years WWE had was when we were embroiled in the big war with WCW."

Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/wrestling/2737391/Jim-Ross-will-return-at-WWE-WrestleMania-26.html#ixzz0XJvTL9KE

[Hammy]

Jim Ross wrote on his official website that it’s unlikely he’ll return to working WWE television on weekly basis in response to a reader who asked if he’ll be paired with Jerry “The King” Lawler again.

“I don’t think that WWE is interested in putting me back on weekly TV and all the travel that comes along with it at this time,” Ross wrote. “Would I love to work with King again? Certainly. Is this my call? Nope. Do I think that I will ever be paired with Lawler again on a regular basis? Highly unlikely.”

[EricxGNRxSTARx]

Jim Ross wrote on his official website that it’s unlikely he’ll return to working WWE television on weekly basis in response to a reader who asked if he’ll be paired with Jerry “The King” Lawler again.

“I don’t think that WWE is interested in putting me back on weekly TV and all the travel that comes along with it at this time,” Ross wrote. “Would I love to work with King again? Certainly. Is this my call? Nope. Do I think that I will ever be paired with Lawler again on a regular basis? Highly unlikely.”

TNA is a perfect fit for JR. He'd be reunited with TAZ and I think a 3 man booth could be fun. We know he wants to work and TNA would be very limited travel for JR. I think WWE might re-sign him just to keep him out of TNA. I could see him not being on TV but in maybe a consulting role for WWE.

[Izzy]

Jim Ross was WWF - his commentary made Raw

Over the years he's lost a lot of his charm - but a 3 man commentary team at TNA would massively boost that promotion and make JR a real wrestling icon again

..think deep down he'd like a change of pace

[AtariLegend]

Honestly i hope they keep him around... He's the best commentor in Wrestling for me and always will be.

Ross made many a bad match look good...

[EricxGNRxSTARx]

Jim Ross posted the following on JRsBarBQ.com:

"I will be signing another contract extension this week with WWE to allow us to get past Wrestlemania and to give us more time to finalize our newest agreement which will hopefully see me remaining with WWE for the long term future. At least, that's the goal for all involved. I'm going into this negotiation with a positive frame of mind and hopeful that all will work out to everyone's mutual happiness at the end of the day."