Grilling JR

On this episode of Grilling JR, JR and Conrad JR go back 25 years to discuss the fallout from the Montreal Screwjob, contract negotiations with the Hart family, Ken Shamrock's ascension to a top babyface, and the rise of The Rock against Stone Cold. Plus, the first Light Heavyweight Champion is crowned between Brian Christopher & Taka Michinoku, Butterbean is back taking on Marc Mero, the Outlaws defend the Tag Team Titles against LOD, Sgt. Slaughter in a boot camp match against Triple H, Jeff Jarrett takes on Undertaker, HBK takes on Shamrock, and Owen Hart returns!
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Find everything you want to know about the show and our hosts over at www.grillingjr.com

[@eazie2003]

19:37 to get past the nonsense

[@rickybobbyracing9106]

Thank you! I actually downloaded the podcast, but came here to find out when the actual podcast i came for really started. Love these guys, but I don't care about new wrestling.

[@CraigSmithII]

My late Pops & I were at that Nitro in Memphis when Bischoff & the NWO came out with the Canadian flags. Hogan said in the promo "He passed the initiation test!!" & Bischoff said afterwards "He's a knockout kind of guy"

[@Rschr101]

😂

[@Thex-W.I.T.C.H.-xMaster]

1:33:57. You damn right he got by JR if I'm not mistaken Austin had the best PPV buys ever no one else touch that. Even to this day. The WWE was never as profitable as it was while Austin was on top. Today they use the excuse of TV deals and claim that today is the most profitable time in the WWE's history, but today they depend on TV deals where as in the 90s they needed fan support. That's why this company is the shits now they really don’t care about the fans even tho they claim to while they bury all the fan favorites.

[@mlamanno]

19:38

[@JackQSmith]

You mentioned guys like Goldust, Mero, New Age Outlaws etc. that had more of an opportunity to shine with the Hart Foundation gone but you didn't mention the most obvious one, The Rock. He had that one promo after his heel-turn earlier in the year but hadn't done much since. He was just another Nation member after that involved in the uninteresting gang wars. After Survivor Series he got on the mic more and got to start a feud with Stone Cold, who had been busy feuding with the Harts for pretty much all of 1997 up to Survivor Series.

[@andrebundles1037]

So true !

[@williewest2998]

Facts

[@Redhotshawntexas]

You act like Austin vs the Hart Goundation wasn’t the only good thing about 1997 WWF

[@JackQSmith]

@guyincognitoe Huh? Not sure how you came to that conclusion from anything I said, but okay. Perhaps you intended to reply to someone else. 🤷‍♂️

[@The_Sage_of_Six_Paths]

God i think everyone (especially JR) is SICK of the "screwjob"

[@reallyretro]

Jeff Jarrett coming back to WWE in late 1997 was just hypocritical to me as he had bolted twice already in 1995/early 1996. That first promo back, he basically buried himself to the locker room as far as being a top guy. Talk about a legend in his own mind.

[@siqaraminmassaquoi1999]

1:15:50 JR mentioning Sgt. Slaughter introduced him to chinese buffet. JR missed the opportunity to say him & Sarge slaughtered the buffet.

[@frankE91210]

😂

[@mikeypitt8315]

That thumbnail 🥴we get double J and Road Dogg but no Stone Cold ,The Rock and The Undertaker!!!

[@mikeypitt8315]

The podcast is 2:19:17 and at 01:53 plus seconds Conrad is still waffling about the timeline and his precious butt buddy meltzers dirt sheets, ffs the show is supposed to be about In Your House 19:D-Generation X but with the time they actually spend talking about the actual show I dont know why they bother.

[@barryrowlings83]

What is mad is that a lot of the podcast was talking about how much they hated about talking about the Screwjob!!

[@mikeypitt8315]

@@barryrowlings83 yeah, what irony😂 I mean like they said themselves they've covered it endlessly on the episodes in the archives so they could have just said that and suggested that any newer fans and younger listeners should go back and check them out if they wanted to hear about it and then left it at that and moved on but noo they go on like they begrudge talking about it for the billionth time but they are obligated to🙄🤦

[@The_Sage_of_Six_Paths]

It's getting so stale

[@mikeypitt8315]

@@The_Sage_of_Six_Paths got stale years ago lol

[@barryrowlings83]

@@mikeypitt8315 yea complaining about having to talk about something that you choose to talk about its daft.

[@mikeypitt8315]

An Austin/JJ feud would have been ridiculous no way could I take Jarrett seriously against Austin

[@tomwells8093]

Should be called 1.5 hours of WWF talk around November and December. Plus 10 mins of DeGeneretion X in your house. Also about 30 mins of ads from the channel sponsors

[@Mathus1]

"I'd tip my hat if I had one on", You do JR, you do.

[@user-ys9fg4ol9s]

Ha!

[@marvellis6762]

Long live JR. I'll be 42 Christmas Day and ever since the late 80s uncle Jim has literally been apart of my life..... total and complete wrestling royalty in the UK.

[@pinroshan020]

Justin Roberts? Nice!

[@rowds]

''Jim has literally been apart of my life'' literally been apart of your life? literally? what does that even mean? ''Literally since the 80's, Jim has been a part of my life.'' That would've made more sense.

[@marvellis6762]

Rowdy you dropped something. Bit late now the flies are on it!

[@Skibbitypappappa]

@@rowds Get a life

[@stewartmcrae8007]

@@rowds have you ever kissed a woman before

[@squarepickle]

Sorry Conrad, unless it's live there's no such thing as a $40 match in modern day wrestling. They don't have star power like that. I've seen flips and headlocks before. You gotta put on a good show to justify price, not a good match. I won't pay full price for a carton of bad eggs even if one is really really good.

[@Redhotshawntexas]

Then again, you also believe Moolah and Chyna belong in the “Women’s Mt. Rushmore”, along with Trish and Lita. Your whole world is this big 🤏. You’re WWE shill brainwashed big style.

[@wehateceltic253]

I remember watching this PPV it was a bit meh on it to say the least . HBK was change the channel at this stage of the game . Still great in the ring obviously but his whole shtick got old real fast. The best parts of 1997 was the hart foundation and stone colds rise

[@danielescalera6638]

Agreed I remember as kids at school we used to say DX was NWO lite til they improved with xpac and the outlaws. We also all thought after survivor series the belt seemed worthless to us

[@fmthebaron]

The best part of 97 was HBK's feud with The Undertaker and Kane's debut in the 1st ever Hell in the Cell. Bret Hart's mid card feuds with guys like Goldust and The Patriot were what was boring while HBK vs Undertaker was huge because they were the two top stars in the company and they had never feuded before in their long careers. Austin was on the rise late in the year but he was still just a mid carder that entire year in feuds with other mid carders most of the time with guys like Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, The Rock, and Faarooq.

[@eazie2003]

So the this is a 2hr 19m podcast and we get to hear about the actual PPV for 20 minutes? WOW

[@DR.64A9]

JR seemed pissy. Is he always like this?

[@Bubba__Sawyer]

Yeah, he's always cantankerous. Sometimes he's just tired and moody and at other times he's leaning into the 'Red-Ass JR' gimmick.

[@The_Sage_of_Six_Paths]

When the conman keeps bugging him for dirt about Montreal he gets sick of it, like all of us

[@Rschr101]

Always

[@mikeypitt8315]

I'd have loved to have seen a proper Austin/Shamrock feud

[@blueblur2273]

Would have been the equivalent to Rock and Billy Gunn. Austin would have slaughtered him in promo's and it only would have hurt Shamrock's stock.

[@TroystonB]

@@blueblur2273 I agree with that. Ken was not as good as a heel but as a babyface I thought he was pretty good.

[@mikeypitt8315]

@@blueblur2273 they could have had Vince do Shamrocks talking Shamrock could have been like a deadly silent assassin

[@blueblur2273]

@@TroystonB That's because they put him in the corporation where he just became a henchmen.

[@blueblur2273]

@@mikeypitt8315 That is what they did. They put him in the corporation and stopped him from talking. It didn't help at all.

[@AW-kr9fl]

Shamrock should’ve had a title run at this time. He was over

[@chico1680]

Owens return at the end of the show was a really hot way to end the ppv imo

[@ricklevin5471]

Look i listen to your podcasts all day everyday at work. I absolutely love it i have been a wrestling fan all my life. i was born almost a year after the undertaker debuted 11/24/1991. Y’all always talk about wrestlers and how things were with them but i would love for you to do a whole episode on taker. what he was like doing business with. how was he with his finances. The personal stuff that you talk about when it comes to a lot of other wrestlers. Was there times he was difficult to work with. what was he like when he traveled regularly. Did he really need to wrestle as long as he did from a financial stand point. what was your relationship like with him. I remember you calling the hell in a cell match with mankind as well as many others growing up. hope to one day maybe meet you. i need to get your autograph one day. Anyways it would be interesting to hear an episode on taker. i have a thousand questions i would love to ask.

[@CraigSmithII]

I was in Fort Sill,Oklahoma for basic training when all of this was going on in WWF along with the stuff in WCW. I missed out on a lot of wrestling programming. Also listening to how this PPV was WWF was being petty as always.

[@nbaldwin45]

For all the praise lavished on FTR/Briscoes, isn't it true that the match was only made about 3 days ahead of the show? Booker of the Year right there. On top of that, I get that JR can barely mask his scorn sometimes when he's doing commentary but he's still light years better than Tony 'Good point, Taz' Schiavone. Sad that Tony is quietly putting JR out to pasture and JR doesn't seem to realise it.

[@V1LL1N]

Jim Ross Smokes Cigarettes!!???!!

[@user-ys9fg4ol9s]

Well , his coughing was a giveaway... but .. I was shocked when i saw him smoking on his podcast. Its kind of off putting, because it goes against his image in a way. What am I saying? Of course, it shouldn't shock me that he smokes. 😆

[@AmericanStandard-yc8xh]

Pretty sure he quit years ago. I think after his Wife, Jan, passed away he probably said phuuck it and started smoking again.

[@curtisburgdrof8618]

I wouldn't have Ken Shamrock meet Shawn Michaels

[@curtisburgdrof8618]

Brett hart was right period shawn Michaels and triple h was biggest ass kisser to vince McMahon

[@tomwells8093]

Shamrock was awful for the WWF. No charisma, no mic skills, in ring ability poor, all he had was a couple good moves. At the time wrestling was transitioning away from that type of "dumb" wrestler but continued with that because still trying to promote Shamrock. Having Shamrock go into the zone like old Hogan and Ultimate Warrior days was embarrassing!

[@eazie2003]

Shove a few more ads into these shows JESUS

[@mikeypitt8315]

"it worked out well" yeah yeah sure it did , if Owen had been allowed to leave the chances are he would still be here now so overall it didn't work out well

[@TroystonB]

my thoughts exactly.

[@Rschr101]

Amazing mental gymnastics you did there.

[@eddiec6363]

Everyone was in on the Montreal screw job or the cameras would cut out plus they made a behind the scenes "documentry" as it happened. Vince never does that it was a work

[@Pillmanized]

Exactly. When Bret waved ''WCW'' they should have cut out the cameras but they were obviously ordered by McMahon to keep filming. Like in another episode they spoke about McMahon ordering the cameras to keep filming Diesel, even though he was swearing directly into the camera. It was all very well planned out.

[@MrBooBeeDoo]

You absolute dumbasses. The WCW "wave" was never aired on the original broadcast which ended right after the screwjob and Shawn walking to the back with the belt. The footage of Bret doing WCW was filmed yes, as most shows are filmed long after the live broadcast ends as there's usually something performed for the fans in the arena. The footage was only ever used on clip shows and videos.

[@Rschr101]

Whatever helps you sleep at night.

[@thepalatrpro]

Conrad Thompson and JR sound alike.

[@curtisburgdrof8618]

Merry Christmas jjim ross and conrad thompson

[@BEEFSERPENT]

Deadline was better than final battle imo

[@mattwenborn9124]

Hey JR - no shipping to New Zealand? Merry Xmas

[@danielescalera6638]

End of 97 raw sounds very bro, bro Russorific bro. For whatever reason he likes dialog that references guys that were in other companies back then

[@Rschr101]

Beats anything they've done in 20 years tho

[@TroystonB]

The Outlaws/Hebner thing is a complete reach Conrad.

[@mikeypitt8315]

Conrad giving his opinions on ad free shows, Why would that persuade me to become a patreon? He is just a fan like the rest of us who grew up a fan like me ,he just happens to be Ric flair's son in law and have podcasts. That doesn't make him an expert by any stretch, he needs to get over himself. Why would people feel his opinions are valuable.

[@stephennagy6344]

Nice JR now when we think of you we can also think, go from egg nog to nice hog!

[@tompratt9112]

Has Grilling JR covered the lead up to Survivor Series 97? I can't seem to find the show on KZbin or iTunes if the guys have.

[@AmericanGypsy206]

Vince McMahon wanted to take the WWF in a more edgy atmosphere Bret Hart was a traditionalist he even said on Canadian TV he didn’t like the direction the WWF was going Bret Hart was a wrestling technician it’s no secret him and Vince we’re bumping heads and Vince basically did a coward move and screwed him at Survivor series 97 Vince McMahon believed Brett Hart was past his prime and did not want to push him any further and did not see Hart as the face of the WWF the in the attitude era his mind was made up he basically told Bret To go to WCW this was all planned to get rid of Bret and focus on Sean Michael’s, Stone Cold Steve Austin mankind, The Rock, and etc., as the new era of the WWF

[@fahidhussain2780]

I honestly thought back then Owen would want vengeance for the screw job and blame Shawn it should’ve been the main event here though I guess there were complications with his contract

[@chico1680]

Pretty sure that was Maxx Mini in a Bret Halloween mask

[@positivevibetec]

I mean Shawn Michaels did call Owen a nugget of s*** and that stuck with them for the rest of his career till he died. So I don't know that he was that great to Owen either.

[@positivevibetec]

It was very good to see you on tales from the territories jr. I love that show I think it was a brilliant idea I sit and watch it and remember when I was a kid.

[@Clinttorres569]

Didn’t jr have cancer and he’s smoking?

[@Thex-W.I.T.C.H.-xMaster]

I guess JR figures he's lived a long life and wants to get to hell as soon as possible. Because well he knows he will be there sooner rather than later 😉...

[@Rschr101]

He's an idiot

[@Thex-W.I.T.C.H.-xMaster]

1:27:24 1:44:26. Wow JR actually says something I kind of agree with 🤔. What was the point of continuously bringing up Bret Hart? This was done at a time that the WWF was losing in the ratings war with WCW... WEEKLY.... I think if my company depended on ratings and fans I'd be trying to move passed this. And as a fan if I saw this bullshit I'd be switching the channels to something else. Maybe even to what was happening on Nitro that night if I tuned into Monday Night RAW and I saw this I'd be like yep let me watch something more entertaining to me and see what's on WCW Monday Nitro...

[@rickybobbyracing9106]

I don't normally care for Jim Cornette, but i agree with him here. Brett got done a little dirty, but really, this is millionaires arguing over a fake belt. Get over it.

[@masamune28954]

Rule for great villains in storytelling. They think their the good guy. One of the reason why the Vincd interview set himself up to be an all time heel.

[@JackQSmith]

I'm pretty sure Bruce or Cornette or someone said that Foley didn't go home. He just stayed in his hotel and didn't show up for Raw the next night.

[@barryrowlings83]

I think Foley said it himself on his own podcast.

[@stewartmcrae8007]

yeah Cornette said it on a shoot interview years ago and foley talked about it on his podcast

[@Rschr101]

Cornette is a Biden voter so who gives a damn what he has to say.

[@josephjames2011]

volume issues and a half.

[@eddiec6363]

JR just sparking a heater on the pod 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@wrestlingtapes2036]

Bret > Shawn

[@cats362]

ftr being considered best matches LOL

[@PV24]

JR I love you & your voice narrated my childhood, but please please quit smoking! You know better!

[@user-ys9fg4ol9s]

Not too pile on... I 100% agree.. I was shocked to see him ( Pronouns Pal , JR ) smoking...,

[@Thex-W.I.T.C.H.-xMaster]

The WWF killed Owen Hart... Owen would still be alive had he left with his brother Bret. Owen could made many times as much money in WCW as he could of been paid in the WWF where they didn't really care about him. No matter how much they say otherwise. If the WWF really saw Owen as main event talent like JR claimed he did, why did that have him up on the top of a building jumping down in some blue bird Mexican looking outfit on May 25,1999?????? SO OWEN WOULD OF BEEN BETTER OFF LEAVING THE WWF with his brother.

[@Rschr101]

No

[@ItsCalebThomas]

Watching an hr after upload 🤗 I’m officially a loyal fan now lol love this channel

[@GJR]

Yay! Thank you!

[@mikeypitt8315]

Waffle waffle waffle before they get to the topic,if they must do that I wish they could at least leave time stamps

[@The_Sage_of_Six_Paths]

This was definitely one of the worst episodes yet.

[@NLaBar]

As shitty as his WCW run was, I don’t think Bret would’ve fared much better remaining in WWF deeper into the Attitude/Russo era. Bret in Japan would’ve been awesome.. but don’t think it’s something he was interested in.

[@crashintonickdm]

Bret ushered in the attitude era so….. huh?

[@Rschr101]

It all worked out.

[@petebagwell6666]

They done chyna dirty in that thumbnail haha

[@tylegend1986]

Uncle JR said oh I’m standing 10 toes down on that one. He meant that thing!