Jerry Lawler believes the new crop of WWE announcers are “trying too hard” in their roles.

In an interview with Phil Strum of the Poughkeepsie Journal, the WWE Hall of Famer said: “I don’t mean this as any kind of derogatory remark or anything, but when I look at them, I just think, it’s almost like they’re trying too hard.”

He continued: “I know they probably feel there’s a lot of pressure on them to do well, but honestly, that’s pressure they’re putting on themselves. When I look at them, I think they need to kind of loosen up a little bit and have more fun at it. If the commentators are enjoying what they’re doing, it’s going to be a better broadcast. The fans watching -that’s going to come across on the screen. They’re going to feel that enjoyment and that fun. I just try to keep in mind, that hey, this is supposed to be entertainment.

“People are supposed to have a good time watching this. Supposed to have fun watching this. So I try to have fun doing it. I think the young guys need to get that attitude, as opposed to having the attitude – oh my gosh, if I screw up. I can’t screw up. This has got to be perfect. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Most of this is live TV. It’s a wrestling show. It’s not brain surgery. It’s not life or death. I’ve always had the opinion, you can screw up. What the heck. Anything can happen on a WWE show.”

On Josh Matthews’ recent on-air nosebleed during the draft edition of Monday Night Raw, Lawler added: “If I was sitting there and Michael Cole’s nose started bleeding, the next 90 minutes would be nothing but fun and one-liners. That’s what I mean. That’s something, I mean, how often is something like that going to happen? Take advantage of it!”

You can read the interview in full, in which Lawler discusses his own wrestling career, WrestleMania and more, by clicking here.

Phil Lowe
phil@ifight365.com