October 24, 2005 Observer Newsletter: WWE changes course with Jim Ross angle, Ultimate Warrior origins

WWE has changed courses again with the Jim Ross angle leading to Steve Austin's first wrestling match since Wrestlemania on March 30, 2003.

On the 10/17 Raw from Sacramento, a match was announced with Austin vs. Jonathan Coachman for Taboo Tuesday on 11/1 in San Diego, where if Austin won, Ross would return as lead announcer on Raw, and if Coachman won, then Austin would be fired. It's neither the first time Ross' job has been at stake on a PPV, and it's a repeat of the 2003 Survivor Series angle where Austin lost his job with the company as a result of his team losing a match.

Exactly where things are going is anyone's guess. Everything on Raw was built to lead you to believe it's a formality that Austin wins and Ross returns on 11/7. First, the very nature of Austin returning and facing Coachman, as well as the entire show being built around Ross, which makes no sense if he's not coming back to announce. In addition, in Coachman's first week as lead announcer, he did a horrible job, by design no less, in a role where his main focus was to parody Ross. In many aspects, the show came across as a disorganized mess, largely because you can see so many changes in midstream and more desperation booking reminiscent of the last years of WCW.

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