Jake “The Snake” Roberts is back in AEW. The pro wrestling legend has been off television for over a month. Roberts recently had foot surgery, as first reported by Cassidy Haynes of Bodyslam.net.
“The Murderhawk Monster” Lance Archer has been without his mentor. That all changed this week at a taping of AEW Dark: Elevation. Roberts once again accompanied Archer to the ring, reuniting one of AEW’s most dangerous pairings.
Here’s what Roberts had to say about his return on Twitter:
After 5 weeks off 4 surgery I was bk in the saddle again. Wow what a rush!! (Thx HAWK!!!) I love all the fans that show their appreciation! I came alive!! Thx AEW for making me a part of it. Life is so good
At Wednesday’s AEW TV tapings from Rochester, NY, Archer won a quick squash match over a local talent in a match taped for Dark: Elevation. He wore a Brodie Lee wristband to honor the former leader of the Dark Order.
This episode of Elevation will air on YouTube on Oct. 4.
Now that Jake “The Snake” has made his return, it’ll be interesting to see what’s in store for him and Archer going forward. Archer is coming off a loss in a Lights Out tag team match with Minoru Suzuki on Rampage. The two were defeated by Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston thanks to interference from Homicide.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jake Roberts has been away from AEW programming after undergoing foot surgery according to latest reports.
After not being seen on AEW TV recently, it was reported this Friday that the wrestling veteran was absent because he was dealing with some undisclosed health issues.
Cassidy Haynes of BodySlam.net provided some updates on Roberts. He revealed that the former WWE star has been away after undergoing a foot surgery where he had pins inserted in some of his toes.
The good news for fans is that the wrestling legend is not expected to stay out for very long. According to the site, he has been cleared by doctors to return to work. So he could be back on AEW programming as soon as this week.
Jake Roberts signed with AEW back in March 2020. He introduced Lance Archer as his client and he has been managing the NJPW star since then. Roberts revealed back in July, 2021 that he has signed a two-year contract extension with AEW.
The Hall Of Famer’s next confirmed public appearance is at the New York Comic Con on October 7th as part of the Headlocked Comics & Heroes Hideout booth. It would be interesting to see if he makes his AEW return before that.
Jake Roberts has not been seen on AEW programming in recent times because he is dealing with some undisclosed health issues, according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Meltzer wrote that the Hall Of Famer was seen “in a wheelchair and had an oxygen thing in his nose that he’d take out when posting for photos” during a recent public appearance.
Roberts made his AEW debut back in 2019. He became a regular on AEW TV after joining forces with Lance Archer in March 2020. Jake announced in July this year that he had signed a two-year contract extension with the promotion.
The wrestling veteran had revealed in an interview with Premier Live TV YouTube channel last year that he was battling COPD. He said that it was passed down to him through bloodline and called it worse than COVID.
COPD obstructs airflow from the lungs. The legend had explained back then that because of the disease, he doesn’t get enough oxygen in his blood.
The wrestling star had noted that because of it he couldn’t talk for more than 20 seconds without an oxygen tank. Roberts had also mentioned how he was not sure how limited he will be in the future.
These latest reports make it seem like COPD might be the reason for his absence. There is no word yet on if there are any plans for Jake Roberts to return to AEW programming anytime in the future. We will keep you posted on his status.
Jake ‘the Snake’ Roberts has re-signed with All Elite Wrestling.
The WWE Hall of Famer shared the news when he spoke with Diamond Dallas Page in a video that was posted on the former WCW stars’ YouTube channel. The extension will see him under contract for the next two years.
“When I originally signed with [AEW], it was for a ten week deal. At eight weeks, [a guy] comes along with some papers, ‘You need to sign these.’ I’m like, ‘What for?’ ‘Well it’s your contract.’ ‘Dude, I’ve only got two weeks left.’ ‘No, you got another year.’ ‘What?’ And then just a few weeks ago, I buzzed Tony, I said, ‘Hey, I’ve got four weeks left. What do you want me to do? I need a notice so I can start setting up my stuff’ and he says, ‘We need to sign another piece of paper’ and I signed again and then after I signed it, I found out that it wasn’t for a year, it was for more than a year. It was for two years.”
Roberts noted that Khan is a wonderful man and he gave him his love back for wrestling as it’s great to be part of AEW. He said that he’s taken this opportunity to keep his eyes open and try to help people that are struggling.
The legendary pro wrestler made his promotional debut last year when he confronted Cody Rhodes as a way to give him a message about how he had a client coming to AEW.
This client turned out to be Lance Archer. The two have yet to part ways. Archer is slated to challenge Jon Moxley for the IWGP United States Title in a Texas Death Match on Dynamite this Wednesday. This will be the second night of Fyter Fest in Garland, Texas.
WWE and its owner Vince McMahon are known for incorporating the personal issues of their superstars into various storylines over the years and Hall Of Famer Jake Roberts is no stranger to this tactic from the company.
The promotion has previous used the veteran’s troubles with alcoholism into a controversial storyline which also involved Hall Of Famer Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler back in 1996. Lawler even force-fed his opponent a bottle of bourbon after their match at SummerSlam that year.
Roberts opened up about the controversial angle during his recent interview with Inside The Ropes, and he blasted Mr. McMahon, calling him an ‘a**hole’:
“Well, I thought it was a horrible thing for McMahon to ask me to do, It was cheap, it was disrespectful,” said the wrestling veteran, “It didn’t prove a damn thing other than the fact that Vince McMahon’s an a**hole, so there you go. Lawler, he’s in the same boat. Both a**holes.”
Jake Roberts has since turned things around. His win over his battle with addiction was chronicled in the 2015 documentary, Resurrection of Jake The Snake. He also talked about his efforts to get clean during the interview and the current AEW star explained that he wants to be around for long to spend time with his grandkids. You can check out his full interview here.
“He made some reference that we didn’t draw, which is always .. I don’t know if that’s a fair view,” Hart stated. “If you look at any of the WrestleManias, WrestleMania 12, you can’t tell me, if you look at the crowd, that I didn’t draw. I mean, it was huge buyrates and it was a packed. Even Wembley with Bulldog was over 80,000 fans there. And to try to throw out, ‘hey, you never drew?’ I wrestled in front of 100,000 people in India for [WWE] in 1994.”
A Great “Pretend Wrestler”
Bret Hart acknowledged that, although he feels he was an undeniable draw, an argument could be made that he didn’t draw in the same way Hulk Hogan did—though he isn’t sure any other Superstar did.
He argued how Roberts never went to the gym and was strictly a “promo” guy. Although he credited Roberts as a “great worker,” Hart quickly added how he was a “great pretend wrestler.”
“I think it bothers me that someone like Jake, who never went to the gym– if he did go to the gym, he might do a set and then go smoke a cigarette outside. He was not a tough guy, was not a legit athlete, he was strictly a promo, and he was a great worker; a great pretend wrestler.”
Hart continued, “But all I know is that when my time came and they picked me to be the champion, they chose me for whatever reasons. I’m very happy that they chose me. I think I was a good choice. I certainly worked hard enough to get that opportunity. But Jake Roberts said something like we were too small and we and we never drew big numbers or anything like that, but I say in response to that, where was Jake Roberts? […] like, why didn’t [Roberts] take the torch? Why wasn’t he there?”
Throwing Stones
Bret Hart then claimed that Roberts was the kind of wrestler who “never passed the torch to anybody.” According to him, Roberts was never interested in establishing anyone but himself.
Vehemently disagreeing with Roberts’ opinion, Hart stressed that he believes that people would be “hard pressed to find two better” than himself and Michaels to become champion. He added how they never had to take a backseat to Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, or those that Roberts considered to be “real iconic [pro] wrestling champions.”
As far as Bret Hart is concerned, Jake Roberts has “no business ever throwing stones at me and Shawn.”
Jake Roberts has previously worked for WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon, but is now under contract with WWE’s latest rival promotion, AEW.
The WWE Hall of Famer recently did an interview with the Wrestling Inc Daily podcast. This is where he spoke about the latest attempt done by WWE to counter-program AEW with NXT content.
Over the next two weeks, AEW will be airing its Fyter Fest show on TNT while WWE will be airing editions of NXT with its Great American Bash thme. According to the legendary pro wrestler, WWE is feeling the heat.
“Well, they feel the heat. You know, competition is good for everybody. It makes people step up their game. Obviously, I’m gonna tell you who I’m going for – AEW and just because I want to.
I think they have a good product. It’s a different product and different is good, especially with where WWE is and different is good. At the end of the day, competition is good because it just makes people go out there and work harder and that’s great for the fans. The fans reap the benefits of that.”
WWE announced the special weeks after All Elite Wrestling had already announced and was building matches for its Fyter Fest.
Once AEW signed a television deal with TNT, WWE was quick to react as they signed a deal with the USA network in order to counter-program the rival promotion.
Former WWE Superstar Ted DiBiase recently appeared on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio. The Million Dollar Man discussed a number of topics from his career, including when he turned heel against Junkyard Dog in Mid-South Wrestling.
DiBiase revealed a hilarious story from that time that involved Grizzly Smith, former wrestler in his own right and father of the legendary Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts.
“Funny story is that as soon as I turned heel? Grizzly Smith, that’s Jake Roberts dad, he was kind of like the agent who showed up at all the shows and let everybody know what they were going to do that night.”
Ted DiBiase Talks Grizzly Smith
DiBiase elaborated further, saying “and so I told Grizzly I said ‘I am not driving my car’ and he said ‘why?’ I said ‘you know why, because when I come out it’ll be on blocks back there!'”
Ted DiBiase would then compare the old school fans to now, saying “they took the wrestling real serious, and especially in New Orleans. So he [Grizzly] said ‘okay well then ride with me.’ So I wrote down there with him. And he’s ‘neutral’ right? And so, we have the match. I told Junkyard Dog, I said ‘you can’t just roll out there like you normally do. All these people? They think that you have just been screwed by your best friend. So you come running, you slide in and I and I’ll slide out. I’ll run around the ring and I’ll roll back in; you roll back in and hit me with whatever you want, just keep coming at me until I say quit.'”
DiBiase then talked what happened backstage. “So I get back in the dressing room and I’ve showered. Grizzly comes walking in and he just puts both his hands on his hips. He just looked at me shaking his head. I said, ‘what’s wrong? He said ‘they [the fans] slit my tires! We’re gonna be here a while. I said ‘see I told you!’ I said ‘they slit your tires, I wouldn’t have had a car!'”
Last week’s edition of Dynamite was headlined by Dustin Rhodes vs Kip Sabian in the 1st round of the TNT title tournament. Rhodes put his career on the line in the match as well. Rhodes defeated Sabian and will now face Jake Roberts’ client Lance Archer in the semi-finals.
AEW published a promo from Roberts recently where the legend talks about the upcoming match between Archer and Rhodes.
“Let me think about this, Dustin,” Roberts begins the promo. “Last week, you were talking about retiring if you couldn’t beat Kip Sabian. Christ, you squeaked by that. My friend, it’s not a good thing because now you’re set to go against Lance Archer.”
Dustin Rhodes is also shown in the video. Rhodes noted that he now understands he has the support of the AEW fan base.
“Lance Archer doesn’t need the fans, he feeds off his own anger,” Jake Roberts continued. “He wants to hurt somebody and you happen to be a Rhodes, that makes it even better.”
“I’m laying it out there plain and simple, Lance will F you up!”
“It’s better to acknowledge the fear and the truth and walk away,” Roberts continued. “If you don’t walk away from this, you’ll be carried away from this. Goodbye, old friend.”
Jake “the Snake” Roberts made a surprise debut in AEW last month. He confronted Cody on Dynamite and noted that he was bringing a client into AEW. That client turned out to be Lance Archer. The former member of the Killer Elite Squad was a guest recently on Busted Open Radio and spoke about working with the legendary Roberts.
During the conversation, Bully Ray asked Archer why Roberts was his manager in AEW and noted that Archer doesn’t need anyone to speak for him.
“He was one of the best speakers in this business today,” Archer said on the show. “I believe that I’ve grown in my ability to get out there and say what I need to say when I need to say it.”
Archer continued to talk about the benefits of having Jake by his side.
“I think it just helps me transition back into a full-time American fan base. I think that’s one of the biggest reasons why. And I think this is a good transition with someone they absolutely know and they adore that is Jake ‘the Snake’ Roberts.”
Bully then suggested that Jake’s abilities could take the spotlight away from Archer. He asked Archer if he was worried about sharing that spotlight.
“Absolutely not,” Archer answered. “Once I step in the ring, I command the spotlight when I step in the ring. Jake commands the spotlight because he’s Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts and when he speaks people are listening.”
Archer’s comments can be heard in the Tweet below:
Jake “The Snake” Roberts has explained how his personal insecurities led him to make appearances on AEW Dynamite admits the coronavirus pandemic. He opened up about his decision during a recent video uploaded to DDP Yoga’s YouTube channel.
Reflecting on his choice to travel to Dynamite, Roberts admitted he feared that by missing one show, he wouldn’t be needed anymore. According to him, “I was so insecure. I had to go.”
DDP explained how he told Jake Roberts that he wouldn’t kick him out despite potentially exposing himself to the coronavirus. That being said, DDP stressed how he had a baby in the house and that his decision was putting other people at risk. If that continued, DDP would have no choice but to refuse Roberts entry.
“Whenever I went to Jacksonville, I took everything I had with me because I knew there was no coming back. No questions, I never asked Dallas to come back. I was staying out by the airport at a fine hotel, I had room service and I could go down to the restaurant and eat. I had a gym to work out in, a swimming pool—what the hell, I’ve got everything I need.”
Jake Roberts On Self-Isolating, Depression
Roberts admitted how the lack of people caused him to fall into a depression. The hotel shut the gym down and that his time in self-isolation affected him deeply:
“It hit me hard, I didn’t like what I was thinking. I wasn’t thinking about drinking or doing drugs, but I don’t think I was far from thinking about that. I just didn’t like the way I was feeling.”
Jake Roberts has since returned to DDP’s home and has been quarantining himself. He has been appearing on Dynamite in pre-recorded promo segments in support of Lance Archer.
Update: On Friday, April 17th, Jake Roberts provided an update on his condition. Roberts remains focused on staying positive and getting back into physical shape. He thanked All Elite Wrestling for supporting him 100%.
Out of quarantine working out and dieting. I will lose 30lbs. AEW have been totally awesome. They support me 100%. Gotta lot of love to give.@WNSource@WWE@DDPYoga
WWE Hall of Famer Jake Roberts is currently quarantined alone in a hotel room.
The legendary pro wrestler confirmed the news while doing an interview with The WrestlingInc Daily’s Nick Hausman. This is where he stated that he thinks everyone needs to stay home amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
Other sports leagues have shut down but wrestling promotions such as AEW and WWE continue to run shows by holding TV tapings.
Roberts stated that we all have to buckle down. As much as he hates the idea, he thinks it’s the smart thing to do. He stated that everyone needs to pull together until the virus is gone. It upsets him to see people not follow the recommendations.
“It shows you how selfish some people can be,” Roberts said.
Roberts stated that people who don’t go along with the recommendations cause this thing to last longer than it should. He thinks people like that should be arrested and put in jail.
Roberts revealed that he’s currently quarantined in an Atlanta hotel room. This will last a few weeks. He recently made an appearance on AEW Dynamite that had a makeshift crowd of talent.
The reason for him being in quartine is due to him living with Diamond Dallas Page. Before he left to go to the AEW Dynamite TV tapings, DDP told him if Roberts left then he can’t come back.
“Well, AEW wanted me to come out, so … what did I do? I went and did it but then I couldn’t go back to Dallas’ house,” stated Roberts.
There is a baby at DDP’s house and nobody wants to get sick especially around a baby, according to Roberts. Thus, DDP took the hard-line. Roberts added that he had to do it for AEW because he wants to help the promotion by being on TV to manage Lance Archer.
However, now admittedly, he’s paying for it. AEW has reportedly filmed content to last the next few weeks.
Jake Roberts has been on a path to recovery from the last few years and the former WWE star even returned to weekly national television recently when he debuted on AEW TV.
During a recent interview with SportsKeeda, the wrestling
legend talked about a number of things and also revealed who was responsible
for bringing him into the company.
Roberts first mentioned how his name kept getting brought up and later revealed that while he expected people like DDP or Dustin Rhodes to vouch for him, it was actually President Tony Khan who wanted him there:
“My name kept getting brought up by people, but it was actually [Tony] Khan that said “I want him in here.” That’s quite a compliment there. That’s not the way I expected to be brought in, I expected it to be through Dallas or through Dustin [Rhodes], but it wasn’t, it was Khan who wanted me in there.
He’s the one that initiated the “let’s get him.” I did the little card-dealing gimmick I did for them [at Double Or Nothing],” recalled Jake Roberts. “That was just a nice thing to do, But then to get invited to do this angle [with Lance Archer) was much bigger.”
The WWE Hall Of Famer continued by saying that his storyline
with Lance Archer is going to be huge and they haven’t really started it yet.
He then mentioned how AEW is doing things the old school way where they are building things up for the long term instead of doing what WWE does. You can check out his full interview at this link.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts has shared some harsh words regarding Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart. During an interview with FlipDaScript, Roberts revealed how he felt that Michaels and Hart were “chumps” who needed the title to be relevant. He claimed the two were the worst champions WWE could have had and that neither man drew any money.
When asked which Superstars needed a championship to be relevant, Jake Roberts was quick to name Michaels and Hart. “Those chumps needed the title. Nobody paid attention to them. [Michaels] was in a tag team and they were pretty good and they made the girls say, ‘Oooh!’ But that’s about it. [Michaels] worked his ass off. I’ll give him that. He performs his ass off. But was he a good champion? Hell no. Did he put asses to seats? Not that many. Check the books.”
He continued, “Bret Hart & Shawn Michaels were the worst champions of all. They did not put money in the bank. Shawn Michaels had the ‘It’ factor but he was 215 pounds and in my day, you’re getting in the ring with 275, 300, 350 pound guys. Then you go Andre who’s 550. Can you imagine Shawn going up against Andre? My case is closed.”
Jake Roberts is currently a part of All Elite Wrestling. After teasing a new association with a key talent, Roberts soon revealed former New Japan Pro-Wrestling star Lance Archer was his new client.
After a week of speculation from fans, the client of WWE Hall of Famer Jake Roberts was revealed as Lance Archer.
The reveal was made during the opening segment of Wednesday’s episode of AEW Dynamite in Salt Lake City, UT at the Maverik Center on TNT when Cody Rhodes was battling Ortiz in a singles match.
The two men walked through the crowd and were sitting at ringside for the match.
Roberts made his All Elite Wrestling debut last week when he did a promo segment with Rhodes about how he didn’t like what the AEW executive was doing.
More specifically, how he was tired of hearing Rhodes complain and had a message for him. This is where he noted that he won’t take on Rhodes but his client will.
Archer was supposed to make his AEW Dynamite debut last week but it was pushed back after late-minute changes to the card.
Archer had a great year in 2019 that was highlighted with impressive performances in the G1 Climax tournament. He also earned his first title under the NJPW banner by winning the IWGP United States Title.
For those who may not recall, Archer, who’s real name is Lance Hoyt, had a run with WWE from 2009 to 2010 where he worked on the ECW and SmackDown brands as Vance Archer.
Jake “the Snake” Roberts shocked the wrestling world last week on Dynamite by coming out to confront Cody Rhodes. Roberts told Cody and the live crowd that he was not there to praise Cody but rather to slay him. He then said he was once told to never turn his back on someone he is afraid of or someone he respects before doing exactly that to Cody.
Roberts mentioned that he has a new client he will be managing and that client is going to face Cody. The legend posted the following details about his new client to his Instagram stories:
Previously, Roberts had posted a picture of his appearance on Dynamite last night with the following caption:
“Beware AEW…The Darkness has arrived. And to answer your questions: Yes I wrote what I said. No I don’t ever do “practice runs.” On the first shot I give you my heart and soul. I’m not giving up my sobriety. And…I have so much more left to do…the time is NOW.”
Jake “the Snake” Roberts
Roberts is arguably one of the most compelling wrestlers of all time and his debut on Dynamite last week garnered a strong response online from fans and those in the wrestling industry alike.
Bully Ray feels Roberts’ AEW debut should lead to a change regarding how the DDT is used in wrestling today:
Dear Wrestlers,
With Jake Roberts returning to #AEWDynamite last night…
If you’re working a match anywhere on the planet and use the DDT in any way, shape or form as a false finish, you should get shoot mafia kicked in the face.
All Elite Wrestling had a surprise in store for fans watching Dynamite on Wednesday night and that was Jake “The Snake” Roberts.
Cody Rhodes came out for a promo near the end of the first hour on TNT in Broomfield, CO at the 1stBank Center.
He did so to call out MJF, who beat Rhodes at Saturday’s AEW Revolution pay-per-view event. Instead of MJF coming out, the WWE Hall of Famer did.
This is where Roberts cut a promo about how he was tired of hearing Rhodes complain and had a message for him. He won’t take on Rhodes but his client will. Roberts never revealed who his client was but referred to the person as The Dark Side.
He noted that they were here to not take the whole company but rather just Rhodes’ piece of the pie.
Roberts ended his promo by stating, “Never ever turn your back on somebody you respect or you’re afraid of” before walking away and tossing the microphone behind him as he exited the ring.
For those who may have forgotten, back at last year’s All Out, Roberts had made an appearance in an AEW video that announced some of the participants for a women’s Casino Battle Royale.
As of this writing, there’s no word yet on who Roberts’ client is or when the person will be revealed.
Jake “the Snake” Roberts was a guest recently on the Bunny Ears podcast with Macauley Culkin. Roberts was, as per usual, open and honest during his appearance on the show. The two talked about steroids, snakes, and pro-wrestling.
“I did a few steroids. I did a little juice basically to recover,” Jake said on the show. “When I had the neck surgery they told me I’d never wrestle again. I’m like ‘it’s a chemical world doc you haven’t got a clue'”
The neck surgery he is referring to took place after the famous angle where the Honky Tonk Man hit him with his guitar on an episode of the Snake Pit.
Jake Roberts Talks Steroids and DDP Yoga
“I went straight to Amsterdam and hooked up,” he continued.
“Within two months, I’d gained 25lbs.”
The WWE Hall of Famer also spoke about how helpful DDP’s Yoga program has been for him in recent years.
“I believe in it,” Jake said of DDP Yoga. “It helps me a lot, it really does. Not just physically but mentally.”
“Bunny Ears is a world-class comedy brand created in 2017 when former Pagemaster Macaulay Culkin woke up from his long slumber (fondly referred to as the “Culkin-Sleep”), took a hard look at the Internet, and realized it was all pretty shitty.
The World community was crying out for comfort so Mack traveled the far reaches of Earth, collecting the funniest, strangest, and horngriest (horny when hungry) fellow comedy writers to answer that call.”
With All Elite Wrestling (AEW) coming off the back of their Double Or Nothing event, it seems as though the entire industry has turned its attention towards the upstart promotion.
AEW has been on a hiring spree in recent months, snapping up a range of both on-air, in-ring, and backstage talent in the process.
Their intentions to change the world of pro wrestling have clearly been heard, and even wrestlers who have nothing to do with the company are now lobbying for a position.
One such talent is WWE Hall Of Famer, Jake “The Snake” Roberts.
“I’m Ready…”
Following the end of Double Or Nothing, Jake commented on Jon Moxley’s debut and the effectiveness of his DDT finisher. Moxley would lay out Kenny Omega at the end of the show with the move.
He tweeted out the following:
“Jon Moxley does a better DDT than dean Ambrose but would be glad to help either one tweak it to make it spot on.”
Jon Moxley does a better DDT than dean Ambrose but would be glad to help either one tweak it to make it spot on.
Since that innocuous tweet, wrestling fans worldwide have been chiming in, with many seemingly clamouring for Roberts to become creatively involved with the company.
Noticing this trend, Roberts has been re-tweeting fan comments in an effort to get AEW’s attention, claiming to be “ready” for AEW wrestling.
What do you think? Would Jake “The Snake” Roberts be an exciting addition to the AEW creative team? Given how many people they have hired, do you think AEW need to bring in any more talent?
David Arquette’s recent return to the professional wrestling world has been met with a lot of criticism. Arquette won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship back in the early 2000s. This came shortly after his success in the film “Ready To Rumble,” which was a big hit with the professional wrestling community.
WCW made the decision to bring in Arquette for real storylines, and he eventually won the World Title. Arquette’s reign as World Champion was viewed as a huge embarrassment and a key contributor to WCW eventually going out of business. Almost 20 years later, however, Arquette wants to earn the respect of the professional wrestling community and lessen to blow his reign had on his reputation.
He has been competing on the independent circuit for the past few months. Recently, Arquette took part in a controversial Hardcore match with Nick Gage. On a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, WWE Hall Of Famer Jake “The Snake” Roberts reviewed the match with Joe Rogan. Roberts doesn’t seem to be much of a fan of Arquette’s in-ring work. The Hall Of Famer told Arquette to get a “day job.”
Arquette Responds To Roberts
Speaking to Booker T on the “Heated Conversations” podcast recently, Arquette responded to Roberts’ comments:
“I was supposed to do a Game Changer event during SummerSlam, I think, in New York, and it didn’t work out with my schedule or whatever, so I had to back out last minute and I was supposed to wrestle Ethan Page, who is an incredible wrestler, and so is Nick Gage.
“I’m not knocking that guy, but it wasn’t gonna be a hardcore match. It was gonna be a regular match, but then Joey Ryan got injured recently, so they had a slot open up and it was in L.A., my hometown. Nick Gage, I wasn’t really aware of him. I knew of him, but I wasn’t really aware of the extent of the whole thing.
“After I started researching him [laughter], I’m like, ‘What am I getting myself into?’ So, I agreed to do it and I’m crazier than some people know. Hollywood definitely knows. That’s why I don’t work quite as much as maybe I’d like to, but I’m real. I always loved Mick Foley, I always loved Terry Funk, – I always loved Jake “The Snake” until he said I should get a day job. I got a day job, Jake The Snake, I got a day job, thank you.”
What do you think about Arquette’s responds to Roberts?
Jake “the Snake” Roberts appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience today. The WWE Hall-of-Famer didn’t hold anything back. He talked about his addiction and 3-year rehabilitation program with “Diamond” Dallas Page.
Jake is in a good place now and credits his good health and fortune to the work of Diamond Dallas Page and his DDPY program. Jake also mentioned things could have turned out much differently for him had he not had a successful WWE career, however.
“To go through 25-30 years of doing cocaine, you know?” Roberts said on the show. “I thank Vince McMahon for affording me my addiction because without I’d be in prison somewhere because I’d of killed someone for my drug.”
Jake would continue to say that life meant nothing to him at the time. He felt confident he would have killed someone to feed his addiction if he had needed to.
The Resurrection of Jake “the Snake” Roberts
Roberts moved in with Diamond Dallas Page in 2012. By the time the DDPY team was confident enough in Roberts that he could be on his own, 3 years had passed. He relapsed 4 times while living with Page.
He was also honest about having been sexually abused as a child, something he’s talked about on speaking tours previously. His father, Grizzly Smith, has been accused of some truly terrible crimes, including sexually abusing Jake’s sister, and former WWF Women’s Champion, Rockin Robin as a child.
Jake Roberts On Coming Up With His Gimmick
“I came up with this idea on in 1975,” Roberts said on the Snake gimmick. “I was watching Monday Night Football and they were talking about Kenny Stabler, who played for the Oakland Raiders.”
The Raiders QB was nicknamed Kenny “the Snake” Stabler and Roberts said he liked the fact Stabler liked to party and he liked the nickname. Jake continued to say Mid-South wouldn’t allow him to bring a snake to the ring, however. He would have to wait until signing with WWF in 1986 before he was able to do so.
As per any Joe Rogan show, they get side-tracked quite a bit. Noted wrestling fan and comedian, Tony Hinchcliffe also appeared on the show.
Jake “the Snake” Roberts is often cited as having had the best in-ring psychology of all-time. He’s now passing down that knowledge to students at the Snake Pit Wrestling Academy.
“Wrestling came naturally to me,” Roberts said to Sports Illustrated recently. “Whenever I thought about something, I’d think, ‘There is only one way to do that.’ There was no question about doing this or doing that. Hell no. Now that got me in trouble a couple of times, because I spoke my voice, but I always believed that if you’re going to do it, you do it right.”
According to Jake, wrestling today needs more psychology and less big bumps and high-spots.
The WWE Hall of Famer will be running a seminar on July 28th, 2018.
“That’s what I don’t get about the young talent today,” Roberts continued. “So many matches are the same. Don’t they get bored? It’s ridiculous what they waste, and they don’t even know they’re wasting it. I blame that on the new way of wrestling; if you come up now, you can be in the main event within a year. In my day, you had to learn. We had the territories that forced us to constantly grow and change.”
Another difference between wrestling in his day and today Roberts notes is the psychology behind moves.
“I had six moves,” Roberts said. “I knew when to do them and I did them absolutely perfectly, and people believed them. Teaching this class, I’m going to make people think differently. The truth is in what you’ve done and where you’ve been, and there are not many people who have done more than I have.”
Roberts would continue to say that wrestling fans have given him everything he has in his life.
“Without the fans, you have no wrestling,” he said. “Without the fans, I’d have had no life. The fans have given me more than I can ever give them. They showed me that all my years of sacrificing meant something, and I do appreciate it.”
WWE Hall Of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart reportedly set up a telephone call between Jake “The Snake” Roberts and Harry Smith Jr., son of the late WWE legend “The British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith to settle the issues between the two.
As noted, Roberts and Smith Jr. were reportedly involved in an incident at the WrestleCon event that took place during WrestleMania weekend in New Orleans earlier this month.
According to multiple sources, Smith Jr. walked up to a table where Roberts was signing autographs and without being provoked, threw a cup of scolding hot coffee in Roberts’ face. This reportedly led to security quickly coming in and breaking things up before they escalated.
Following the incident, Roberts filed charges against Smith Jr., which he apparently dropped after the aforementioned phone call set up by Bret Hart.
Harry Smith Jr. Writes About Phone Conversation
“I’d like to announce publicly and officially that I spoke with Jake Roberts on the phone today and we squashed heat we have for what happened at the WrestleCon event,” wrote Smith Jr. about squashing his beef with Roberts. “I apologized and said I would apologize publicly as Jake agreed he would be dropping any charges pressed against me.
“I’m a man of my word and I’d like to say sorry to any fans that I stressed with this situation also,” Smith Jr. added. “I wish Jake all the best and glad that we squashed the heat. I actually had spoken to Roddy Piper before he passed away about the podcast Jake and he did. I’m certainly glad we worked things out, as Roddy died [not] long after.”
What do you think of the latest developments in the situation involving Jake Roberts and Harry Smith Jr.? Sound off in the Comments section below.
There was an incident over WrestleMania weekend where Harry Smith (Davey Boy Smith Jr) is alleged to have thrown a cup of coffee in the face of Jake “the Snake” Roberts. The incident is said to have happened during WrestleCon.
New Orleans Police are now looking for Smith according to Pro Wrestling Sheet. A representative for the New Orleans Police Department issued the following statement:
“The NOPD is investigating a simple battery incident that occurred on April 7, 2018 in the 500 block of Canal Street. The victim told police that at about 11 a.m., he was signing autographs at the location when he was approached by a known subject, later identified as Harry Smith (DOB: 08-02-1985). The victim told police he attempted to shake hands with Smith, at which time a verbal argument ensued. Smith then allegedly threw a cup of coffee at the victim’s face and fled the scene. No major injuries were reported by the victim.”
This is technically the remnants of a feud which began with Jake and Harry’s father in the 1980s. Roberts has made public disparaging comments about Smith’s father. Davey Boy Smith Sr. and his partner, the Dynamite Kid, had a reputation for being bullies. Several wrestlers from the era have spoken out against their actions during this period.
Roberts has told a story of how the Bulldogs used to throw lit cigarettes at his snake to upset him. In retaliation to this, Jake fed Matilda (the Bulldogs pet bulldog) food laced with laxatives. When prompted, Jake is not shy about sharing his hatred for the now-deceased Davey Boy Smith Sr.
Shortly after the incident, Davey Boy Smith Jr. admitted to WrestleZone that he confronted Jake at WrestleCon. Smith says he asked Jake to apologize for the negative comments he made about his father. According to Smith, Jake offered to shake his hand but refused to apologize for his comments or step outside to fight the much younger Smith. After Jake told the member of the Killer Elite Squad to “F Off”, Smith says he threw the coffee in his face.
The New Orleans Police Department is asking anyone with knowledge of the incident to contact them.
WWE Hall Of Famer Jake “The Snake” Roberts was recently interviewed on the Prime Time with Sean Mooney podcast to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Roberts first discussed how his poor relationship with his father, Aurelian “Grizzly” Smith, both angered and motivated him in his professional wrestling career:
“It was ultimately about anger. I was upset with my father. For me, to be in a locker room where there are crude jokes being made, but are being thrown at me because of my father. That blistered me. It made me feel so empty inside, and so full of shame. Shame is such a dangerous thing to deal with,” Roberts said.
“I had a tough time in the locker room because sometimes wrestlers have this hard-edge to them. There were a lot of things being said and done, and as I look back I wondered how I was able to overcome all of that.”
He then discussed how professional wrestling was his life 24/7, and he sometimes even wonders if he could’ve accomplished more:
“The way I was able to was because of the wrestling. It would consume my mind, heart and soul, it was 24/7 wrestling. I couldn’t trust anything else in life to be fair, because I never knew what was going to come to me next. Just to be able to focus on wrestling and have a great career, sometimes I think about how I could have accomplished so much more.
“Maybe I could have, but I feel that I did a hell of a lot,” Roberts said. “I had a pretty good career; rang some bells, and all of that. I am just so grateful for what I did do, and so grateful to of found the right woman to have children with and that my children do not have alcohol of drug issues. I am so grateful for that. My oldest daughter heads the largest rehab in the world.”
Prior to signing with WWE, Roberts earned his claim to fame during his run in Mid South Wrestling. His work caught the attention of Vince McMahon, who offered him a deal he was initially hesitant to accept. Eventually Roberts realized a WWE move was what was best for his career:
“I gave my notice to Mid-South, and they accepted it. Vince McMahon had tried to hire me before when I was in Georgia Championship Wrestling. I wanted to stay true to the NWA, so I didn’t go. Few years later I gave my notice after being screwed over again by Bill Watts. I picked up the phone and called New York and asked to speak with Vince McMahon,” Roberts explained.
“They said that Vince McMahon wasn’t going to be around for a few more weeks, and I was thinking, ‘Oh my God, I just gave my notice, so what am I going to do?’ I let my wife know that I couldn’t get a hold of him, and of course she didn’t want to hear that. As soon as I was going to head to the gym she said that Vince McMahon was on the phone, which I didn’t believe her.
“I went to the phone and he had told me to get on the airplane and fly up there, which was what I did. I sat down with him and we had a decent conversation, and that was that.”
You can listen to Roberts’ interview on the Prime Time with Sean Mooney podcast by clicking this link here.
