A positive health update from Jim Ross

Most of s we do about legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross these days are focused on his health struggles and the latest medical procedures he’s had done to treat them. Even news of JR’s new AEW contract focused on how the 72 year old has said is likely his last, or how he’ll work a limited schedule.

But in a new interview with Sports Illustrated promoting his new book, Business is About to Pick Up: 50 Years of Wrestling in 50 Unforgettable Calls, the WWE Hall of Famer indicates that he’s on the upswing:

“My health is better than it’s been in over a year, I’m happy to say. My right hip, that’s healing and getting better. My radiation wound from skin cancer–and I’m cancer-free–is still healing. Vaping has helped. It’s allowed me to stop taking pain medication and get me through the night.

“I’m feeling good. And I’m still doing what I love.”

An example of how Ross loves his work comes in his story about working Sting’s last match at AEW’s March Revolution PPV despite the fact he was still recuperating from hip replacement surgery. It sounds like focusing on the job and his colleagues also helps JR keep his situation in perspective:

“I had my right hip replaced, and it’s healing nicely, but my surgeon and I failed to schedule a follow-up, so I didn’t realize I had 28 staples in my hip.

“[Revolution] was my first trip after the hip surgery. I kept thinking to myself, ‘This is painful.’ I thought it was me. Really, it was the staples causing all the pain.

“It was a very emotional night, and that pulse from the people at the Greensboro Coliseum was a great treatment for making my pain subside. Even if I knew I the adversity I was going to be in, I still would have gone. Sting means the world to me. I wasn’t going to miss it.

“Everybody talks about Sting in WCW, but I met Sting when he was tagging with Rick Steiner–and before that, Jim Hellwig–in Mid-South. When Cowboy [Bill Watts] fired Hellwig, he made sure to tell Sting he was wanted. He’s such a natural babyface. It’s hard to boo the guy. So I dealt with the pain. There are people out there in this world who have it a lot worse than me.”

Check out SI’s entire interview with Ross here, and learn more about Business is About to Pick Up here.