Jim Ross has opened up about the pressure of calling WWE television while Vince McMahon was giving instructions through his headset, revealing that being shouted at was a regular part of his experience behind the commentary desk.

Speaking on Grilling JR, Ross discussed what it was like having McMahon communicating with him during live broadcasts. According to the WWE Hall of Famer, if McMahon had a working connection to the announce team, Ross could expect to hear plenty from him.

“If his headset was working, and there was somebody on the other end, you can bet your sweet a** he was going to be yelling. I don’t understand it. I don’t know if it’s apprehension, or someone being especially insecure, or they got to be in control. I don’t know, because oftentimes he’d tell me to say something that I’d already said, because he wasn’t listening.”

Ross recalled that there were occasions when McMahon became frustrated over something he believed had been missed on commentary, only for Ross to point out that he had already addressed it on the broadcast.

“I had a situation one time where something happened in the ring, and he got hotter than hell because I didn’t say something regarding the match. And if I had not said anything, then he had a legitimate (thing to say). But the problem was I’d already said it.”

Ross then remembered one particular exchange during a commercial break on Monday Night Raw.

“I remember we went to a commercial break on Monday Night Raw, and he said to me, JR, did you hear what I told you to say? Yeah, I heard you, but I already said it. By saying it again it made us both look stupid. Oh, that’s a good idea. Okay. Whatever. But I’d already said it. He just wouldn’t listen.”

Despite the difficulties, Ross acknowledged that McMahon had considerably more responsibilities than simply listening to what was being said at the announce desk. He suggested the former WWE Chairman could have been dealing with any number of different aspects of the company while simultaneously producing the broadcast.

“But you got to also understand, I’m not saying he’s not interested in the product. He runs everything. He might be sitting there approving T-shirt designs. Hell, I don’t know. So, in any event, he was challenging to work for every time out.”

One noticeable difference, according to Ross, was how McMahon treated his longtime broadcast partner Jerry “The King” Lawler.

Ross said McMahon never shouted at Lawler through the headset, believing McMahon understood that Lawler simply would not tolerate being treated that way.

“Some nights, my best times with WWE as an announcer, working with Lawler, and Heyman was great too. So I worked with some mighty powerful broadcasters in my day. But I had a great experience working with Lawler because Vince never yelled at Lawler, because he knew Lawler couldn’t take it and wouldn’t take it. So I never heard Vince lash out at Jerry, not one time. Me, on the other hand, several times a show.”

Elsewhere during the episode, Ross reflected further on his partnership with Lawler during WWE’s Attitude Era. Interestingly, he revealed that the pair did not attend production meetings together, largely because Lawler had little interest in doing so.

Ross felt Lawler possessed such a natural understanding of professional wrestling that extensive preparation was unnecessary.

“He had such a great feel for the business in general that he didn’t need much preparation of that sort to be effective. I always thought that I was so lucky that I got to work with Bobby Heenan and Jerry Lawler, because they both made me look better and be better than I probably actually was.”

Ross and Lawler became one of WWE’s most recognisable commentary partnerships, providing the soundtrack to countless memorable moments during the Attitude Era and beyond.