Jim Ross has shared his thoughts on Mick Foley joining AEW, calling it a strong addition for the company as Foley prepares to co-host the Double or Nothing Buy In.

During the latest episode of Grilling JR, Ross reacted to Tony Khan announcing Foley as a co-host alongside Renee Paquette. The move ended months of speculation surrounding Foley’s interest in AEW, especially as his WWE Legends deal is set to expire in June 2026.

Ross made it clear he sees value in Foley’s role, particularly in an analyst position rather than play-by-play commentary.

“I’m really excited about it. I think it’s a great get for Tony Khan. Foley brings credibility, he brings tenure, he brings name identity, and I think he’s looking at continuing to develop and evolve his commentating in this role. Of course, you’re kind of an analyst, and he’ll do a better job of being an analyst than he would if they had the bright idea to make him a play-by-play guy. You know, we’re loaded with play-by-play guys, so that’s good, and it’ll be a different sound on Sunday night.”

Ross also addressed the possibility of Foley getting physically involved in AEW programming. While he did not rule it out, he suggested any in-ring activity would be limited rather than a full match.

“I can see him, you know, throwing a few punches, or getting somebody in the mandible claw, stuff like that, but him working out a complete match, I find that to be doubtful, and maybe it will happen. I’m not doubting it. I don’t think it’s a bad idea if it’s done right. You got to treat Mick very, very special and put him into situations that he can pull off that he’s good at, so, but I can’t see having Mick Foley on TV, and somewhere along the way, not using him with a little bit of physicality. I think that will happen.”

The discussion also led Ross to evaluate AEW’s current roster depth. He pointed to the Double or Nothing lineup as an example of how the company has steadily built a strong and balanced roster.

“It’s funny, you know, you take a look intelligently at the roster of AEW, it’s all of a sudden almost, I don’t want to say overnight, because that’s not accurate, but I think it’s pretty impressive, the roster that they built, they’re building. That really struck home with me tonight when they were running down the card for Sunday night on pay per view. They all of a sudden you get deeper in a card, like in the middle, and that might be being too skeptical, I don’t know, but when you hear those matches that are used to build the whole card and all that, I just, I’m impressed. I’m really impressed with how their roster is coming together. It’s easy to see how hard these guys and gals work. They bust their ass, man. And I think this is awesome.”

Ross is scheduled to call the Double or Nothing event alongside Excalibur and Taz, while Foley will be featured on the Buy In pre-show. At this time, there is no confirmation on whether Foley’s role with AEW will continue beyond this appearance.

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