Jake Hager Reveals His Top Pick For The Mount Rushmore Of Wrestling
Jake Hager has revealed a surprising name as his top pick for the Mount Rushmore of wrestling.
The 43-year-old former WWE Champion recently announced his retirement from wrestling. He was signed with AEW from 2019 to 2024.
Prior to All Elite Wrestling, Hager wrestled in WWE, where he won two World Championships.
He debuted with the Stamford promotion in 2009 and was assigned to the ECW brand.
During a recent appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Jake Hager discussed his journey as a wrestler and life after retirement.
He also named Chris Jericho as the top pick for his Mount Rushmore of wrestling.
Hager had notable feuds with the Canadian legend in WWE. He worked closely with Jericho in AEW and was a part of the Inner Circle and Jericho Appreciation Society factions with him.
Inner Circle was one of my favorite things to do in pro wrestling. I love those guys. JAS, Daddy Magic. I mean, I just really loved working with Chris. He’s number one on my Mount Rushmore, Chris Jericho, because he can just constantly reinvent himself.
He can not only do that, but he can see what he has around him, and he knows how to elevate us, bring it up and make it look good. Chris Jericho is the reason why that purple hat was so over. [H/T: Insight with Chris Van Vliet]
Jake Hager Addresses Criticism Of His WWE World Heavyweight Championship Reign
Jake Hager won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the April 2 episode of SmackDown in 2010.
Incidentally, he pinned Chris Jericho by cashing in his Money in the Bank contract, which he had won at WrestleMania XXVI.
This move from the promotion was criticized, as many fans believed he lacked credibility due to the presence of more experienced talents on the roster, including Randy Orton, Edge, and John Cena.
Jake Hager addressed the backlash on the podcast as well.
I mean, I’m on a list, a very elite list, of World Heavyweight Champions. I don’t really care what people think. Hindsight is 20/20. I got into this for me, I’m glad you guys like me, I don’t care if you hate me. I’m not gonna sacrifice my happiness to worry about that stuff, especially in this day and age with social media. It is what it is. I’m a World Heavyweight Champion, whether you like it or not.