Monday Night Raw Undergoes (Temporary?) Commentary Change

A little shakeup. Commentary is one of the most important parts about wrestling and something that is often taken for granted. The commentary team is tasked with keeping track of everything that is going on in the show and making it clear where things are supposed to go. They serve as the fans’ guides on the show and a change to the lineup can mess things up. Such a change took place during this week’s television.

Like him or not, Michael Cole has one of the longest serving on-screen tenures in WWE history. He has been a regular on WWE television for over twenty years and was the heir apparent to Jim Ross as the voice of WWE. That isn’t a spot that you get on the drop of a hat and Cole has been on SmackDown since the latest WWE Draft. We might be seeing a change this week, at least for one night.

Cole provided play by play during this week’s Monday Night Raw in a surprise appearance. Tom Phillips was not present for the show with Cole explaining it as Phillips having the week off. There is no word on any reason for Phillips’ absence and no word on any backstage heat or issues with him. It is not clear if this is a one off change or something that will lead to a permanent switch.

You might need to get used to Cole on Monday. Check out some of his better moments:

Opinion: This certainly feels like a wait and see situation and that is not a bad thing. Cole can call WWE television as well as anyone else and he is a perfectly acceptable replacement. The good thing about WWE commentary is how interchangeable so many of their broadcasters really are. They can be swapped in and out without much effort, though hopefully everything is fine with Phillips, who is a perfectly good commentator.

What do you think of the switch? Who should call each show? Let us know in the comments below.

Thomas Hall has been a wrestling fan for over thirty years and has seen over 50,000 wrestling matches. He has also been a wrestling reviewer since 2009 with over 5,000 full shows covered. You can find his work at kbwrestlingreviews.com, or check out his- Amazon author page with 30 wrestling books. Get the latest and greatest in professional wrestling news by signing up for our daily email newsletter. Just look below for “GET EXCLUSIVE UPDATES” to sign up. Thank you for reading!