Jim Ross Remembers Vince McMahon Getting Pissed Off During WWE Signing

Once upon a time, Vince McMahon was not crazy about giving Brock Lesnar a large sum of money — a statement that's hard to believe knowing Lesnar is one of the highest-paid, if not the highest-paid, professional wrestlers in WWE. Nonetheless, while on "Grilling JR," WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross revealed a time when the former chairman of the board worried that Lesnar was being overpaid.

"I got to the point where Vince allowed me to sign people," Ross said. "He had no clue who John Cena was. When I told him what I was going to pay Brock Lesnar, he looked at me like I was insane, and he was pissed because I think my first offer to Lesnar that I was going to sign him for was [$250,000] ...  I think Rock got a million. But they're on this deal where you get paid by your performance, or on your performance, and much sooner than later, those guys are blowing those numbers away."

"Same storyline when I got Chris Jericho," Ross continued. "I paid him less in WCW to enter than he earned exiting WCW, if that makes any sense to you, and I signed him for less money ... I told him, 'If you're as good as you think you are, and if you're as good as I think you are, you're going to do alright'. So he was soon making seven figures and he made it every year since."

Of course, when it comes to Lesnar, McMahon was proven wrong — Lesnar had more success, more quickly, than almost anyone in WWE history. He's a 10-time world champion in WWE and has a chance to become an 11-time champ when he takes on Roman Reigns at SummerSlam on July 30th for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship in a Last Man Standing Match.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Grilling JR" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.