Legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross was one of the more notable personalities to land with the new AEW promotion shortly after the company launched, but WWE was given every chance to keep him.

On the Grilling JR podcast (h/t Ringside News), Ross said Vince McMahon claimed that he was unable to match the offer, whereas JR believes that WWE could have - they just simply didn't want to:

"(Vince said) "Well I can’t match that.’ -- ‘Well you can match it, you can match it, but you won’t match it, and nor would I advise you if I was in my old roll, to match it.’ Let him go."

Ross' deal with AEW was reportedly for three years, and he isn't limited to announcing. JR also works as a senior advisor for the new promotion. The contract with AEW was signed after it was revealed that WWE would not re-sign him in March.

JR left WWE in 2013 amid rumors that he was fired for being drunk at a WWE 2K14 event. Ross said that he was retiring, however. At either rate, he was gone from the company and spent time in New Japan Pro-Wrestling before returning to the WWE in 2017 - where he called one match at WrestleMania 33. Ross made a handful of sporadic appearances for WWE before eventually landing in AEW.

Related: Jim Ross Reveals Vince McMahon's Reaction When He Told Him He Was Joining AEW

via Sports Illustrated

Ross has been a tremendous add to the AEW commentary team, showing that he's still capable of performing at the level that made him a beloved figure in the WWE. Maybe he didn't leave Vince's promotion on the greatest terms, but JR certainly isn't complaining about his role in AEW.

Of course, JR isn't the only notable wrestling personality who left WWE for AEW. Dean Ambrose rejected a new deal and wound up joining AEW on a multi-year contract, where he now performs as Jon Moxley. Chris Jericho also opted to head over to AEW following a successful stint in NJPW. And it certainly sounds like there will be more WWE talents joining AEW in the near future.

What This Means

Ross is still a top-notch commentator and deserved the opportunity to do more play-by-play action, so it's no surprise he wound up in AEW. McMahon and WWE officials have never been afraid to part ways with top veteran talents (wrestlers, announcers and other important personnel). At the end of the day, Ross' decision to head to AEW was the best for himself, and the wrestling world shouldn't have any complaints about it.

Next: 10 Changes We Can Expect From WWE As AEW's Pressure Mounts