Chris Jericho's legendary wrestling career is still going strong in AEW after many years of greatness in WWE and WCW. Jericho is among the best in-ring performers of all-time, but that may even be second to his general greatness on the microphone. His promo work talks fans into wanting to watch his biggest matches or hype their interest in an entire wrestling program.
Today, we look back at the best overall promos from Jericho’s entire wrestling career. They range from his monumental start in WCW to his iconic stints in WWE to his impressive reinvention going down in AEW. All these promos are segments aspiring wrestlers should study to learn about the importance of talking. Find out which ones are the best of his career with the top ten promos of Chris Jericho!
10 His Showdown with CM Punk about being the best in the world
The storyline between CM Punk and Chris Jericho allowed them both to deliver incredible promos selling their personal issues with each other. One specific promo ahead of their match at WrestleMania 28 would focus on both men wanting to be called the best wrestler in the world.
Jericho delivered an outstanding promo, saying the “best in the world” title was not a t-shirt phrase he used, but it was a belief he had in his work. Punk responded by saying he was at a top-level Jericho never reached in WWE. The promos helped add much needed tension to the storyline.
9 Introducing cruiserweight battle royal contestants
The cruiserweight division in WCW would see Chris Jericho become one of its breakout stars. Jericho could not move up into the upper card since WCW kept a lower ceiling on the undercard talents, but the creative freedom in the division made for great television.
A memorable battle royal would see the entire cruiserweight division competing for an instant title shot against Jericho. The ring introductions by special guest announcer Jericho featured him delivering hilarious jokes about every performer. Dean Malenko eventually won the match to gain revenge on Jericho in a great match.
8 A Conversation with MJF
Chris Jericho has completely reinvented himself during the new stint in AEW. Jericho's impressive promos have somehow improved throughout the years, as the older Jericho now has even more experience and confidence on the microphone.
Young rising star MJF turned on Cody Rhodes and had a promo segment with Jericho explaining his actions. The two heels went back and forth with slight insults before revealing they were on the same page in their hatred of Cody. Jericho’s comedic timing was impeccable here with MJF stepping up as well.
7 Jericho and The Rock vs Booker, Rhyno and the McMahon kids
A memorable segment on Raw during the Invasion storyline would see Chris Jericho and The Rock playing a game of keep up with each other as they tried to insult mutual enemies. Booker T and Shane McMahon were the rivals of Rock while Jericho had issues with Rhyno and Stephanie McMahon.
The two comedic personalities delivered vulgar one-liners insulting both their wrestling rivals and the respective enemy of the McMahon family. Jericho proved that he was a top tier promo keeping up with Rock during Rock’s peak as a talker in WWE.
6 Telling Michael Cole to shut up
Chris Jericho's serious era saw him donning a suit and tie along with a more brutal approach. However, there were some instances where Jericho cut loose with some humorous moments, as seen in WWE’s Raw General Manager storyline.
Here, Michael Cole was seen reading the emails of a mysterious figure. Jericho cut an effective promo making demands from the GM before cutting down Cole. The hilarious comments would see Jericho telling Cole to “shut up” and “read the email” rather than announcing that he was getting an email. This was likely the peak of the Raw GM storyline.
5 His WWE debut
WWE showed huge confidence in Chris Jericho by having him debut as a huge reveal to end of the Y2J clock in 1999. Jericho did great work in WCW, but he was always a lower card or mid-card performer. WWE spotlighted him in a bigger role right away on his first night.
Jericho received a massive pop in the debut as the big reveal. It was even more impressive that he cut a promo interrupting The Rock during Rock’s run as a mega-star. The two future legends went to battle on the microphone with Jericho having an all-time great debut.
4 Introducing the Inner Circle in AEW
Chris Jericho’s promo on the second-ever AEW show would give us some insight into his new faction. The heels of Jake Hager, Santana, Ortiz and Sammy Guevara all helped Jericho in the prior week as a group that seemed like more than just random heels working together.
Jericho cut an outstanding promo revealing the name of the Inner Circle while hyping up each member. Hager received “We the People” chants regarding his WWE act with Jericho, shutting them down telling the audience that the “bad idea from bad creative” was “dead and buried” in entertaining fashion.
3 Kevin Owens and Jericho blame Roman Reigns
Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho's run as best friends helped carry the Raw brand in the first few months of the 2016 brand split. Owens’ Universal Championship reign featured many entertaining promo segments for both since Jericho was now part of the act.
The loss for Team Raw at Survivor Series 2016 would see Jericho and Owens threatening to blame each other on the Raw the following night. Upon revealing the person at fault, they both said “Roman Reigns” at the same time, showing they were pulling our chain all along. The crowd responded with a huge pop as the comedic timing of Jericho and Owens created a great moment.
2 Turning heel on Shawn Michaels
Chris Jericho’s 2008 feud with Shawn Michaels changed his career for the better. It was the first time Jericho viewed himself as the “best wrestler in the world” due to the outstanding matches and incredible promo segments between the two.
Jericho's official heel turn came when he threw Michaels’ head into a television screen before beating the hell out of him. Jericho’s promo showed his frustration as he caught Michaels lying all along and the fans refused to boo their hero for it. The moment created a new character change that made Jericho an even bigger star.
1 The Man of 1,004 holds
The feud between Chris Jericho and Dean Malenko was one of the most underrated stories in WCW history. Jericho was able to showcase his comedic promo skills in this rivalry with one of the most serious competitors in wrestling.
The moniker of “The Man of 1,000 Holds” was given to Malenko for his hit list of incredible moves. Jericho countered by showing off a giant sheet of paper that listed the 1,004 holds he knew, with the promo starting and continuing after a commercial break. The word "armbar" was used multiple times in the hilarious promo that fans still talk about today.