Commentary plays such a huge role within wrestling, providing the soundtrack to everything that is going on. It is crucial that the team works well together, has strong chemistry, and knows how to tell stories.
With Raw being WWE's flagship show, the company tends to put plenty of effort into the commentary team. For the most part, Raw's history has some amazing commentary teams, but there have also been some very poor ones as well.
10 Best: Gorilla Monsoon & Bobby Heenan
This commentary team is one of the best of all time, with the two of them being legendary announcers who really knew how to get an audience invested. They would easily drag fans in and get them connected to the storyline which is crucial for a commentary team.
While they would bicker and argue, which is normally off-putting, they even managed to make that incredibly entertaining, having a lot of fun throughout their time together.
9 Worst: Michael Cole & JBL
There were moments in time where the duo of Michael Cole and JBL worked nicely together, bringing enough energy to make things work. However, when they weren't good, it was a total disaster and sadly that was more often than not.
They didn't bring the right sort of vibe to the show, with both of them clearly pushing Vince McMahon's message across. They really needed one of the man to work as a clear babyface here to make things work better.
8 Best: Tom Phillips, Samoa Joe, Byron Saxton
The current commentary team that is working right now has easily become one of the best that Raw has ever had. The trio bounces off each other really well and seeing young vibrant, and energetic individuals working the show after so long really is welcomed.
Tom Phillips is perfect as the anchor for the show, while Byron is happy to play up as a top babyface. But it is Samoa Joe that really makes this team stand out. His analysis, tone, and passion just really come through to create a fantastic and energetic performance each night.
7 Worst: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Jerry Lawler
Speaking of modern commentary teams, while the current Raw broadcast is working really nicely, the previous one wasn't. While Tom and Byron did a solid job, it was Jerry Lawler who really ruined the flow.
While he has been a fantastic commentator over his career, it's fair to say that his peak years are behind him. He just didn't fit the pace of the faster product, was out of touch with his comments, and generally just didn't work.
6 Best: Jim Ross & Paul Heyman
Jim Ross and Paul Heyman are two of the greatest commentators of all time, so sticking them together was always going to work well. With JR playing the babyface and Heyman acting as the heel, their chemistry was just fantastic.
They spent a lot of time arguing, but it didn't take away from the product, which is crucial. They always put over the talent and the storylines, and that is why they worked so perfectly together.
5 Worst: Josh Matthews, Michael Cole, Booker T
This was a wild trio that WWE put together and it was very intense to listen to all the time. Josh Matthews and Michael Cole were just far too similar to ever work on the same booth, and that meant they often blended in together.
Matthews didn't go over the top with his selling which brought a lack of energy, whereas Booker would always go too far, making things quite wild and erratic.
4 Best: Vince McMahon & Randy Savage
Vince McMahon was always golden on commentary, which is no real surprise considering how great of a talker he has always been. When he worked alongside Randy Savage, the two men really came out well together having perfect chemistry.
They are both well-known for their over-the-top personalities, and for commentary, that is exactly what is needed. They knew when to push the storyline and they knew when to calm things down to let the wrestling do the talking, which was very impressive.
3 Worst: Corey Graves, Michael Cole, Renee Young
The idea of putting Renee Young onto commentary was a fantastic one, on paper. She's so charismatic and full of energy, having a genuine connection with audiences that it is easy to see where WWE was coming from with this idea.
However, the execution just didn't work. Renee didn't suit commentary, which is something she's admitted, and the trio never really managed to get going with any real chemistry, which is a shame.
2 Best: Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler
When wrestling fans think about Raw commentary teams, this iconic two-man duo is often the first thing they go to. That's because JR and Jerry Lawler got to be the voices for some of WWE's most successful years, providing incredible storytelling throughout.
They bounced off each other so well during their time together, with Lawler playing the heel at the right time and JR bringing unforgettable passion and charisma. They simply were the perfect pair.
1 Worst: Michael Cole & Jerry Lawler
Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler are two fantastic commentators who both know how to play their roles to perfection. However, when they were brought together, WWE decided to push Michael Cole as a heel down everyone's throats.
This entire situation simply became unbearable and lasted way too long. Cole was insufferable and while he was supposed to be getting heat things got to the point where audiences were just desperate to not hear from him again, which isn't what you want from a commentary team.