Michael Cole has been with WWE for decades, trying his hand at everything from backstage correspondence to actually stepping into the ring as a competitor. He's been called the "Voice of WWE"since 2013, when he took over after Jim Ross left the company. For a long time after his play-by-play career began in 1998, Cole didn't know why Ross was considered the greatest of all time, as he felt they were doing the same thing. Then he came to a realization."Jim Ross had emotion," Cole said on "What's YourStory?" "Even the simplest calls out of Jim Ross, you could feel it come from [his heart] and that's why people believed in him." Cole hopes that fans have been able to feel that from him because he's tried to emulate that to some degree.For many years after Cole came to WWE, he was referred to as "Jim Ross' replacement" ad nauseum. "Those are massive, massive shoes to fill,"Cole continued. "They were tough shoes to fill because JR was a lifer in this business."Cole stated that he came into the business at 30 and didn't know what he was getting into, but he had the confidence of Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn when he first started. "I'm not sure I had the belief in me until the light bulb went on and I said, 'I think I may belong here.'" Cole said that he struggled for a decade to figure out what his voice was and how it differed from JR.If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "What's Your Story?" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
