2026 is a year that hasn't come easy at all for AEW's Jim Ross in the health department, and unfortunately things only seem to be getting harder for him as the year comes to a close. Taking to X on Tuesday morning, Ross' "Grilling JR" co-host revealed the unfortunate news that Ross was scheduled to have yet another surgery. Thompson tagged Ross in the post so the announcing legend could have some positive vibes sent his way, and declared that Ross "deserved a break" from all the hardship he'd dealt with this year.As seen in the post, Thompson confirmed that surgery was being done on a shunt in Ross' brain. Ross had previously had the shunt inserted during another surgery, but afterward complained that the procedure had resulted in complications that left him experiencing headaches so painful that he was unable to sleep. Ross went under the knife in early October to correct the issue; Thompson would later state the surgery was successful, though a second surgery related to the shunt a month later would suggest that the complications returned.Ross' three surgeries are only a couple of the issues that he's dealt with throughout 2026, including a fall he suffered just a day before he appeared at AEW Double or Nothing back in May. Prior to his October surgery, Ross revealed he was undergoing several biopsies to determine whether he had contracted skin cancer, which he had previously had a few years earlier, and that an X-Ray had found a spot on his kidney. Just a week after his surgery, Ross was in the hospital for unrelated reasons to the procedure or his cancer scares, having been admitted due to low oxygen.
