Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling, where he both wrestles and serves as Director of Business Development. He is also the founder of the revived Acclaim Entertainment.
Beginning his career in his father Jerry Jarrett's Continental Wrestling Association in 1986, Jarrett first came to prominence upon debuting with a country music star gimmick in the World Wrestling Federation in 1993. Over the next nine years, he alternated between the WWF and its main competitor, World Championship Wrestling. After WCW was purchased by the WWF in 2001, Jarrett joined the upstart World Wrestling All-Stars promotion. In 2002, Jarrett and his father together founded NWA: Total Nonstop Action. After departing the promotion in 2014, Jarrett founded another new promotion, Global Force Wrestling. After a failed merger between TNA and GFW, he cut ties with TNA. Jarrett then wrestled in Mexico for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide before returning to WWE in January 2019 as an on-screen talent and producer. He departed WWE once more in August 2022, making his debut with AEW that November.
Jarrett has headlined multiple pay-per-view events, including TNA's flagship annual event, Bound for Glory, on two occasions. A third-generation wrestler, Jarrett has had over 80 championship reigns throughout his career, among them the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, WCW World Heavyweight Championship, and AAA Mega Championship. He was inducted into the TNA Hall of Fame in 2015 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018.
Early life
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett was born on July 14, 1967, in Hendersonville, Tennessee. He comes from a family with deep ties to the professional wrestling industry. His father, Jerry Jarrett, was a prominent wrestler and promoter, best known for his work in the Southern United States. Jarrett's maternal grandfather, Eddie Marlin, was also a professional wrestler, and his paternal grandmother, Christine Jarrett, worked for longtime Nashville promoters Nick Gulas and Roy Welch, making him a third-generation member of the wrestling business.Jarrett attended Goodpasture Christian School in Madison, Tennessee, where he participated in athletics, including basketball. While still in high school, he began working in the wrestling business, initially serving as a referee for his father's promotion, the Continental Wrestling Association.
Professional wrestling career
Early career (1986–1993)
Jarrett made his professional wrestling debut on April 6, 1986, at the age of 18. The match took place in the Continental Wrestling Association, where he had been working as a referee. In a storyline angle, Tony Falk, who was on an extended losing streak, challenged Jarrett to a match, which ended in a ten-minute time-limit draw. Jarrett received his in-ring training from his father, Jerry Jarrett, and longtime Tennessee-area wrestler and trainer Tojo Yamamoto.During the late 1980s, Jarrett competed for multiple regional promotions, including the American Wrestling Association and the Continental Wrestling Federation. In 1989, Jerry Jarrett purchased the Texas-based World Class Championship Wrestling and merged it with the CWA to form the United States Wrestling Association, based in Memphis, Tennessee. Jeff Jarrett became one of the promotion's top stars, capturing the USWA Southern Heavyweight Championship ten times and the USWA World Tag Team Championship fifteen times with a variety of partners.
Jarrett also began wrestling internationally during this period. In 1990, he toured Japan with the Super World of Sports promotion, which featured working agreements with American talent. He also competed in Puerto Rico for the World Wrestling Council, as well as on the broader independent circuit.
World Wrestling Federation (1992, 1993–1996)
Early appearances (1992)
Jarrett made his first appearance with the World Wrestling Federation on August 9, 1992, during a live event at the Memphis Pyramid. As part of a cross-promotional storyline with the United States Wrestling Association, Jarrett sat ringside alongside Jerry Lawler and issued an open challenge to any WWF wrestler. That evening, he faced Kamala in an impromptu match, winning by disqualification. Bret Hart accepted Jarrett's challenge for a future match in Memphis, but the bout was later canceled due to inclement weather.Beginning in October 1992, Jarrett wrestled several untelevised matches for the WWF, primarily on house shows. Notable victories during this period included wins over Mondo Kleen and Barry Horowitz. On October 28, at a Wrestling Challenge taping in Louisville, Kentucky, Jarrett defeated Rick Martel. After the canceled match with Hart, Jarrett returned to competing full-time in the USWA.
Double J persona and early feuds (1993–1994)
Nearly a year later, Jarrett returned to the World Wrestling Federation. He made his televised return on October 23, 1993, on WWF Superstars of Wrestling as a heel under the gimmick of "Double J" Jeff Jarrett, a country music singer who intended to elevate his singing career through his exposure as a wrestler. Jarrett's character would strut to the ring wearing flashing "Double J" hats and ring attire, while he punctuated his promos with the phrase "Ain't I great?". He ended his interviews by distinctly spelling out his name. He would often win matches by smashing opponents with an acoustic guitar, which was nicknamed "El Kabong" after the cartoon character Quick Draw McGraw. The "Double J" character was a country music version of The Honky Tonk Man.Jarrett had his first televised match with the WWF on the December 20, 1993, episode of Raw, defeating P.J. Walker. Jarrett made his pay-per-view debut in January 1994 at the Royal Rumble, entering the Royal Rumble match as the 12th participant and was eliminated less than 90 seconds later by Randy Savage. Also at the Royal Rumble, Jarrett participated in attacking The Undertaker and forcing him into the casket, an incident that would be a focal point in Undertaker's rematch later that year. Jarrett was scheduled to wrestle in a five vs. five tag match at WrestleMania X, but the match did not take place due to time constraints. However, the match did take place on the April 4 episode of Raw, with Jarrett's team winning. During this time, Jarrett started having what would be a very long string of matches with Doink during house shows in which he usually won the match. Despite getting past Lex Luger by countout in the first round, Jarrett lost in the second round of the 1994 King of the Ring tournament, being pinned by the 1-2-3 Kid. Only weeks before SummerSlam, the WWF promoted a match as part of a "rap versus country" rivalry that pitted Jarrett against Mabel who portrayed a rapper. There was little buildup for the match until Mabel tried to provoke Jarrett into a fight, but Jarrett simply exited. At SummerSlam, Jarrett won the match by pinfall.
Around this time, Jarrett began a feud with the 1-2-3 Kid's friend, WWF Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon. Jarrett would face both men at Survivor Series 1994, Jarrett's team competed in another five vs. five tag team match, this time with elimination rules. Jarrett's team lost when all the members of the team including himself were counted out. Later during the event, Jarrett once again tried to illegally attack The Undertaker, but this time was stopped by Chuck Norris. In January 1995, Jarrett would once again feud with Bret Hart, ultimately losing to Hart on the January 23 episode of Raw.
WWF Intercontinental Champion (1995–1996)
At the 1995 Royal Rumble in Tampa, Florida, Jarrett defeated Razor Ramon to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship thanks to interference by his assistant, The Roadie. In an effort to become a dual champion, Jarrett challenged Diesel for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in the main event of the February 20 episode of Raw, but lost the match. Razor Ramon received a rematch at WrestleMania XI which Jarrett lost by disqualification, but retained the Intercontinental Championship. Jarrett and The Roadie lost as a duo to Razor Ramon in a handicap match at In Your House 1. On April 26, 1995, the Intercontinental Championship was declared vacant after a controversial ending to a match between Jarrett and Bob Holly. They had a rematch later that evening where Jarrett reclaimed the title. On May 19, Razor Ramon regained the title from Jarrett in Montreal, Quebec, but Jarrett won it back two nights later in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, making him a three-time Intercontinental Champion.At In Your House 2: The Lumberjacks on July 23, 1995, Jarrett performed the song "With My Baby Tonight". Later that evening, Jarrett lost the Intercontinental Championship to Shawn Michaels. Following the event, Jarrett left the WWF for five months and returned to the USWA. Jarrett returned to the WWF at In Your House 5 on December 17, 1995, feuding with Ahmed Johnson. Jarrett lost to Johnson by disqualification at the 1996 Royal Rumble and left the WWF shortly thereafter due to a contract dispute. Later that year, The Roadie revealed that he had in fact sung "With My Baby Tonight" and that Jarrett had been lip synching.