JBL and Eddie Guerrero, both WWE Hall of Famers, had a storied rivalry on-screen, but they also had a close bond off-screen.
JBL recently spoke with the Metro UK’s Alistair McGeorge about their friendship.
“Eddie and I, we would’ve traveled together, probably, if we hadn’t been competitors against each other,” JBL said. “Several times we’d go out to dinner, I was going through some issues in my life at the time – nobody knew it, I’m not one to tell people about that. Eddie came up to me, ‘Hey, something’s bothering you. I want to talk to you.’ I thought that was really cool, that was really observant of Eddie, and he did that to everybody. He was a very unique person.”
Guerrero was one of JBL’s “very close friends,” and he served as a groomsman at JBL’s wedding. JBL gave a portion of Guerrero’s eulogy following his tragic death in November 2005 at the age of 38. JBL was moved by Guerrero’s observation that he wasn’t himself when he was going through some things, and he insisted that goes far beyond being a surprise in the competitive world of pro wrestling.
“I think it’s rare in life,” JBL said. “Not many people care that much about the world that they’re observing other people and other people’s behaviors. You’re wrapped up in your own stuff, you’re wrapped up in your own travel, you’re wrapped up in your own world.”
JBL also revealed that Guerrero took him out to dinner that night so he could talk to someone.
“I don’t think it’s that common in life for people to be able to notice that around them, to notice your neighbors having some issue – and to not only notice, to go over and talk to them,” JBL said with a smile. “Eddie took me out to dinner that night, he goes, ‘I wanna take you out for dinner.’ I didn’t wanna share burdens or problems with anybody. It was really cool. I think that’s incredibly rare, but not just in this business, in life.”
JBL has spoken out about Guerrero’s influence on his own career as he found himself thrust into a high-profile singles run. Beginning with Judgment Day 2004, which JBL won via DQ, their battles for the WWE Title were legendary.
“There were some nerves, but remember I was older at the time, I’d been around a long time. So, the nerves weren’t as bad as the fact that I had a lot of hesitation over whether it would work or not,” JBL said of the rivalry, particularly after his Attitude Era run with The APA. “I think Big Show had got hurt, Kurt Angle was hurt, Brock had left the company. It was just the matter of filling a need. I knew it was a one-off if it didn’t go well, and that’s what I was concerned about the most.”
Guerrero, in turn, wanted to create something more special than that, and he was instrumental in shaping the JBL character.
“Eddie didn’t wanna be the champion that had a guy he could only bring to a one-off pay-per-view match,” JBL said. “He really wanted to see me succeed – which I greatly appreciate. Without Eddie, there wouldn’t have been JBL past that match.”
