The wrestling world tragically lost Jay Briscoe (Jamin Pugh) on January 17 after he was involved in a fatal car accident.
Briscoe was a legend in Ring of Honor as a 13-time ROH Tag Team Champion alongside his brother Mark and a former two-time ROH World Champion.
During his career, Briscoe shared the ring many times with Adam Cole, including battles in a Ladder War and a Fight Without Honor.
Speaking to Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales on Wrestling Observer Radio, Cole remembered Jay and credited him for where he is today.
"It was devastating, it really was," said Cole about losing Jay. "Not just for me, but for so many of his friends. Jay, I mean this, whether you met Jay Briscoe for one day or you have known him for a decade like I have, even longer for other people. He just had this amazing ability to make you feel like you were the most important person in the room. He was so welcoming, so kind, so fun to be around. Unbelievable family man, husband, father, son, and brother. He seriously was one of the best people I've ever met in wrestling. To get that news, at first, it didn't seem real. It was one of those things where I was like, 'this has to be a mistake.' Then the news started flooding in online. Then it kind of sunk in even more. I mean it when I say, the character that I am today, the situation that I'm in today, I guarantee I would not be where I'm at without him. He was the first real angle that I had in Ring of Honor in such an important period where I had just won the Ring of Honor Championship, and Jay was so adamant about making my character, and me as a performer come across like the biggest deal that he possibly could. There is not a selfish bone in Jay's body."
Cole continued, "The dynamic, at the time, I was wearing suits with slick-backed hair and the watch, and Jay is on the farm cutting promos and screaming and yelling, the dynamic was so different in the best way possible. At that point in my career, there was a lot of pressure on me that I was putting on myself. I had just won the ROH Championship, I was the PWG Champion as well, and all this pressure started flooding in. You think about all the great champions there have been before you, and how you want to live up to this legacy of what Ring of Honor and PWG is, and Jay gave me so much confidence with how encouraging he was, how excited he was with everything. Jay believed in me being Ring of Honor Champion almost more than anybody. He was so adamant about making sure that I looked as good as possible, and I learned so much from Jay with how he put matches together, his promo intensity was so fascinating to watch. I love Jay Briscoe to death. My heart goes out to his entire family. He was a really special guy and I mean every word when I say I wouldn't be where I'm at without him. I love Jay."
Cole remembered Jay during the Jay Briscoe Tribute Show, delivering an in-ring speech as part of the broadcast.
A donation page was set up for the Pugh family. Fans can donate by clicking here. AEW released a memorial shirt with 100% of the proceeds going to the Pugh family.
Elsewhere during the interview, Cole opened up about his concussion injuries. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
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