Famed former WWE blow-by-blow announcer Jim Ross will be back, if only for one night, at tonight's (July 23, 2012) historic 1,000th episode of Monday Night Raw. What his exact role will be is unclear but at one point, CM Punk was campaigning for him to call his WWE championship match against John Cena, which is scheduled to main event the three-hour broadcast on USA.

For his part, good old J.R. said he was going to show up in St. Louis whether he was invited or not. WWE did call him up, of course, and now wrestling fans are left hoping Ross will replace Michael Cole, even if it's just for tonight.

Fat chance.

Either way, Ross doesn't anticipate returning full time but made sure to tell ESPN.com he won't be retiring from the business anytime soon.

"This organization has been a big part of my life. This show has a lot more meaning that people will ever perceive. My father died while I was working on the show. My mother died while I was working on the show. When am I going to retire? When they write my eulogy."

Thankfully, Raw 1,000 isn't being held in Oklahoma. Hopefully that means Vince McMahon doesn't get it in his head to book a segment just to bury and bully his favorite punching bag.

And let's also hope Punk gets his wish and Ross calls the big title match in the main event. Make sure to follow along with the Raw live blog by clicking here.