Tonight, WWE will broadcast its historic 1,000th episode of "Monday Night Raw" -- the longest running weekly TV show in history -- as it moves to a three-hour format with an 8 p.m. start time on USA Network.

The main event is John Cena versus WWE champion CM Punk with the undercard including the return of Brock Lesnar, the wedding of Daniel Bryan and AJ and a host of legends -- Triple H, Shawn Michaels, The Rock and Bret Hart -- returning.

And famed announcer Jim Ross will be back.

"I was planning on going no matter what, but to be invited and be part of the show is something special," said Ross, who was a ringside TV broadcaster for the WWE for more than 20 years. "For everyone involved, it's a celebration of hours of hard work, thousands of miles traveled and sacrificing family time to put on a show every week for this long."

Ross, who was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007, isn't sure what his role will be, but he said the best part will be before the show.

"It's going to be a like a homecoming for me. I couldn't miss this. I want to see how everyone's family is doing. It's a look back and a new beginning," Ross said. "If I had the pick of a litter, I'd hope it would be to call a match. That's what I love doing. But I'm like a baseball player at the All-Star Game. When the manager makes out the lineup card, I just want to get into the game."

Wrestling fans still call for Ross to return to full-time announcing, but he is enjoying his life in Oklahoma, rooting on his Sooners and working on his family barbecue sauce business. He still helps scout, recruit and develop talent for the WWE and isn't even thinking about leaving.

"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," Ross said. "When am I going to retire? When they write my eulogy."