Ken Jennings, ‘Jeopardy!’ All-Time Champ, Is Ready to Battle James Holzhauer

“Jeopardy!” winner, Ken Jennings reveals his plans of going head to head with James Holzhauer whom he thought was going to beat his record.

Recently, Good Morning America garnered some information from the “Jeopardy!” victor concerning his thoughts on the newest game player on the block that appears to be on the lips of “Jeopardy!” fans.

While Ken claimed that he admires the young chap’s intelligence and skills displayed on the show, he goes on to compare it to the Al-powered IBM supercomputer Watson.

He also said that he would not miss a chance of competing against James Holzhauer in the future. Seemingly the plan of engaging the duo in a competition is “inevitable.”

The 45-year-old Seattle native acknowledges the fact that from the time which he obtained the title till date, his mental capacity may not function at the same level. According to Ken:

“It’s got to be inevitable. But “Jeopardy!” only does tournaments so often, and obviously, I can’t get 29-year-old Ken to show up with his 29-year-old brain, it’s got to be me with my broke down brain.”

Only a few days ago James Holzhauer was being chanted as the “seemingly new record breaker” that would earn the title ship on the show’s records, thereby displacing former all-time champion, Ken. However, his position was toppled after another competitor, Emma Boettcher; a literature expert beat him to his game.

Ken took the trophy home a little over a decade ago, with earnings of $2,520,700, and was convinced beyond measures that James who was only $56,484 away from smashing his record was going to emerge victorious. But that he was also scared about giving up his status. In his words:

“For many years I have assumed that the record was beatable, he seemed like he might be the guy, the chosen one, so I was very excited. I wanted to see it come down to the wire; I wanted to see if it could be beaten because I think it can be done. It hit me at once. I’m not that “Jeopardy!” guy anymore; he’s that “Jeopardy!” guy. I’m like your dad’s “Jeopardy!” guy.”

He opened up about his relationship with James, which has been very cordial. He said that he supported him with different career advice, and asks that he strikes while the iron seems to be the hottest. We hope James takes on the information offered by his predecessor!

James isn’t the only one that got a heartfelt and encouraging message from Ken. The show’s record breaker acknowledged the effort of the show’s anchor, Alex Trebek who combats cancer, saying he is appreciated throughout the action.

However, after the proceedings obtained by James on the show, he is required to settle state taxes of about $1.29 million. According to details from NBC News, all the money won from the show is documented as “ordinary income” by the IRS.

Ken is not just a record breaker; he appears to be wise, as he shared how he successfully harnessed several opportunities around him, leading him to branch out of gambling after the game. Whether or not he is capable of confronting the current “Jeopardy!” star in a game, nothing beats his possession of intuition and mental fitness!