When I was dating the woman who would eventually go on to become my wife, there was a moment where I just KNEW she was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. As weird as it’s going to sound, it was during a routine drive in the very early stages of our dating, and “I’m Different” by 2 Chainz came on the radio. I had zero clue that she knew the song, but sure enough, in the initial chorus, as 2 Chainz says “pull up to the scene with my ceiling missing,” this woman belts it out alongside him. I don’t think I stopped staring at her for several minutes after that, but I knew, right then and there, that this silly ass woman was going to get a ring on her finger from this silly ass man.
Fast forward a couple years, and we’re in the market to buy our first home together after renting a couple different apartments. We must’ve visited a few dozen houses over the span of a few weeks… some pretty nice, and some, not as much. Our Realtor was probably losing her mind, as she kept on finding new listings to show us, only for us to find something (or somethings) that we didn’t like. Eventually, she told us about a listing that we thought was going to be just out of our price range, but since we were already in the area, we figured we would take a look at it. I can’t properly put the feeling into words, but as soon as we walked through the front door, my then-girlfriend and I looked at each other with the same non-verbal message… this was the house for us. We could feel it in our bones. The more we toured the house, the more we felt that we needed to live there. At the end of the tour, our Realtor crunched some numbers, and she found out that our price range was actually higher than we initially thought… putting us just in range for the house. We put our bid in that day, and a few weeks later, we moved in.
Fast forward to last year, and my now-wife and I decided we wanted to upgrade to a brand new house. Once again, we visit a bunch of houses, finding pros and cons for each of them, but nothing really won our hearts over. We had a different Realtor this time around, and he sprung a new housing community on us one afternoon, telling us that he was in love with the place. Once we agreed to take a look, we went on a tour, and once again, my wife and I made eye contact as soon as we walked through the front door. There was just that indescribable feeling of “home” that surrounded us. Just like the last time, we excitedly put our names on the contracts, and after a few weeks, we closed and moved in to our new place.
Why have I spent 500 words giving you various chapters of my life story? Easy. To point out some of the various times in my life where I just knew that something was the best choice right away. I’m sure many of you have similar stories, and probably have a million other stories, big or small, where you just had a feeling take over and let you know something was right.
I have the same feeling about Jacob Fatu.
No, not like that.
Long before he ever put pen to paper and signed a WWE contract, I was a huge fan of his and felt that he could be a major star for the company. Now, I didn’t think it would ever happen, because I had no faith that WWE, and those in charge at the time, would ever dream of letting Jacob loose and do what he does. I figured it would be a long shot that he’d ever be there, but if he did, Vince McMahon’s incompetent ass would ruin him almost immediately.
Well, Vince’s stupid ass isn’t around anymore, huh?
Sure enough, we’re seeing the start of something special.
The funniest part about it is that Paul Levesque didn’t exactly handle Jacob Fatu’s early days with the company all that well, either. His debut went really well, but from there, WWE’s creative minds thought it would be best to relegate Jacob to a background role in the new Bloodline faction, allowing him to say little more than “I LOVE YOU, SOLO” on a weekly basis as Solo Sikoa did all the talking for the group.
Look… I’m a fan of Solo Sikoa. I’ve praised him and defended him many times in my columns over the entirety of his time with the company. I think he receives a ton of undeserved criticism from many people, and I also feel that, with the right story, he could be a main event player for WWE.
However, he is not, nor will he ever be, Jacob Fatu.
Like I was saying in the early part of this column, Jacob is just someone that you can look at, as well as listen to, and just know, deep down in your soul, that huge things are on the horizon for him.
In fact, as long as he stays away from the unexpected… injuries, legal problems, and so on… he’s as close to a guarantee as you’re going to find in the wrestling business.
Royal Rumble victories?
Money In The Bank briefcases?
WrestleMania main events?
World Championships?
He is doing the work to place himself in that type of stratosphere. It’s (probably) too late for him to have a major marquee match at WrestleMania 41, but that Money In The Bank briefcase I mentioned? We haven’t heard the exact date that this year’s Money In The Bank pay-per-view will happen on, but the show has happened during the month of July for the last four years. July is five months away. Do you realize how much you could build someone like Jacob Fatu in the span of five months? My goodness.
To me, the most interesting part of Jacob Fatu’s rise in WWE is his authenticity. When I say it’s interesting, it’s because he comes across as 10000000000000000% genuine to what he is on WWE programming every week. However, if you’ve ever seen his out-of-character interviews during his pre-WWE days, or if you’ve seen/heard stories from those who have met him in person, the man is very different than what we see on television. He did an interview once saying that the Jacob Fatu character is simply what Jacob Fatu, the man, is like when he gets mad. Outside of that, he’s laid back, down to Earth, and always looking to crack jokes and entertain people. People always say that the best wrestling characters are simply the real person cranked up several notches, and I guess that still counts here.
I mentioned Solo Sikoa earlier, and it’s worth mentioning him again, as he just made his return to Smackdown as I was typing the previous paragraph. He showed up and attacked Cody Rhodes after Cody’s tag match victory, potentially giving us yet another chapter of the feud that nobody is asking for. If Jacob Fatu was truly unleashed because of Solo’s absence, what will happen now that Solo is back?
Here’s a crazy idea…
Keep Jacob unleashed.
In fact, this could be the start of putting into action something I have believed for a long time… Jacob Fatu has the potential to be one of the hottest face acts in all of pro wrestling.
He is so captivating as a performer, and he brings a lot to the table that Solo doesn’t, that it’s easy to see live crowds force WWE’s hand to pull the trigger on a turn. I won’t deny that there is a ton of mileage to be had with a heel run for Jacob, but for the millionth time, WWE is a company that is all about the major moments above everything else. A face turn for Jacob, as he completely and thoroughly destroys Solo Sikoa, would be one of those major moments that the company lives for.
Yes, that’s a booking decision that could cause irreparable damage to Solo’s career, but an argument can be made that some of that damage has already taken place in the wake of Roman Reigns’ loss to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40 and what WWE needed to do with The Bloodline in Roman’s extended absence.
If we’re being honest with each other, though, I think it’s a risk worth taking for WWE. Again, I really like Solo, but if you have the opportunity to ride the wave of something that could be a game-changer, I think you have to roll the dice and hope that you can do it without any bystanders being caught in the crossfire, so to speak.
In the ring, Jacob Fatu does things that shouldn’t be possible for a man his size to pull off. On the mic, he is the exact type of raw, uncut dope that many wrestlers have tried (and failed) to be through the years. He has a marketable look and a memorable nickname. The storyline he has been involved in since his debut has guaranteed him plenty of television time and an automatic air of importance.
Folks, I’m telling you… this is so easy, even a Caveman could do it. 2025 needs to be the year of the Samoan Werewolf, and the sooner WWE makes it happen, the better off they’ll be.
Weekly Power Rankings
Jey Uso: Last week, my column looked at whether or not WWE made the right decision in crowning Jey as the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble winner. It seemed like there was a lot of debate online about the company’s decision. Look at, and listen to, the reactions that Jey received from the live crowds on Raw and Smackdown this week, though. The fans are completely behind Jey right now. Seems like WWE made the right choice.
CM Punk vs Sami Zayn: In the last four-and-a-half months, Sami has won a total of two singles matches on television by pinfall. You have to go back seven months to find his third such victory, with that one coming on pay-per-view. He continues to have really good-to-great matches, but it might be time to take him off of the back burner soon.
Swerve Strickland vs Ricochet: If you’ve seen their work in places like CZW and MLW through the years, it comes as no surprise that these two have a lot of in-ring chemistry together. Their current story is easily one of the most entertaining things going on in AEW at the moment, and it was good to see Ricochet pick up a much-needed victory here. Lots to like.
Iyo Sky vs Liv Morgan: 48 hours after they both spent over an hour in the women’s Royal Rumble match, these two fought each other for a spot in the upcoming Elimination Chamber. Even with that, they had a helluva match, so all credit goes to both of them for being able to withstand such a busy weekend.
Toni Storm: Did you see her dressed up as Mariah May, portraying the AEW Women’s Champion? If so, then you know exactly why she’s listed here.
Kevin Owens: If there’s one thing Kevin Owens is going to do, it’s use near flawless logic to explain why he does what he does as a heel. It’s always said that the best villains don’t see themselves as villains, and that’s why KO has been able to be so successful throughout his career. It’s very refreshing to witness.
Will Ospreay vs Mark Davis: Ospreay is Ospreay, and Kyle Fletcher has ascended several levels during his singles run in AEW, but Mark Davis seemed motivated to prove why he was involved in the United Empire stable to begin with. He was never going to win this match, but a good performance showed that he could be in line for a larger role moving forward.
Buddy Matthews & Brody King vs Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher: I’m hoping that Buddy and Brody don’t get forgotten after the AEW departure of Malakai Black. Both men are simply way too talented to be placed on the back burner, but there’s a lot of people in wrestling who fit that description and are, indeed, on the back burner.
Mark Briscoe vs Kyle Fletcher: The United Empire run continues! Three spots in a row featuring old members of the group. Again, it’s no surprise to see Fletcher doing what he’s doing. He has “future AEW World Champion” written all over him, but it will be interesting to see what the company does.
Cody Rhodes & Jey Uso vs Jacob Fatu & Tama Tonga: I’ve said this before, but it applies here… this was like a house show main event, but in no way is that a complaint or a knock on the match. Now, if only we didn’t end up with the return of Solo Sikoa to, presumably, set up another match between him and Cody.
Bandido vs Bryan Keith: Please, for the love of Joe Pesci, get Bryan Keith the fuck away from Chris Jericho as soon as possible. I mean it. In fact, get everyone involved in the sport of pro wrestling the fuck away from Chris Jericho as soon as possible.
LA Knight vs Jimmy Uso vs Drew McIntyre: Lots of fun work in the Triple Threat setting, with all three men working with extra motivation as they tried to qualify for the Elimination Chamber.
Oba Femi & Trick Williams vs A-Town Down Under: Even without Vince McMahon around, WWE sure does love their “CAN THEY COEXIST???????????” stories, don’t they? It’s safe to assume that NXT needs to draw things out between Oba and Trick until Stand & Deliver, which is still 68 days away, as of the day this column goes live to the world. That’s a long time.
Penta vs Ludwig Kaiser: I like WWE’s approach with the early stages of Penta’s run, placing him in matches against some of the better in-ring performers on the entire roster and who can afford to take a loss. It’s helping Penta get better acclimated, and it’s preparing him for the push that is inevitably coming his way.
This Week’s Playlist: “3AM in ToKEYo” by Key Glock… “The Night Before” by The Black Keys… “Night Terror” by Dream Theater… “A Broken Man” by Dream Theater… “Death Shall Have No Dominion” by Imminence… “In Solitude” by Obscura… “House Of Light” by Rivers Of Nihil… “Static” by Sleep Theory… “Paralyzed” by Sleep Theory… “Stuck In My Head” by Sleep Theory… “Follow Me Down” by Wake Me… “I Feel Like Slapping A Nigga Today” by Nick Hustles… “Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here” by Deborah Cox… “Superhero (Heroes & Villains)” by Metro Boomin, Future & Chris Brown… “Creepin” by Metro Boomin, The Weeknd & 21 Savage… “Walk Em Down (Don’t Kill Civilians)” by Metro Boomin, 21 Savage & Mustafa… “Still Tippin” by Mike Jones, Slim Thug & Paul Wall… “Thuggish Ruggish Bone” by Bone Thugs N Harmony… “One” by Ghostface Killah… “Jazzy Hoes” by Jermaine Dupri, Eightball, Too $hort, Youngbloodz & Mr. Black… “Don’t Hate On Me” by Jermaine Dupri, Krayzie Bone & Da Brat… “The Party Continues” by Jermaine Dupri, Da Brat & Usher… “Big Pimpin” by Jay-Z & UGK… “Let’s Play House” by Tha Dogg Pound, Nate Dogg & Michel’le… “Getto Jam” by Domino
