Ex-WWE Star Rikishi Comments On Rise Of Jacob Fatu After Saturday Night's Main Event

While Jacob Fatu technically lost to Braun Strowman at WWE Saturday Night's Main Event, his uncle and WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi believes he emerged from it stronger than ever. On a recent episode of the "Off The Top" podcast, Rikishi shared his reaction to Fatu's WWE SNME performance, which saw him knock out a bloody Strowman with three moonsaults after getting himself disqualified.

"I posted up on my Instagram, I said 'Jacob Fatu has arrived.' To me, out of everything that he has done since he's been signed with WWE, this is the most impactful thing that Jacob has done for Jacob, not for The Bloodline, but for Jacob Fatu," Rikishi said. "I was so proud and so happy. It showed his athletic ability, we've always known that, but how he came in there and just took this monster Braun, he's no cakewalk. This is a big dude. He's won championships, so to have a guy like Jacob come in and lay this big superstar out and to leave him in the puddle of blood, man that was so — Jacob has arrived. That's all I can say."

According to Rikishi, Fatu's attack on "The Monster Among Men," as well as the crowd cheering that came with it, catapulted him to another level. The specific content of that level, however, has yet to be revealed.

One week after their encounter at WWE SNME, Fatu and Strowman met again in the 2025 Men's Royal Rumble, with Strowman scoring revenge by eliminating Fatu from the match. Before this, Fatu managed to eliminate four men himself, namely Chad Gable, Andrade, Rey Mysterio, and his cousin Jimmy Uso.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Off The Top" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.