Rikishi Defends Jey & Jimmy Uso’s Heavily Criticized WrestleMania 40 Match

At WrestleMania 40 on Saturday, WWE witnessed a match featuring real-life brothers for the third time in its history. Jey Uso faced his brother on the grand stage and emerged victorious. Despite the historic nature of the bout, fans expressed dissatisfaction with the match. However, Rikishi, the father of the Usos, has now come forward to defend the match.

At WWE WrestleMania 30 Saturday, Jimmy and Jey Uso faced off in a singles match. Leading up to the match, their father Rikishi hinted that he might get involved, as he mentioned he would be in Philadelphia during WrestleMania weekend. Despite the speculation, the match concluded without Rikishi making an appearance, and Jey Uso emerged victorious over his brother Jimmy. The match was also heavily criticized by fans and critics alike.

In an interview on Rikishi Fatu Off The Top, the WWE Hall of Famer shared his thoughts on the WrestleMania XL match between his sons, Jimmy and Jey Uso. Rikishi expressed pride in his sons for finally achieving their dream match, stating that they delivered a strong performance.

However, Rikishi mentioned that he felt the match could have been even better with a bit more time and with his involvement. He noted that he was in Philadelphia during WrestleMania weekend, ready to participate, but never received the call to be part of the match. Despite this, he was proud of his sons’ efforts and cherished the memory of their match, which would remain significant for their family. While he regretted not being able to share the stage with his sons, Rikishi acknowledged that he did not have control over the decision.

“First of all, I’d like to send a big shoutout to my sons. To be able to finally their dream match in this industry that they’ve been wanting for a long time, I felt like they went out there, they delivered. I only wish that they could have had a little bit more time. I felt like there was a missing puzzle there, which is the guy who you’re listening to now. Hashtag I never got to ‘Call Rikishi.’ So I felt had…they did great without me, but just to add a little more into the match, it would have been a great opportunity, not only for the fans but also myself, on a personal level, to be able to grace the stage with your kids. That’s a memory that will forever be in stone in our family. But at the end of the day, I don’t make the calls. I didn’t lie about it. I was right close by, I was in Philadelphia. Everybody knew where I was at, but I never got the call.”

While Jey Uso is set to challenge Damian Preist for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Jimmy Uso got kicked out of The Bloodline last week on Friday Night SmackDown. We will have to wait and see whether the brothers will end up reuniting somewhere down the line.

What did you think of Jey vs. Jimmy Uso at WrestleMania 40? Let us know in the comments below.