Jey Uso retains the World Title on the anniversary of his WWE debut

Yahoo

6 days ago

With the world title on the line and the referee down, interference ran rampant as a Samoan warrior emerged victorious, still the champion.
For a moment, it felt like a throwback to the days when Roman Reigns ruled the ring. Instead, it was Jey Uso who stood tall, successfully defending his title against Logan Paul at Saturday Night's Main Event. After the show, Uso reflected on his journey to becoming World Heavyweight Champion, which began exactly 15 years ago that Saturday.
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'I appreciate every single one of y'all, man, on my journey, and it's still going. From the bottom of my heart, man, I love y'all,' said Uso as he spoke to the fans in Tampa's Yuengling Center.
That emotional moment was grounded in history. Uso referenced his time in Tampa, where he and his brother Jimmy once wrestled for Florida Championship Wrestling, WWE's developmental system before NXT. For over a decade, Jey and Jimmy dominated WWE's tag team scene, culminating in 2023, when the twin duo headlined WrestleMania 39 and Money in the Bank.
In many ways, Uso's ascension mirrors that of WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart. For nearly seven years, Hart and his partner Jim Neidhart were arguably WWE's preeminent tag team. As the Hart Foundation, they captured two world tag team titles and had several memorable encounters with the British Bulldogs, Demolition, and The Rockers.
After the team amicably parted ways, Hart began climbing the ranks of WWE's singles division. In 1991, he defeated Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam to win the Intercontinental Title. At WrestleMania VIII in 1992, he won the title a second time, defeating one of the faces of WWE's golden era, Rowdy Roddy Piper. Before the year was through, Hart defeated the legendary Ric Flair to win his first of five WWE Championships.
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Similarly, Uso captured the Intercontinental Title last year before going on to dethrone Gunther at WrestleMania 41 to win the World Championship. But unlike 'The Hitman,' Uso has faced criticism from some fans online, who argue that his in-ring skills don't measure up to past champions like Hart.
However, focusing solely on in-ring technique misses what pro wrestling is truly about: storytelling, mic work, and emotional connection. In that regard, Uso is as good as anyone who came before him.
'There's just this magical connection between him, and when he's in that ocean of people that are loving what he does that becomes undeniable,' said Paul Levesque, WWE's Chief Content Officer, after WrestleMania. Levesque praised Uso's work not just for being a guy with a trendy catchphrase but for how he has grown as a performer.
'I think everybody saw something different in Jey over the last couple of years in that Bloodline story and the way he handled himself,' said Levesque of Uso's time as Reigns' understudy.
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Still, to cement Uso as a legitimate champion, WWE needs to present his title reign with more authority. Since capturing the title, Uso has had three matches with questionable finishes. He was disqualified against Seth Rollins in what was Uso's first title defense. Two weeks later, 'Main Event' Jey beat Bron Breakker by DQ in a non-title match. Both matches were on Raw, and each was plagued by outside interference.
At Saturday Night's Main Event, Uso defeated Paul, but again, the involvement of John Cena and Cody Rhodes took the luster off Uso's first successful title defense.
Next, Uso will team with Cody Rhodes to face John Cena and Logan Paul at Money in the Bank on June 7. Two nights later, he'll face Gunther in a rematch on the June 9 episode of Raw. Another strong win over 'The Ring General' could cement Uso's credibility heading into SummerSlam—WWE's second-biggest event—where he's expected to play a major role.
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