Rikishi Says Jey Uso’s Rise Is About More Than His ‘Yeet’ Chant

On the latest episode of Off The Top, Rikishi talked about Jey Uso vs. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Gunther at WrestleMania 41, Jey’s rise in WWE not being because of the YEET chant, and more. You can check out some highlights below:

On Jey’s decision to challenge Gunther for the WWE World Title: “I felt Jey made the right decision. There’s history between him and Gunther. After not getting the job done in two opportunities, this means something now. You’re getting the third time to crack at this thing here, but the only difference is that it’s on the biggest stage of them all. So, I don’t see anything else but the best performance ever from Jey going into WrestleMania.

“I mean, we’ve seen a lot of great matches from Jey with his brother Jimmy, tag teaming and that history. We really kind of opened our eyes when, during the pandemic, you had this kid here with him and Roman, when they had their little dance-off together, going as a single. That was the first time Jey was introduced to being a singles competitor, due to his brother being out on an injury. It was there that I saw the skills of Jey to be able to adapt in front of a crowd that’s not there but on the TV screen.“

On the rise of the YEET chant: “Can you imagine how hard that is to perform during a pandemic in an arena full of TV screens, and to be able to carry the weight of the company during that time? Those that perform day in and day out every week, knowing that there was COVID out there, but they went and put their bodies on the line, jeopardized their family [by] being out there, [they could] possibly catch something, take it home to their kids. But no, that didn’t happen. They went out there and did what they were supposed to do to be able to entertain and perform for the world during these times, these dangerous times…

“So my point is this: Jey was prepped up all the way. This just didn’t happen because of ‘YEET.’ This happened because they saw a kid who was loyal, who put in the work, and who you hardly ever see or hear anything negative about this kid. His drive was to be able to [say], ‘Okay, I gotta prove something.’ To himself, not to the family, not to the company anyway, but to himself as a pro wrestler. ‘Can I do it, step out of the shadows of my brother, and be able to get out there, perform, and make a name for myself?'”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Off The Top with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.