“Didn’t Get Signed”: Jacob Fatu’s Delayed Debut in WWE Explained by WWE Hall of Famer

Jacob Fatu reportedly signed with WWE in April this year during the WrestleMania week. However, he didn’t show up until the SmackDown episode on 06/21. There have been some speculations regarding why he took so much time before debuting in WWE. While talking about the same debut, Mark Henry also discussed the reason for the delay of his WWE arrival.

He skipped the recent delay to focus on why Fatu wasn’t offered a place on the WWE roster until 2024. This is when Henry shed light on how Fatu has grown in the wrestling business.

Possible reason behind why Jacob Fatu didn’t debut earlier

Fans witnessed The Werewolf showing up on Friday Night SmackDown 06/21 and turning up the heat that night in Chicago. This happened a long time after his reported signing in April. Additionally, Mark Henry claimed that Fatu should have been in the promotion at least half a decade ago.

However, he also mentioned the reason why this didn’t happen earlier. Speaking on the Busted Open Podcast The WWE Hall of Famer said, “He had troubles. His not being able to be reliable was the reason that he didn’t get signed because he’s somebody that was on my radar. I wanted him. I wanted to make him a Mark Henry guy. And I kept getting told no.”

He believes that the wrestler wasn’t as reliable as he is today. His debut in WWE stirred a lot of excitement among the fanbase because of the aura that he brought with him to the arena. Before this, he may not have been able to bring all this charisma to the table and Rikishi seems to feel the same way.

Rikishi thought Jacob Fatu was ready for his debut this year

The Anoa’i family has been supportive of all the debuts that their family members have covered so far. Rikishi was also celebrating and welcoming Jacob Fatu to The Bloodline after his last appearance on WWE TV. Earlier this year, he was asked on his podcast who could be the next Bloodline member. Zilla Fatu and Jacob Fatu were the two names that fans were constantly bringing up.

This is when Rikishi went ahead with Jacob Fatu because he believed that he had served his time gaining experience while Zilla was still a bit younger than him and less experienced. With this statement, he was kind of agreeing with what Mark Henry had to say recently. Everyone has to start somewhere and Jacob Fatu eventually arrived where he was supposed to.

Do you think he would’ve been able to have the same impact on the audience if he had arrived 5 or ten years ago in WWE? Share in the comments.