WhenJey Usowon theWWE2025 Men’s Royal Rumble back in January,reactions were split. Some were thrilled to see Uso get a push that matches his “Main Event” moniker, while others believed he was too limited as a performer and paled in comparison to some of the other potential winners like John Cena (who wound up in theWrestleMania 41main event anyway), Roman Reigns, CM Punk and Seth Rollins.
Uso’s critics have grown even louder in the months since the Rumble. It hasn’t helped that the build-up to his World Heavyweight Championship match with Gunther has been seen as lackluster and repetitive. The decorated former tag team champion addressed many of those criticisms while appearing on the WWE’sRaw Recappodcast.
Jey Uso Says He’s Generating Massive Reactions
Uso Admits There Are Better Wrestlers Out There, But Few Can Electrify An Arena Quite Like Him
Uso got his first taste of the main event scene back in 2020 when he feuded with Roman Reigns over the Universal Championship. This was in the earliest days of Reigns' rise as “The Tribal Chief,” and he ruthlessly bullied Uso into falling in line and accepting his role as “The Right-Hand Man” for The Bloodline. The many twists and turns in The Bloodline Saga would eventually seeUso break out as a singles star, briefly hold the Intercontinental Championship, face Jimmy Uso atWrestleMania XL,and help Cody Rhodes dethrone Reigns in the show’s main event.
Since then, Uso has become one of WWE’s top merchandise sellers andhis “Yeet!” chants bring entire arenas to their feet week after week. That’s why, while Uso admitted there are better wrestlers out there, he still deserves to be in the position he’s currently in.
“They (are) gonna pick me apart right now because I’m in this position. ‘Oh, he can’t do this. He got three moves.’ On some real stuff and if we really want to be honest, though, there’s a whole bunch of dope wrestlers way better than me, but they’re not at the top,” Uso said. “They got 20 moves, and y’all can do all that, but they not in my position. You know what I’m saying? Because it’s a different game up here. But y’all watched me learn. Y’all watched my best work, my best craft, cuz. The whole way. Y’all still see it now. Now you’ll see glimpses of it now when I cut the promos, man. That’s all me. That is 100% not scripted. Tell me, ‘Talk about WrestleMania,’ I’m gonna talk about WrestleMania.”
“Other than that, uce, you may’t go out there in the live TV like I do and move the crowd. That’s me now, uce. I shake arenas, bro, the damn ground under your feet will be shaking when, when my entrance is out,” he continued. “‘What the hell is going on? Oh, that’s uce out there. He’s making his entrance,’ that’s the levels I’m at, and I’m gonna stay there. I’m learning. I’m learning as I go. Because in this business, if you stop learning or stop evolving, you’re out. Like, peace. There’s 100 other dogs waiting outside the door, ready to eat. You’ll have to come to the top and get me, though.”
Uso’s answers can be seen as addressing some of the criticism he received from a segment of the fans. He rightly pointed out that the level of reaction he is getting from live crowds has been unheard of for many years, and that other competitors who may have a more spectacular in-ring arsenal are nowhere near the top like he is.
Will Gunther Vs. Jey Uso Be The WrestleMania Night 1 Main Event?
There Are Some Strong Contenders
One of the big questions still hanging overWrestleMania 41iswhat the Night 1 main event will be. While Uso vs. Gunther has the merit of being for the World Heavyweight Championship, matches like Iyo Sky vs. Bianca Belair vs. Rhea Ripley and CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns have star power and momentum that dwarf that title match.
Jey Uso’s Royal Rumble Victory Just Broke an Unfortunate WWE Tradition
Jey Uso has won the Royal Rumble and is going to WrestleMania in the biggest upset in Rumble history, breaking a decades long tradition in the WWE.
Uso’s entrance could also make for the perfect way to open one of the nights, given how it tends to get the entire crowd involved. There’s also precedent for it, given the World Heavyweight Championship match between Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre openedWrestleMania XL’s second night. It will be interesting to see if this championship match will solidify Jey’s position as a main event star or if it will mark a bump in the road in his career.WrestleMania 41takes place on April 19-20 in Las Vegas.
