Jey Uso had a massively successful run as a singles star on Monday Night Raw, but the transition from being part of a team came with a personal challenge. In a new interview with Sports Illustrated, Jey revealed that the most difficult part of going solo was not the in-ring performance, but the loneliness of traveling without his brothers by his side.
For the first time in his career, he was navigating the grueling WWE road schedule by himself, which he described as his biggest obstacle. This weekend at WWE Wrestlepalooza, however, he will be back in familiar territory, teaming with his brother Jimmy Uso against Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed.
“For me it was moving to Raw away from my brothers,” Jey said. “It was never the in-ring stuff, you know what I’m saying? It was just, all the miles alone. All the plane rides and rental cars alone. That was my biggest obstacle to try to [overcome], man. Other than that, the ‘Yeet!’ movement just caught on by itself. That part was never hard”. While Jey was adjusting to life on his own, his brother Jimmy was watching his success from a distance. “I embrace it… I got to be a fan and sit at home and watch him for a little bit. He was real busy, my schedule kind of slowed down, ’cause you know, there wasn’t nothing for me. So, I was able to sit and watch and observe and be like, ‘S—, my little brother’s a Superstar.’”
Despite his singles success, Jey also shared his pride in tag team wrestling, an art form he feels The Usos helped revitalize in WWE. “We take pride in tag team wrestling, you know what I’m saying?” Jey said. “I feel like we built that up ’cause it was a lost art in 2010 when we were coming in. There were no tag teams together, man. I feel like, to see all the young tag teams coming in the game together, it’s very motivating to try to get back and mix it up”.
Jey Uso’s journey as a singles competitor was a direct result of the Bloodline storyline that dominated WWE for years. After finally breaking away from the control of his cousin, Roman Reigns, Jey left SmackDown and his family to make his own identity on Monday Night Raw. The move led to the most successful period of his individual career, as he became a main event star and the “Yeet!” catchphrase became a super over with fans. Check out the full interview here.
