Wrestling legend completely shuts down rumor about WWE making a title change because of Rikishi controversy (Exclusive)

There were rumors that WWE pulled off a huge title change on SmackDown because of a controversy that (indirectly) implicated Hall of Famer Rikishi. A wrestling legend completely shut this down.

On the latest episode of Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Time Machine, host Mac Davis asked legendary wrestling journalist Bill Apter and WWE Hall of Famer Teddy Long about the recent title change on SmackDown that saw Sami Zayn dethrone Solo Sikoa to become the new United States Champion. There was speculation that the Raja Jackson incident in Rikishi's promotion, Knokx Pro Wrestling, was the reason why Sikoa was "punished", leading to a title change.

For those who don't know, Raja Jackson, the son of UFC legend Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, brutally assaulted wrestler Syko Stu after he was unaware that an angle they previously shot was scripted. This resulted in Stu's hospitalization and massive backlash online.

Bill Apter completely shut this speculation down, stating that the Raja Jackson incident was irrelevant to the title change and that the decision to have Sami Zayn dethrone Solo Sikoa was likely made much before the controversy:

"Not one bit. The incident, the Raja [Jackson] thing, was at Rikishi's [promotion], Knokx Pro Wrestling. I can guarantee you that [Solo] Sikoa losing his title to Sami Zayn was in the plans long before this incident took place."

For context, after the Raja Jackson incident, WWE completely cut ties with Knokx Pro Wrestling, which was previously assigned as a "WWE ID" territory.

You can watch the full video below:

Rikishi's nephew Zilla Fatu reacted to the criticism he received about his appearance.

At TNA Slammiversary, Zilla Fatu made his debut for the company when he appeared wearing Jeff Hardy-inspired face paint. His uncle, Rikishi (the brother of the late great Umaga), criticized Zilla's decision, stating that he was marketing Jeff more than he was marketing himself. Zilla wasn't happy at first, but appeared to come to terms with it.

On Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Zilla Fatu revealed that while he overreacted to his uncle's criticism, he still wishes it could have been settled over a simple phone call:

"Because with me, when I hear him talking about my dad, it wasn't really necessarily about the face paint. It's just how he said it, and then you involve my dad, I kind of overreacted because it's someone that I love. And not only that, when people bring up my dad, I get very emotional. So, I think I did overreact, but I think everything could have been settled just over a phone call."

Ultimately, Zilla Fatu was inspired by Jeff Hardy, but context is key here. Some of you might be wondering why Rikishi would have an issue with facepaint if his brother, Umaga, wore it.

However, it's less about facepaint and more about Zilla Fatu doing it in a way that pays homage to Jeff Hardy. Rikishi felt there was no need to market Jeff Hardy, as he is already an icon, and urged his nephew to focus on his own identity.

If you use the quote from the first half of the article, embed the YouTube video, and give a H/T credit to Sportskeeda Wrestling for transcription.