Major League Wrestling has been known for recruiting some of the best talents in the wrestling landscape! Signing men and women stepping out of the octagon, independent hopefuls, and former superstars. MLW by far has one of the most decorated talent rosters in recent history. There’s one man that sits on top of the mountain, former MLW World Heavyweight Champion, Jacob Fatu!
Fatu is one of the many members of the Samoan Dynasty, a family tree that dates back to WWE Hall of Famer, High Chief Peter Maivia, and promoter Lia Maivia. The son of the Tonga Kid and relative of some of wrestling’s biggest stars (i.e Roman Reigns, The Usos, & The Rock) Jacob Fatu finds himself in the same family business striving to put his name at the top of that list.
Fatu was trained by his uncle, Rikishi, and his father before his 2012 debut. Between 2013-2015 Jacob made a name for himself on the California independent scene. It wouldn’t be until 2019, 7 years after his debut where the Samoan Werewolf would get his biggest break when he signed with Major League Wrestling.
At MLW SuperFight in February 2019, Fatu made a huge splash in the company winning a tag team match alongside Josef Samael. Fans might not remember this because it wasn’t televised. It wouldn’t be until Intimidation Games a month later where Fatu would make his televised debut and attack World Champion Tom Lawlor, quickly establishing himself in the main event. This attack would introduce fans to Contra Unit, a villainous group of merchants wreaking havoc on the MLW roster.
Only 4 months after the most impactful debut in MLW history, Jacob Fatu did the unthinkable and reached the mountaintop of Major League Wrestling winning the World Heavyweight Championship. On July 6 at Kings of Colosseum, Fatu defeated Lawlor to win the World Championship in an absolute barnburner! Jacob Fatu became the 8th man in MLW to hold the championship and began a reign of destruction.
Throughout the rest of 2019, Fatu took on all challengers. This rolled into the 2020 remaining champion throughout the lockdown and only recently lost the championship at MLW Fightland against Alex Hammerstone. Fatu’s challengers ranged from Davey Boy Smith Jr, Calvin Tankman, LA Park, ACH, Matt Cross, Brian Pillman Jr, Jordan Oliver, and more members of the MLW roster had the same fate of a Samoan drop and moonsault as Fatu reigned supreme.
What makes Jacob Fatu one of the most interesting performers not just in MLW, but in wrestling today is having such a prominent name in the business without ever competing for WWE or AEW. Much like the more well-known members of the Samoan Dynasty who made their names wrestling for Vince McMahon, Jacob Fatu has yet to step onto one of wrestling’s biggest stages. The story was first broken by ESPN that Fatu resigned with MLW through 2025 taking him off McMahon or Khan’s shopping list of talent. Fatu’s intensity and look alone puts him in the upper echelon of wrestling talent today moving with the grace of a Rey Mysterio but the intensity of Goldberg. You could say it’s in his DNA to be great in professional wrestling but his near-decade-long career is starting to pay off as he’s now the face of one of America’s biggest wrestling companies.
As MLW is gearing up to return to the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, PA on November 8th for War Chamber. Jacob Fatu will be teaming with Contra Unit to take on Hammerstone, Richard Holiday, EJ Nduka, and a mystery partner. After 819 days as MLW World Heavyweight Champion, wrestling fans around the world should keep their eyes on Jacob Fatu and HAIL CONTRA!
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