In September, WWE star Jimmy Uso caused concern when his father, WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi, took to social media, urging fans to “stay prayed for my boy.” This led to speculation about Uso’s well-being, which was quickly dispelled when WWE officials confirmed that he was fine. However, Rikishi faced criticism from some fans for creating unnecessary worry.
On the latest episode of his “Off the Top Rope” podcast, Rikishi clarified his tweet and responded to the backlash. He defended himself, explaining that he was simply acting as any father would in a similar situation.
“God forbid I even say anything on social media,” Rikishi said. “Everybody thought that Jimmy was in the hospital. All I said was just ‘Send a prayer for my son.’ That’s it. I got so much flak for just being a father trying to send some prayers for his boy and then boom!”
Uso made his return to WWE last weekend at Bad Blood, where he helped Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes defeat Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu, continuing the Bloodline Civil War. Rikishi sees his son’s comeback as a response to his earlier prayers.
“I’ve seen the highlights… all I was really listening to was the fans,” Rikishi shared. “That damn building erupted. It just erupted. So that type of feeling and that type of sound, let’s go back three years ago, it’s almost when Solo Sikoa came in for Roman. Then here it is. As a proud father, come on. I’m always gonna talk about my kids out there on social media. So yeah, it was a big night.”