Chris King Looks Back: WWE Tribal Combat!

Chris King looks back at the only two Tribal Combat matches in WWE history, before Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu at Clash In Italy!

Ahead of this Sunday’s Tribal Combat Match between Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu for the World Heavyweight Championship, under tribal combat rules, everything is on the line, including titles and Samoan status as ‘The Head of the Table.’ The first tribal combat match was at the 2023 SummerSlam PLE against Jey Uso, and the last was on the debut episode of Monday Night Raw on Netflix against Solo Sikoa. 

Chris King has gone back and rewatched the past two tribal combat matches, and here are his takeaways. 

Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso (WWE SummerSlam 2023) 

‘The Head of the Table’ Roman Reigns was a different breed back in 2023. The confidence, the grand entrance, and the aura made him a dangerous champion. Jey Uso was seeking to gain revenge for three years of manipulation by his cousin and for Reigns and Solo Sikoa taking out his brother Jimmy Uso. Uso was coming off a huge win, being the only superstar to pin the undisputed champion after four years, and for The Head of the Table, it was just another day at the office. 

This match started symbolically to all of Reigns’s championship matches, with the arrogant champion overpowering his cousin and systematically dominating his challenger. Uso came back with some fast-paced offense with a suicide dive to Reigns on the outside. ‘The Wiseman’ Paul Heyman distracted Uso, which allowed Reigns to take control of this match. A drive-by allowed Reigns to get a two-count over his cousin. Another suicide dive was thwarted, and the undisputed champion blasted him with hard shots with a kendo stick. 

Uso answered a Superman Punch with a kendo stick shot to ‘The Tribal Chief’ as he starts to rally. A picture-perfect Superman Punch to a flying Uso gave the champion another near-fall. Uso delivered a Superkick after a failed Spear attempt and hit a Uso Splash for a near-fall of his own. Uso is just running on pure emotion as he delivers spine-shattering steel chair shots to his cousin as Heyman screams, “Stop.” 

Uso tried to Superplex his cousin, but the champion delivered a nasty Powerbomb from the corner onto a multitude of steel chairs for a two-count. Uso and Reigns slugged it out on the apron as ‘The Right Hand Man’ lifted his cousin and delivered a Samoan

drop through a table. Both superstars took the fight out into the crowd as Sikoa came out of nowhere and hit a Spinning Solo through a covered table. 

‘The Enforcer’ is now dragging Uso’s lifeless body back into the ring for his Tribal Chief. Reigns nearly lost his undisputed championship after he accidentally speared Sikoa, and Uso delivered a Spear to the champion. This is a two-on-one situation for Uso as he battles both The Enforcer and The Tribal Chief. Uso got his payback on Sikoa for taking out Jimmy. Seconds later, Uso hit a Spear and his signature Splash for a pinfall that was broken up by Jimmy! A confused challenger got superkicked by his own brother, and Reigns delivered a vicious Spear through the table to successfully retain his title. 

• I remember being so pissed off after Jimmy screwed his own brother out of the title that I needed ten minutes to cool down. I expected Solo Sikoa to interfere to help Roman retain, but I never expected Jimmy to cost Jey after everything Roman and Solo did to him.
• This massive twist in The Bloodline saga allowed the story to morph into something special all the way up to WrestleMania XL, where Cody Rhodes would dethrone The Tribal Chief and win the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Roman Reigns vs. Solo Sikoa (WWE Monday Night Raw Netflix Debut) 

How apropos is it that the next tribal combat match for Roman Reigns would be against his very own enforcer? Solo Sikoa helped him in so many of his title defenses and had now taken over as ‘The Head of the Table’ and his Ula-Fala during his absence. The OTC made his grand return at SummerSlam, costing Sikoa the Undisputed Championship. This match comes after the OG Bloodline and CM Punk defeated Sikoa and his Tongan family members Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, and Jacob Fatu inside WarGames.

Sikoa is out first wearing the highly regarded Ula-Fala for the Samoan heritage. The sold-out Los Angeles crowd is chanting “OTC” as their Tribal Chief made his grand entrance for this highly anticipated tribal combat match on the Netflix debut episode of Monday Night Raw. Both superstars started off the match with a headlock takeover as the former undisputed champion drives his cousin out of the ring. Sikoa immediately takes control, proving he’s the true OTC. 

Reigns answered back with some power moves to take down his opponent. Sikoa delivered a nasty Spinning Solo to the former champion on top of the announce table. Sikoa blasts Reigns with the ring bell and steel steps. The former enforcer of The Bloodline is teeing off on Reigns with vicious chair shots. A Con-Chair-To was avoided, and Sikoa hit a low blow followed by a Spinning Solo onto steel chairs for a near-fall. 

A drive-by kick allowed Reigns to get back into this chaotic match. Sikoa answered back with a kendo stick, blasting his cousin. An emotional Sikoa was trash-talking his opponent, and Reigns delivered a thunderous Powerbomb through the table for a two-count. Tama Tonga and Jacob Fatu are destroying The OTC as Sikoa delivered a Samoan Spike for a two-count. An angry Sikoa took out the referee as Sami Zayn and Jimmy Uso came out to even the odds. 

Kevin Owens came out of nowhere to hit Reigns, his longtime rival, with a Stunner. The undisputed champion Cody Rhodes is out here to take out Owens, his challenger, as tribal combat continues. Another vicious spike was avoided, and Reigns hit two thunderous Spears to solidify himself as The OTC! 

• Similar to his match against Jey Uso a few years back, Roman made his cousin look like a worthy main-eventer even in defeat. At one point I really felt that Sikoa was going to walk away with the victory, but when the OG Bloodline came down to even the odds, the ending was formulaic. The crowd was red-hot for Reigns, and I am excited to see where the story goes from here. 

Final Thoughts: It’s crazy to think that the superstar that nearly cost Reigns the Ula-Fala is the same person that he’s about to face in his third-ever Tribal Combat

Match? Fatu has been built up to be an unhinged monster since his arrival in WWE back in 2023. Could he finally be the one to defeat The OTC at Clash in Italy and become the new World Heavyweight Champion, or will Fatu fall in line with The Bloodline?