WWE debut fulfills lifelong dream of Hawaii wrestler

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Leaving opponents flattened with devastating slams may leave audiences wincing.

But underneath the imposing presence of World Wrestling Entertainment’s newest powerhouse is a local boy living out his childhood dream.

Before he began dishing out beatdowns in the ring, Jeff Cobb grew up watching wrestling on TV with his dad in Pearl City.

The 42-year-old says it was Hulk Hogan who sparked his passion to become a sports entertainer.

“Just seeing him on TV, the red and yellow, and it’s like, ‘Say your prayers and take your vitamins.’ I was like I’m going to be like him when I grow up,” said Cobb.

After his family relocated to Guam, Cobb began chasing his dream and, thanks to a misunderstanding, earned a spot on his high school wrestling team.

“I saw a flyer that said ‘wrestling.’ I thought they were going to teach us how to like do elbow drops from high places,” Cobb said. “I showed up and I was like, ‘Wait a minute!’ There’s like no ring. It was just a mat.”

Despite the mistake, Cobb embraced the new sport, punishing opponents through college in Missouri. He even competed for Guam at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

After graduating in 2008, on a trip home to Hawaii, Cobb’s pro wrestling aspirations came back into focus when he was passed over for a job on the mainland.

“I remember flipping through the TV one day, on the local access channel, I saw that there was a show coming up like in two weeks on Sand Island Access Road,” Cobb said. “So I rode my bike from Foster Village all the way down to Sand Island Access Road and watched this wrestling show. It was everything that I wanted it to be and more.”

Seizing the opportunity, Cobb introduced himself to the owner of Hawaii’s Action Zone Wrestling and signed up for classes.

At well over 200 pounds, Cobb’s ability to backflip and dive across the ring earned him the nickname Mr. Athletic and three Athletic Wrestling Zaragoza (AWZ) heavyweight titles.

Driven to succeed, Cobb kept wrestling and eventually earned stardom around the world on the independent wrestling circuit

But life on the road wasn’t always glamorous.

“Three shows a week, every week, every month,” Cobb said. “It gets kind of rough after a while on the body. I drive for six hours, like from Northern California to Los Angeles, and I didn’t get paid. There was no money, so it was like, that was all out of my pocket.”

With moves like his signature spinning powerslam, the “Tour of the Islands,” WWE came calling with a tryout in 2014.

“They said no at the time, and that kind of hurt my ego,” Cobb said.

Undeterred, Cobb continued to rack up championships in smaller promotions, boosting his value.

“From 2020 to 2024, I had like two or three other offers from them (WWE). It’s very fortunate in my career where I could turn them down and be fine with it, and then finally they got me,” he said.

Cobb says signing his WWE contract finally validated all his hard work and sacrifices.

“I kind of felt like I was in a dream, just because I was like, ‘What if my mind is playing tricks on me?’”

Thrusting himself into the spotlight by attacking one of the company’s top stars, Cobb made his shocking debut in May at the premium live event, Backlash.

Now a member of Friday Night SmackDown, with an on-screen villain persona and new name, “JC Mateo,” Cobb ironically has a babyface message for fans looking to follow in his footsteps.

“The main thing is just never give up. You can’t give up. Like, as if this is your dream, then you gotta do ‘um,” he said.

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