Backstage News On How Jeff Cobb Kept His WWE Debut Secret Heading Into Backlash PLE

Jeff Cobb made his WWE debut at this weekend's Backlash PLE, and it seems that WWE and Cobb went to great lengths to keep his debut a secret.

Cobb interfered in the four-way US Championship match, working on behalf of Solo Sikoa, a few weeks after leaving his former promotion, NJPW. As per "PWInsider," Cobb had to jump between 4 or 5 flights from Japan to make it to St. Louis, Missouri — the city where Backlash was held on Saturday night — and it took him nearly a day-and-a-half to make it all the way around the world. After making it to the Enterprise Center, the 42-year-old star was reportedly hidden before he made his way ringside to interfere in the match. Cobb, the report added, is now a part of the "WWE SmackDown" roster, the brand where his new leader, Sikoa, as well as Jacob Fatu, wrestle.

Fatu defended the United States Championship that he won at WrestleMania 41 against Drew McIntyre, former champion LA Knight, and Damian Priest at Backlash, and Cobb helped "The Samoan Werewolf" retain his title, even though Fatu didn't seem too impressed by Sikoa bringing him in and helping him. The former NJPW World Television Champion and the WWE United States Champion know each other quite well, having wrestled each other a few times in the indies, with their last match against each other coming in 2021.

Cobb, who previously had a tryout with WWE, joined the promotion after spending eight years in NJPW. In his 15-plus-year career, he has also featured in WWE's rival promotion AEW, as well as ROH and Lucha Underground.