Jeff Cobb Assesses His WWE Run & Inclusion In The MFTs

Jeff Cobb's WWE debut as "JC Mateo" initially excited fans who were familiar with his work in Japan. However, Cobb's inclusion with The Bloodline and later the MFT's left many fans skeptical, but his opportunity to turn his momentum around was cut short when he was released on May 2nd 2026.

Cobb has since sat down for an interview with Denise Salcedo, where he looked back at his short-lived WWE run. 

"I grew up as a WWF fan – WWF, if anybody remembers that – definitely, Hulk Hogan brought me into wrestling," he explained, noting that pro wrestling has always been his dream job while it's not been everything he thought it would be. "But who am I to complain? It's not my company, but being able to say I was sought after, saying no to them four times, and then saying yes on the 5th is a cool little notch on my belt."

Still, Cobb understands criticisms against his brief WWE run.

"It could've gone better. There's so many people I could blame, but I'm not going to do that, you know why? I'm just gonna get angry about something I can't control," he added. Cobb then expressed that he takes a lot of good things from his time with WWE and claims he made many friendships. "I had a fun time while I was there. Could things have gone in a better direction? Of course. But my time there, my experiences? I'll always cherish it."

When it came to the MFTs as a faction, Cobb explained that the concept looks good on paper, especially with all the history between them. However, he found WWE's claim that he's Tongan a bit out there because he's Hawaiian, but doesn't consider his booking to be stereotypical. 

"That's what they hired me. They wanted me for that, alright cool, I'll do my best with it," he added. 

Jeff Cobb's time with the MFT's wasn't all forced and frustrating, as he claims he grew to love his stablemates and has been enjoying Solo Sikoa's run as a babyface lately.

 "I mean, you let people's strength shine, I think," he stated. "Working with them was wonderful. I got to see them every week. We travelled together, we ate together, we partied together, we worked out together." He also noted that they all motivated one another, which likely got him through the most difficult moments of his WWE tenure.

Cobb then added that he does actually miss many of the backstage workers, and shared a special shoutout to all the camera workers, trainers, doctors, etc, who he felt don't get enough credit. The one aspect about competing alongside the MFTs that Cobb explicitly disagreed with was having to paint his face. 

"I was like: did you guys watch the product? I didn't paint my face in New Japan," he recalled. "So, I tried to make chicken salad out of chicken poop... But yeah, so I did my best with it. It's very uncomfortable when you've never wrestled [in face paint]." 

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Denise Salcedo and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.