Altercation with The Rock not enough to keep major name in WWE; Former champion furious
Being in a segment with The Rock in WWE means that a superstar has made it big. However, it was not enough for Raj Dhesi, formerly known as Jinder Mahal, to keep his job since he was released four months later.
The Modern Day Maharaja started 2024 with a segment with The Rock and they were so impressed that he got a shot at the World Heavyweight Championship two weeks later. However, things went south from there as Mahal and Indus Sher were barely used afterward.
In an appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, the former WWE champion discussed how the frustrations had built up after the company denied Veer and Sanga some time off to come home to India, and that they were furious after not being used despite being denied the time off. Mahal shared their frustrations and was upset that there was nothing for him after his work with The Great One and Seth Rollins.
"Started off the year with The Rock and had the WWE championship match. Then one week later, I'm not in the Royal Rumble, which was I thought it was very weird. So we talked to TR (talent relations), we just said, 'Hey, listen. Like, if there's nothing for us, we can go our separate ways.' And sure enough, a few months later, we went our separate ways," Mahal said. (H/T chrisvanvliet.com)
Jinder Mahal also mentioned that he understood that it was time for the next generation of WWE Superstars to take their place on the roster. Mahal is particularly fond of Bron Breakker and Carmelo Hayes among the current crop of young stars in the main roster.
Jinder Mahal on working with The Rock
In an earlier appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet back in April, Jinder Mahal opened up about what it was like to work with The Rock and Brian Gewirtz. Mahal had nothing but love for The Great One and was appreciative of Gewirtz for telling him to enjoy the moment.
"He was excited to work with me and I was obviously excited to work with him. And he's just a class act, The Rock is amazing for him to give me that moment. And especially Brian, telling me like we got time don't rush, because I was actually kind of shortchanging myself. I was like, maybe I will walk and talk to the ring. He said no enjoy it, have a full entrance, get some heat. We were allotted 20 minutes, so it was an awesome experience," Mahal said. (H/T chrisvanvliet.com)
The Modern Day Maharaja is set to return to the ring on July 26 for Black Label Pro Wrestling. He's also scheduled to wrestle at AAA's TripleMania XXXII in Mexico City on August 17.