Ring name(s) Ekmo Fatu,O.G. Ekmo,Ekmo,Jamal,Umaga
Billed height 6ft 4in (193cm)
Billed weight 348 lb (158 kg)
Born March 28, 1973,Samoa
Resides San Francisco, California
Billed from The Isle of Samoa
Trained by Afa Anoa'i
Pro Wrestling Debut 1995
Edward Umar Fatu (born March 28, 1973) is a Samoan professional wrestler better known by his ring names Jamal, and currently Umaga. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment wrestling on its RAW brand where he is the current Intercontinental Champion.
He worked the independent circuit as a tag team with his cousin Matt Anoa'i (Kimo), as The Island Boyz using the name Ekmo.
On the July 22, 2002 episode of WWE RAW, The Island Boyz made their debut as Three Minute Warning. Fatu (using the name Jamal) and his cousin (going by Rosey) were (kayfabe) hired as General Manager Eric Bischoff's enforcers, attacking seemingly random wrestlers each week on his order. Fatu was released from his WWE contract later that year.
Fatu worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) for a short while after his WWE release under his old name, Ekmo, and would later move to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) as a member of the Roughly Obsess & Destroy (RO&D) faction. Later, with Taiyo Kea, Fatu won the AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship. He also challenged Satoshi Kojima for the Triple Crown.
Fatu also wrestled in many independent promotions during this time, including his brother Solofa's Nu-Wrestling Evolution. However, in December 2005, Fatu announced he would be returning to World Wrestling Entertainment and gave his notice to AJPW. His time in Japan was seen by many as a period of great improvement in his career, as he became a regular in main events and took on an aura of strength and credibility as a singles wrestler.
In December 2005, it was confirmed that WWE re-signed Fatu. A return of Three Minute Warning was hinted at for many weeks with the team of Matt Anoai and Fatu competing in dark matches together before RAW; however, Rosey was released before the team could be brought back on the main show.
On the April 3, 2006, edition of RAW in Chicago, Illinois, Fatu made his redebut using the name Umaga, alongside his manager, the Cuban Armando Alejandro Estrada. When Estrada interrupted a Ric Flair promo he introduced his new client, Umaga, who proceeded to viciously attack Flair.
The Umaga gimmick is considered a "throwback" to many Samoan based tag teams like The Wild Samoans, and The Headshrinkers. It is also believed that the name is somehow related to former New Zealand All Blacks (New Zealand's national rugby team) captain Tana Umaga, who is also Samoan. The character has also drawn comparisons to Kamala the Ugandan Giant.
Most of the matches Umaga participated in while establishing himself were squash matches against various jobbers; however, after competing in one of these squash matches, Ric Flair returned to attack him. Their mini-feud culminated with Umaga winning a match against Ric Flair at Backlash 2006.
Billed height 6ft 4in (193cm)
Billed weight 348 lb (158 kg)
Born March 28, 1973,Samoa
Resides San Francisco, California
Billed from The Isle of Samoa
Trained by Afa Anoa'i
Pro Wrestling Debut 1995
Edward Umar Fatu (born March 28, 1973) is a Samoan professional wrestler better known by his ring names Jamal, and currently Umaga. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment wrestling on its RAW brand where he is the current Intercontinental Champion.
He worked the independent circuit as a tag team with his cousin Matt Anoa'i (Kimo), as The Island Boyz using the name Ekmo.
On the July 22, 2002 episode of WWE RAW, The Island Boyz made their debut as Three Minute Warning. Fatu (using the name Jamal) and his cousin (going by Rosey) were (kayfabe) hired as General Manager Eric Bischoff's enforcers, attacking seemingly random wrestlers each week on his order. Fatu was released from his WWE contract later that year.
Fatu worked for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) for a short while after his WWE release under his old name, Ekmo, and would later move to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) as a member of the Roughly Obsess & Destroy (RO&D) faction. Later, with Taiyo Kea, Fatu won the AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship. He also challenged Satoshi Kojima for the Triple Crown.
Fatu also wrestled in many independent promotions during this time, including his brother Solofa's Nu-Wrestling Evolution. However, in December 2005, Fatu announced he would be returning to World Wrestling Entertainment and gave his notice to AJPW. His time in Japan was seen by many as a period of great improvement in his career, as he became a regular in main events and took on an aura of strength and credibility as a singles wrestler.
In December 2005, it was confirmed that WWE re-signed Fatu. A return of Three Minute Warning was hinted at for many weeks with the team of Matt Anoai and Fatu competing in dark matches together before RAW; however, Rosey was released before the team could be brought back on the main show.
On the April 3, 2006, edition of RAW in Chicago, Illinois, Fatu made his redebut using the name Umaga, alongside his manager, the Cuban Armando Alejandro Estrada. When Estrada interrupted a Ric Flair promo he introduced his new client, Umaga, who proceeded to viciously attack Flair.
The Umaga gimmick is considered a "throwback" to many Samoan based tag teams like The Wild Samoans, and The Headshrinkers. It is also believed that the name is somehow related to former New Zealand All Blacks (New Zealand's national rugby team) captain Tana Umaga, who is also Samoan. The character has also drawn comparisons to Kamala the Ugandan Giant.
Most of the matches Umaga participated in while establishing himself were squash matches against various jobbers; however, after competing in one of these squash matches, Ric Flair returned to attack him. Their mini-feud culminated with Umaga winning a match against Ric Flair at Backlash 2006.
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