Having started his career on theindependent circuit, Dhesi joined WWE in 2010 and made his debut as Jinder Mahal on the company's main roster the following year. After a short-lived alliance with hiskayfabe brother-in-lawThe Great Khali, he formed thestable 3MB with fellow wrestlersHeath Slater andDrew McIntyre, before he and McIntyre were released from the company in 2014. He returned to WWE in 2016 with a drastically improved physique and received apush in 2017, culminating in him becoming the 50thWWE Champion and the first of Indian descent.
Yuvraj Singh Dhesi[5] was born inCalgary on July 19, 1986.[3] He is of Indian (Punjabi)Sikh descent.[2] He holds a business degree in communications and culture from theUniversity of Calgary.[6] His uncle,Gama Singh, was considered a legendary wrestlingvillain in the originalStampede Wrestling and wrestled around the world (and briefly for the WWF, now WWE) in the 1980s.[7]
Growing up in a wrestling family, Dhesi began his professional wrestling career at the Martial Arts Fitness Center in Calgary, training withRick Bognar.[7] He debuted in Premier Martial Arts Wrestling (PMW) as "Raj Dhesi" and then went on to train withAllen Coage andGerry Morrow, wrestling in a revived Stampede Wrestling alongside fellow future WWE wrestlersNatalya,Tyson Kidd, andViktor.[8] As "Tiger Raj Singh", he won varioustag team championships in Stampede andPrairie Wrestling Alliance (PWA), spending much of his early career teaming with his cousin Gama Singh Jr. They were known as The New Karachi Vice and also as Sikh & Destroy, winning the PWA Canadian Tag Team Championship.[9] In PWA, he was the PWA Heavyweight Champion from 2008 until January 2010[10] and also spent time in Great North Wrestling (GNW), where hefeuded with wrestlers such asHannibal andSamoa Joe.[11]
Dhesi tried out forWWE'sdevelopmental promotionFlorida Championship Wrestling (FCW).[2] At the tryout, he believed that his Punjabigimmick andpromos made him stand out, stating that he "came out wearing a turban and had [his] full outfit on" and that "they like guys who speak different languages and have different looks".[2] In February 2010, he signed to a developmental contract with FCW under the ring nameJinder Mahal and wrestled there for a year.[2]
As part of his firstvillain character, Mahal began wearing his signature pre-match attire
Mahal made his televised WWE debut on the April 29, 2011, episode ofSmackDown, greeting backstage fellow Indian wrestler The Great Khali and hismanagerRanjin Singh by speaking inPunjabi that he was really happy and excited to see Khali and Ranjin.[12] The next week onSmackDown, Mahal, unimpressed by how Khali and Singh have been partaking in childish activities instead of winning matches, confronted Singh about his mismanagement of Khali, establishing himself as aheel.[13] Mahal interrupted a Khali Kiss Cam segment the following week onSmackDown, slapping Khali twice.[14] On the May 20 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal interrupted Khali's match againstJey Uso, leading to Khali confronting Mahal.[15] On his first televised match on the June 17 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal defeatedVladimir Kozlov[16] and on the July 1 episode ofSmackDown it was revealed that Mahal was married to Khali's sister, making them (kayfabe) brothers-in-law.[17] On the September 5 episode ofRaw, he suffered his first loss when he and Khali lost toWWE Tag Team ChampionsEvan Bourne andKofi Kingston in a non-title match.[18] In a rematch onSmackDown, they lost again to Bourne and Kingston, leading Khali to walk away from Mahal after the match, thus ending their alliance.[19] On the September 16 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal attacked Khali during his match withHeath Slater which Khali won bydisqualification.[20] On the September 23 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal suffered his first loss in a singles match to Khali.[21] On the October 14 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal competed in a 41-manbattle royal and Mahal made it to the final three before being eliminated by Randy Orton.[22]
In November, Mahal targeted wrestlers whom he deemed as beneath him or embarrassing and in November began a feud withTed DiBiase.[23] On the December 30 episode ofSmackdown, Mahal broke DiBiase's winning streak viasubmission to end their feud.[24][25] In December, Mahal tried to make a name for himself and went afterSheamus, constantly disrespecting him, but was defeated and for several months they were involved in multiple matches, with Sheamus always getting the best of Mahal.[26] At Mahal's firstRoyal Rumble on January 29, 2012, he was eliminated by The Great Khali,[27] rekindling their feud and leading to a match on the February 3 episode ofSmackDown, which Mahal lost.[28] AtOver the Limit on May 20, Mahal participated in and lost a battle royal match where the winner was to receive a shot at theIntercontinental Championship or theUnited States Championship when he was again eliminated by The Great Khali.[29]
In late April, Mahal began confronting several wrestlers, starting with Randy Orton, interrupting one of his promos and being attacked in retaliation with anRKO.[30] On July 23 atRaw 1000, Mahal confrontedKane, leading a group consisting ofCamacho,Curt Hawkins,Drew McIntyre,Hunico andTyler Reks and claiming none of them had been given an opportunity within WWE and would make one by taking down Kane, butThe Undertaker's sudden appearance halted their advance and TheBrothers of Destruction attacked the group and took them out.[31] On the July 27 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal lost toRyback bycountout[32] and then began a feud with him, winning by intentional countout and disqualification.[33] To try and prove himself to Ryback, Mahal requested a match against two local wrestlers in a match style similar to Ryback's, defeating them quickly bysubmission.[34] In spite of this, Mahal continued his feud with Ryback, attacking him during their matches and after Ryback's, but was ultimatelypinned by Ryback on the August 24 episode ofSmackDown to end their feud.[35]
When WWErebranded its developmental territory FCW intoNXT,[36] Mahal began appearing on the rebootedNXT, where he started a winning streak by defeating several wrestlers, includingDerrick Bateman andPercy Watson.[37][38] On the August 8 episode ofNXT, Mahal was inserted into theGold Rush tournament to crown the firstNXT Champion, where he defeatedBo Dallas in the first round.[39] On the August 15 episode ofNXT, Mahal defeatedRichie Steamboat in the semi-finals of the Gold Rush Tournament.[40] On the August 29 episode ofNXT, Mahal was defeated bySeth Rollins in the finals of the Gold Rush Tournament, thus ending his NXT winning streak.[41] At theNight of Champions pre-show on September 16, Mahal competed in the 16-man battle royal to become number one contender for the United States Championship, but was eliminated byBrodus Clay.[42]
On the September 21 episode ofSmackDown, Mahal andDrew McIntyre interfered inHeath Slater's match against Brodus Clay by attacking Clay.[43] The alliance of Mahal, Slater and McIntyre were later named 3MB.[44] From October 2012, 3MB racked up many wins against Team Co-Bro (Santino Marella andZack Ryder) andThe Usos (Jey and Jimmy Uso), all of them due to illegal interference.[45][46][47] At theSurvivor Series pre-show on November 18, Mahal and Slater defeated Marella and Ryder when Mahal pinned Ryder.[48] AtTLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 16, 3MB were defeated by the team ofAlberto Del Rio,The Brooklyn Brawler andThe Miz.[49] The next night onRaw at theSlammy Awards show, 3MB lost to Del Rio, Miz andTommy Dreamer.[50] Mahal competed in the 30-manRoyal Rumble match at theRoyal Rumble on January 27, 2013, by entering at number 27, but was eliminated by Sheamus.[51] On the April 12 episode ofSmackDown, in an attempt to make a name for themselves, 3MB tried to attackTriple H, but were attacked themselves byThe Shield (Dean Ambrose,Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins).[52] On the April 15 episode ofRaw, 3MB called out The Shield, only forBrock Lesnar to come out instead and attack the group.[53] At theNight of Champions pre-show on September 15, 3MB (Drew McIntyre and Heath Slater) competed in a number one contenderstag team turmoil match for the WWE Tag Team Championship, in which they were the last team eliminated by Tons of Funk (Brodus Clay andTensai).[54]
Dhesi wrestled forReality of Wrestling (ROW) under the name Raj Singh at their summer iPPV,ROW Summer of Champions 2014, defeating Jasper Davis.[66] On October 24 at All Star Wrestling (ASW) inVancouver,BC at the live event Fright Night Live, Singh teamed with his cousin Gama Singh Jr. to defeat Kyle Sebastian and Collin Cutler to win the ASW Tag Team Championship. Between 2014 and 2015, he appeared in Puerto Rican promotion theWorld Wrestling Council (WWC) against local starRay González.[67][68] He also participated in Qatar Pro Wrestling (QPW) Souq Waqif Championship tournament in April 2015, where he ended up as first runner up.[69] On May 5, Singh made his debut for Japanese promotionInoki Genome Federation (IGF), losing toWang Bin.[70] In 2016, he also wrestled for The Great Khali's wrestling promotion Continental Wrestling Entertainment (CWE) in India.[71]
In a 2017 interview onChris Jericho'sTalk is Jericho podcast, Mahal revealed that he "hitrock bottom" during his time in theindependent circuit. He also mentioned that he stopped drinkingalcohol and began working out and eating cleaner, losing 20 pounds in the process, two months prior to WWE calling him to return.[72]
On July 27, Mahal re-signed with the WWE.[73] On the August 1 episode ofRaw, Mahal returned to television alongside Heath Slater, demanding contracts until Raw General ManagerMick Foley informed the pair that they had to face each other in a match for aRaw contract, which Mahal won.[74] Throughout the rest of the month onRaw, Mahal began losing to the likes ofNeville,[75]Sami Zayn[76] andDarren Young.[77] Mahal then adopted the gimmick of a "man who comes in peace", advocating peace and tranquility.[78][79] On the September 12 episode ofRaw, Mahal stated that after he left WWE he "felt anger and rage" and had since "found inner peace" before defeatingJack Swagger.[80] Afterwards, Mahal began competing onMain Event andSuperstars, where he often traded wins and losses against Darren Young.[81]
On the December 19 episode ofRaw, a notably more lean and muscular[82][83] Mahal began an alliance withRusev after Mahal had a confrontation with Rusev's rivalEnzo Amore before the two attacked Amore.[84] On the January 2, 2017, episode ofRaw, Mahal and Rusev defeated Amore'stag team partnerBig Cass in a2-on-1 handicap match.[85] The following week onRaw, Mahal lost to Cass (who hadShawn Michaels at ringside) after Michaels performed theSweet Chin Music on Rusev at ringside, which distracted Mahal.[86] On the February 27 episode ofRaw, Mahal and Rusev began to show tension after Rusev inadvertently distracted Mahal, causing the two to lose toThe New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston andXavier Woods).[87] The alliance between Mahal and Rusev ended atFastlane on March 5, when Mahal informed Raw General Manager Mick Foley about his desire to return to singles competition, prompting Foley to place the duo in singles matches that night and with both Mahal and Rusev losing their respective matches againstCesaro andBig Show.[88] This was done due to Rusev suffering alegit shoulder injury.[89]
Jinder is a guy who has always worked extremely hard. He trains hard; he's very intense about what he wants with his career; he's very thoughtful... to Jinder's credit and toDrew [McIntyre]'s credit, they left, they went and figured it for themselves, they improved. They're both men now as opposed to kids trying to make it in the business... now hopefully they are in a better position to succeed.
On the April 18 episode ofSmackDown Live, Mahal won asix-pack challenge to earn a title match for theWWE Championship after interference from Mahal's new allies,The Singh Brothers (Samir and Sunil Singh),[93] defeating the championRandy Orton atBacklash to win the title, becoming the 50th recognized WWE Champion and the first of Indian descent.[94][95] According to him, Mahal was included into the feud against Orton after Rusev suffered an injury and his title win took place because the company wanted a surprise.[96] Mahal retained the title against Orton atMoney in the Bank, andBattleground, the first in a singles match and the second in a Punjabi Prison match.[97][98]
After dropping the WWE Championship, Mahal was quickly inserted into theUnited States Championship picture after he competed in an 8-man tournament to crown a new champion, losing against Robert Roode in the finals.[107] AtWrestleMania 34, Mahal won a Fatal 4 Way, including the champion Randy Orton, Rusev and Robert Roode to win the title.[108][109] On April 16, as part ofSuperstar Shake-up, Mahal was traded back to Raw and lost the title toJeff Hardy, ending his reign at just 8 days.[110] On April 27 atGreatest Royal Rumble event Mahal couldn't win back the United States Championship from Hardy.[111]
Mahal in 2019
On the May 7 episode ofRaw, after defeatingChad Gable, Mahal was denied entry into the triple threatMoney in the Bank qualifying match by General ManagerKurt Angle, which led to Mahal interfering and costingRoman Reigns the match later that night.[112] The following week, Mahal was scheduled to compete in another triple threat Money in the Bank qualifying match againstBobby Lashley andElias, but he was attacked by Reigns before the match.[113] AtMoney in the Bank, Mahal lost to Reigns.[114]
The night after onRaw, Mahal returned as the "man who comes in peace" and defeated Chad Gable.[115] Starting in September, Mahal competed in the second iteration of theWWE Mixed Match Challenge, teaming withAlicia Fox, where they went 1-3 to make the Playoff round of the tournament and defeat the team ofApollo Crews andBayley to advance to the finals. At theTLC PPV on December 16, Mahal & Fox lost the final toR-Truth &Carmella.[116] In 2019, as part ofSuperstar Shake-up, Mahal was moved to the SmackDown brand,[117] where he won the24/7 Championship twice, 1 pinning champion R-Truth on a golf course,[118] and, 4 days later, pinned R-Truth on an airport tarmac.[119] On June 28, WWE reported that Mahal suffered a knee injury and it was reported that the injury would sideline him for 6 to 12 months.[120] As part of the2019 draft, Mahal was drafted to the Raw brand.[121] While he returned on the April 27, 2020, show ofRaw,[122][123] a month later underwent another surgery to fix complications in his knee.[124]
After a nine-month absence, Mahal appeared at theSuperstar Spectacle on January 26, 2021, reuniting with The Singh Brothers; they lost toDrew McIntyre and Indus Sher (Rinku &Saurav) in a 6-man tag team match.[125] Mahal formed an alliance with Rinku (now known as Veer) &Shanky on the May 3 show ofMain Event, where he defeatedJeff Hardy.[126] In June, he began a feud with former 3MB teammate Drew McIntyre after Mahal questioned the amount of championship opportunities McIntyre had received over the past year.[127] AtMoney in the Bank, Mahal interfered in the titular match, attacking McIntyre with Shanky and Veer carrying McIntyre away from the match.[128] The following night onRaw, Mahal, Shanky, and Veer gloated about costing McIntyre the match only for McIntyre to attack all three with a steel chair.[129] AtSummerSlam, Mahal lost to McIntyre.[130]
Prior to the specialDay 1 show ofRaw on January 1, 2024 rumours reported that a former WWE Champion would be appearing on the show.[140] Mahal was revealed as the champion in question, to the dismay of the audience, and berated America as being divided while claiming that he'd unite it.[141] Another former WWE Champion,Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, would interrupt him in a surprise return for the first time since September, insulting Mahal before finally hitting his signature moves on him.[141] 3 days later, Mahal challenged The Rock to a match in India during an interview withSony Sports Network.[142] The next week onRaw, Mahal confrontedWorld Heavyweight ChampionSeth "Freakin" Rollins and continued to present himself as a man who wanted a platform to tell the truth, while chastising Rollins for overlooking him as a worthy challenger. Mahal attacked Rollins after his rebuttal and the two brawled with him escaping from Rollins' attack,[143] before Rollins accepted Mahal's challenge for a championship match on the January 15 episode ofRaw,[144] where Mahal lost to Rollins. On the WrestleMania edition ofSmackDown, Mahal competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, which he would lose. This marked his final appearance with WWE. On April 19, Mahal was released from WWE, ending his second tenure with the company.[145]
On June 5, 2024, it was announced that Dhesi (now reverting back to his "Raj Dhesi" name) would make his debut for Black Label Pro (BLP) on July 26.[146] On July 19, Dhesi made his debut forGame Changer Wrestling (GCW), attackingEffy after his match.[147] On October 19, Dhesi would make an appearance on Night 1 ofMaple Leaf Pro Wrestling'sForged In Excellence event, losing toBully Ray in a Tables match after interference fromQ. T. Marshall.[148] Dhesi would team withBhupinder Gujjar against Bully Ray and Q.T. Marshall in a winning effort during Night 2 following a Gargoyle Spear by Gujjar.[149]
On May 31, 2025, Dhesi, under his "Jinder Mahal" name, was scheduled to faceMasada at Battleground Championship Wrestling (BCW)'s event Original Sin. During the match, Dhesi would walk out after Masdaa tried to useskewers and would lose bycountout. After the match, Masada would go on social media to criticize Dhesi for his behaviour, claiming that Dhesi had given him written rules and restrictions for their match. It was later reported byFightful Select, that the incident was aworked shoot, orchestrated by the promoters of BCW.[150][151]
In November 2021, Dhesi announced he was joining the cast of theABC drama seriesBig Sky.[159] He debuted on the 22nd episode ("Heart-shaped Charm") as Dhruv, the enforcer of Ren's brother Jag. Through April 7, 2022, he has appeared in 9 episodes ofBig Sky.
Dhesi resides inTampa, Florida. He is fluent in English,Hindi, andPunjabi.[2] He follows astraight edge lifestyle, which was called into question in 2017 after viewers noticed telltale signs ofsteroid use following his return to WWE with a drastically improved physique.[161][162]
Dhesi is friends with mixed martial artist and fellow Indo-CanadianArjan Bhullar.[163] He is also good friends with fellow professional wrestlersHeath Slater andDrew McIntyre, with whom he previously formed the 3MB team.[164]
In 2017, Canadian politicianGraham Sucha tabled three documents before the province of Alberta's legislative assembly, formally congratulating Dhesi for winning the WWE Championship.[165][166]
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^Kreikenbohm, Philip (July 4, 2009)."PWA Heavyweight Championship". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database.Archived from the original on March 7, 2022. RetrievedJanuary 28, 2021.
^Kreikenbohm, Philip (May 21, 2017)."WWE Championship". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database.Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. RetrievedJanuary 28, 2021.
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