Sheamus vs Yoshi Tatsu
The fact that Sheamus and Yoshi Tatsu got into a fight is well known, but there are two different versions as for the reason and as to how it all went down.
Fight: Sheamus vs Yoshi Tatsu
Date: 2007 – 2009 (exact date unknown)
Location: Tampa, FL
Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter
Before he debuted on WWE TV with an instant big push, Sheamus signed a developmental contract and lived in Tampa while training and working FCW (Florida Championship Wrestling). FCW was WWE’s developmental system after OVW and before NXT. At the time, Sheamus lived in an apartment with fellow developmental wrestlers Ted DiBiase Jr and Yoshi Tatsu.
DiBiase, the son of his far more famous father, plays a small part in the story, although he’d be the only one who witnessed it. He and Tatsu were more talented than Sheamus, but also much smaller. Because of this, Sheamus acted like the boss and bully of the apartment.
As the story goes, Sheamus would often borrow their protein shaker/blender. This wouldn’t have been a problem, except he never cleaned it. This bothered DiBiase and Tatsu, who confronted Sheamus about it together.
The other version, told by Konnan, is that Sheamus had asked to borrow money from Tatsu. Whenever Tatsu would inquire about being paid back, Sheamus would come up with different excuses. Tatsu then confronted him one last time just prior to it getting physical.
It’s possible both stories are true, in the sense that Sheamus owed him money and it caused tension between the two, and the protein shaker was the catalyst for the fight. Konnan said he confirmed the money story with Tatsu himself, while the most widely reported story at the time was the protein shaker. Only the three men themselves would know for sure.
The Confrontation
After DiBiase and Tatsu confronted Sheamus about the protein shaker, he got defensive and agitated. He ended up throwing the shaker at Tatsu who caught it. Sheamus then challenged him, not realizing Tatsu was trained to fight from his days in the New Japan dojo and experience as a boxer. He apparently beat Sheamus pretty bad at that point.
Konnan’s version is that Tatsu confronted Sheamus about the money he owed him, and then “Slapped the sh*t out of him.” Tatsu eventually got his money back.
It’s not clear which story is true, and there’s a big difference between slapping someone and beating him up pretty bad. However, Tatsu later made a comment that indicated the protein shaker story is true. When asked about the incident, he said, “I just wanted to teach Sheamus a lesson in respect. Don’t mess with other people’s stuff.”
That quote would make no sense if it was just a matter of not repaying someone for money borrowed. On the other hand, Konnan said Tatsu personally told him he got his money back. This makes me think the protein shaker story is true, but that things were tense leading up to it because of the money issue. But that’s just speculation.
Matt Sydal, who was known as Evan Bourne at the time, said: “I guess everyone heard the story about how Sheamus got dropped by Yoshi Tatsu so I think that sort of makes him soft. I will say Sheamus is also tough. He literally broke his hand in a match ramming me into a pole and didn’t even miss a beat. He’s one of the toughest guys. Maybe he’s got a soft chin, I don’t know what happened.”
The story didn’t become well known until years later, when Sheamus was getting a big push as Vince McMahon’s pet project. At the time, people were hoping the story would get back to Vince so that he’d pull back the push. Vince has always held the belief that his champions shouldn’t lose a real fight (Bill Watts held the same belief, but for all his wrestlers, not just his champion). The best example is when the writing team tried to convince Vince to give Batista another title run, but he nixed it after Booker T had beaten up Batista in a backstage fight. It was a long time before Vince finally agreed to it. We don’t know if Vince ever heard the Sheamus story, but his push eventually faded when it became clear he wasn’t getting over like the company had hoped. He did get another title run in 2015 when he cashed in his Money in the Bank, but that was very brief.
The story got some attention yet again in 2014, when fellow Irishman Conor McGregor got into a Twitter war with Sheamus after saying he could beat Sheamus in a street fight. Tatsu went on Twitter and chimed in, “I don’t think so.” It was an obvious reference to the fight he had with Sheamus himself.
Josh Barnett, a big wrestling fan who has done pro wrestling matches himself, replied to Tatsu on Twitter by saying “You would know.”
Sheamus is a large, powerful man who is no doubt very tough. But this would make the second fight we’ve posted about him taking on a smaller man, and he lost that one too. That was the fight he had with Sin Cara, who himself is no stranger to backstage altercations.
