He might have taken a loss tonight, but Solo Sikoa won in my heart.

Ever since the implosion of Sikoa’s original Bloodline (with Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga), Sikoa has really been putting the work into his character. This is not to say that his character has become more serious, or more introspectively compelling. No, Sikoa’s been putting the work into his character in a more lighthearted aspect. Sikoa is not becoming more introspective or narratively complicated, but there is sort of lighthearted cockiness behind his promo segments that just feels like he added some secret ingredient to himself: one that takes his presentation from a strong five to a stellar nine (or ten, if you’re generous). This is no longer the brooding, angry Sikoa that we used to see when he was Roman Reigns’ right-hand man, or the new Tribal Chief who barely had a grip on Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, and Jacob Fatu. Sikoa has really been putting the work into his character, and it is showing. Like, I didn’t know Sikoa was funny like that!

Okay, he’s not just funny. When Sikoa confronted Paul Heyman and LA Knight in the opening segment of Friday’s episode of “WWE SmackDown,” it was no laughing matter as Sikoa and his gang of dogs backed Heyman up and out of the ringside area. This isn’t to diminish his comedic capabilities either: his work with LA Knight, finger lick to taunt mockery and all, got a laugh out of me! No, Sikoa’s improvement on the mic doesn’t lie in whether he is funny or not. That trait does not exist in vacuum. Sikoa’s improvement lies in his confidence.

Sikoa is confident, and that confidence, visibly, runs deep. There is something internal, from-the-soul about his new demeanor. Said confidence has been on display for months now, admittedly, but it has always been overshadowed by a bigger star (Fatu comes to mind first). Now that he’s being paired with new guys like Talla Tonga and JC Mateo, you can really start to see his confidence. There’s a certain suaveness to him that he didn’t have before as Reigns’ muscle, or as the new Tribal Chief, or as Fatu’s frenemy. Sikoa’s new in-ring demeanor is, on paper, the same as it’s always been, but there is just something elusive about it that makes the world of a difference — there is something that I notice and admire, but struggle to name.

He sounds comfortable. That’s a good word to describe it: comfortable. In that comfort comes natural confidence — that is a good word to describe it as well: natural. Sikoa was such a forced presence, especially when he debuted on the main roster. Now, it seems like he’s cutting loose, and is letting his experience and confidence carry his promos rather than his scripted, bestowed-upon-thee character. He is comfortable, he is confident, and his character feels natural now. The secret ingredient to Sikoa’s vast improvement and newfound persona was a dash of non-GMO, all-natural, from-the-roots confidence.

Written by Angeline Phu