Jinder Mahal Says The Punjabi Prison Match "Sucks"

Raj Dhesi, known to WWE fans as Jinder Mahal, recently sat down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Hollywood. In their discussion, Dhesi opened up about his recent WWE release and how it differs from his previous departure. He also talked about managing Indus Sher, the rumors surrounding Brock Lesnar refusing to work with him, and his experiences fighting for the 24/7 Championship on a golf course and during a long-haul flight. Additionally, Dhesi reflected on working with Drew McIntyre, participating in the final WWE Punjabi Prison match, a regrettable promo, being paired with The Great Khali, so much more.

On His Release:

Jinder Mahal opened up about his release from WWE in an interview with Chris Van Vliet on "Insight With Chris Van Vliet." Reflecting on the situation, Mahal expressed both frustration and acceptance. "It was frustrating, but that’s okay because that’s what WWE is, it’s time for the next generation. It’s time for the Bron Breakker's and the Carmelo's, it’s their time. I had my time and maybe my time will come back," he shared. Mahal acknowledged the changing landscape of WWE and the need to step away for now, stating, "There’s plenty of other things to do. Starting off the year strong with The Rock, then the title match, thank you Tony [Khan] [laughs]. Then WrestleMania week, I’m in a two-segment match with Tozawa on Main Event. So obviously, there’s frustrations but it’s all good. I had many years there. I’ve done everything that I wanted to do. And yeah, it’s a young man’s game.”

On Why This Release Is Different:

Mahal discussed how this release feels different compared to his previous one, highlighting his personal growth and career achievements. "This one is much different. I am a grown man now. I’ll be turning 38 the day after this interview airs. So yeah, it’s just I’m at a different point in my life. I’m at peace with it. I’ve had a great career because at that time when I got released, the best thing I had done at that point was being in 3MB. Now I’ve been a WWE Champion, I’ve been in WrestleMania, headlined PPVs. I’ve done everything. I have traveled the world, and I’m in a different place financially. So yeah, a lot has changed."

On The Punjabi Prison Match:

Mahal did not hold back his opinions about the Punjabi Prison match. "So first off, the Punjabi prison match sucks. It’s terrible," he said candidly. He elaborated on the difficulties, saying, "It’s so hard. The inside cage is the blue old-school cage. You can hit it as hard as possible and it won’t even make a noise. It was terrible. And then just the crowd reaction, they couldn’t really see the people in the arena, there’s two cages. So when we’re on the inside, there’s two cages they couldn’t really see. And it was just painful. Kendo sticks, chair shots, everything." Despite these challenges, he shared a humorous anecdote about The Great Khali's surprise appearance, which added to the chaotic yet memorable nature of the match.

On If Brock Lesnar Refused to Work With Him:

Addressing rumors about Brock Lesnar refusing to work with him, Mahal offered his perspective. "This is just my opinion, and obviously there’s a lot of misinformation on the internet. The headline came out, ‘Brock Lesnar refused to work with Jinder.’ I don’t think he refused. I just think it was he probably pitched for a match with AJ because stylistically, it is a much better match. Me and Brock are both heels. Who’s gonna put heat on who? It was gonna be a flat match." Mahal explained the decision from a booking standpoint, praising the match Lesnar had with AJ Styles. "But the match he had with AJ was phenomenal, no pun intended [laughs]. So yeah, I don’t think it was that he refused to work with me. I just think Brock has some pull and him and Paul Heyman probably said, Hey, we should talk to Vince and said book the match with AJ Styles. Which is okay, I have to lose a championship at some point anyway, I had it for six months and I didn’t know that I was losing the championship until the day of [the show]. We were in Manchester and we had the title match. We get to the building, Michael Hayes tells me and AJ go talk to Vince, and sent us to Vince’s office. Vince tells me you’re dropping the championship, now you’re going to chase it. AJ, you’re winning it tonight, you’ll work with Brock at Survivor Series, then me and AJ at Night of Champions, one more championship match. And that was it. Yeah, I found out on the same day I’m winning it, lost it the same way, found out the same day."