WWE’s Royce Keys talks working with Jacob Fatu at West Coast Pro

Before Royce Keys destroyed his opponents in WWE, he was wrestling and working with future stars on the independent scene in the Bay Area.

Keys performed for West Coast Pro alongside fellow WWE star Jacob Fatu before each of them took giant steps toward becoming the superstars fans applaud today. West Coast Pro owner Scott Bregante detailed the company’s rise and impact on the industry in an interview with Pak Gazette Digital before their shows took place during WrestleMania week last month.

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WWE SmackDown’s new big man said West Coast Pro was a different experience than many other places he’s worked.

“A lot. Scott is one of my partners for a long time. He knows everything I’ve been through. He and I have been through some things together,” Keys told Pak Gazette Digital. “The West Coast definitely has a different feel than anywhere else I’ve been. I’m not going to criticize any other place.

“The West Coast man, I think we work harder, we achieve, we take what we want. For me, I like to say it’s in the water here in the Bay. You drink the water here, it’s a different thing.”

Fatu, who will challenge Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship at Backlash next weekend, was also a top performer at West Coast Pro. Keys said he had “no doubt” that Fatu would emerge as a star as big as he is now in WWE.

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Jacob Fatu enters the ring before his unsanctioned match against Drew McIntyre at WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on April 18, 2026. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

“That’s my friend. We’re back dimes and four cents,” he said. “That’s my guy. Me and him, driving 10 hours to a show and coming back 10 hours in a beat-up Honda Civic and eating top-notch ramen after practicing at KnokX Pro, grinding at APW and West Coast Pro. That’s my guy, man. We work hard.

“A lot of times he ate at my table, I ate at his table. I slept on his couch, he slept on my couch. That’s my guy. I’m so proud of him. I put all 10 of my toes, I run with that guy seven days a week.”

The “routine” Keys was referring to helps train professional wrestlers from all walks of life.

Long, and sometimes dangerous, car trips from one location to another just to perform at a bingo hall or a high school gym are a staple of the independent scene for many wrestlers.

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Keys was not exempt from it.

“I did a show in Reno once and there were six of us in the car,” he said. “There are no chains on the car. We drove through a blizzard. Normally, from the Bay to get to Reno, it takes about 3 1/2 to 4 hours depending on how you push the whip. But man, I was the one in the front seat driving maybe 3, 4, 5 mph through a blizzard. It was like you couldn’t see in front of you and when you could see, you almost felt like you were on a ship. space, like in ‘Star Wars, you know, like All the stars and everything is coming at you, but it was snow.

“I remember driving from Oakland to Las Vegas, Jacob and I. Go fight, okay, well, we have to go back. We have work the next day. Get back in the car, drive 10 hours back to the Bay from Las Vegas just to experience it. I took something called Mega Bus… I left on a Thursday, went to train at KnokX Pro with Rikishi, Gangrel, Black Pearl. I got on a bus, drove 7-8 hours to go to the train and I have to go back right away and do the same thing every week, every week, every week. This is a routine.

But for Keys there was no other option.

Royce Keys competes against Berto during SmackDown at the SAP Center in San Jose, California on April 10, 2026. (Melina Pizano/WWE)

“I, personally, know what I want. There is no plan B. You have to stick with plan A.”

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Now, both Keys and Fatu appear weekly on WWE programming.