2 years ago
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Acknowledge WWE's golden child.
Meet Roman Reigns: the face of WWE right now and for the foreseeable future.
WWE, Peacock
In honor of WrestleMania weekend, here are 21 things you should know about WWE superstar Roman Reigns.
1. His real name is Joe Anoa'i.
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The man behind WWE's character Roman Reigns is Joe A'noai.
For non-pro wrestling fans, imagine him as an actor playing a character all while doing his own stunts on the ultimate weekly soap opera that is WWE.
2. He was a defensive tackle prospect that played collegiate football at Georgia Tech.
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I first remember seeing Roman Reigns before he was Roman Reigns. He was a Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket, playing defensive tackle, and a legitimate NFL prospect.
3. What about his NFL (Roman) Reign?
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Joe Anoa'i was a great footballer, but his size was not elite for his position, causing him to go undrafted in the 2007 NFL Draft. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings and eventually ended up on Edmonton's practice squad in the CFL.
4. He comes from pro wrestling royalty.
WWE
His father is Sika Anoa'i, one of the two Wild Samoans (his Uncle Afa being the other), a legendary wrestling tag team. That makes Roman part of the Samoan wrestling family...which will be important later.
5. Guess who else is part of that same dynasty? His cousin...Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
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That's right, that lovely Samoan family is just oozing with talented peeps, Dwayne being (probably) the most well-known member. The Rock even helped Roman at the Royal Rumble one time to a fickle Philadelphia crowd.
6. He is all about family, as seen in his role for Hobbs and Shaw.
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He married his Georgia Tech sweetheart, Galina Becker. He has a daughter and two sets of twins.
Oh, speaking of family, he also had a role in the Rock's movie, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.
7. He was born in Pensacola, Florida, and resides in Tampa, which is where his wrestling career started.
WWE Network
Roman Reigns, being a Florida guy, ended up signing with WWE and being assigned to the territory FCW, a wrestling promotion that served as Roman's breaking ground. At the time, he went by Leakee and even showcased a character similar to the Godfather-like gimmick he has today.
8. He was the muscle in "The Shield", one of the most popular pro wrestling factions in the modern era of sports entertainment.
USA
The Shield was the biggest thing in WWE when I started watching in 2014. Roman, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose (now Jon Moxley in other promotions) all set themselves as megastars with a gimmick as simple as the "Hounds of Justice," inserting themselves in feuds and taking out bad guys (and at first, good guys when they were the baddies).
9. Roman's move "The Spear" is his finishing move and it is one of the best out there.
WWE Network
Not the best finisher altogether, but specifically one of the best-executed spears in the business. When you're watching Mania Night Two, watch out for this move, because it might take two or three to beat his opponent, Brock Lesnar.
10. His "selling" is some of the best in the business.
USA
Selling is when a pro wrestler literally sells an opponent's offensive move. People can say what they want about Reigns, but he is the perfect balance of not "over-selling" and making the damage look realistic for the viewer.
11. He revealed he had leukemia live on Monday Night Raw.
USA
In October of 2018, Roman spoke to the crowd as Joe, breaking character. He relinquished his Universal title because he had to battle with leukemia for a second time in his life. He announced in early 2019 that he was in remission.
12. The transition from "good guy" to "bad guy" was smooth sailing.
FOX
It is important to note that throughout Roman's singles career, he had always been a face (good guy).
After what was assumed to be needing time away at the height of the pandemic, he made his return, but not as the same character people had recognized. There was a new smugness to him...
13. Enter the "Wise Man" Paul Heyman.
FOX
Roman Reigns made a deal with the devil, that devil being a delightful advocate named Paul Heyman. Heyman revealed he was Reigns' new "special counsel," so the bad guy now has his bad influence.
At this point, Roman is now the "Tribal Chief" of WWE.
14. His other cousins, The Usos, also work for Roman as his right-hand men.
Peacock
Jimmy and Jey Uso, some of the longest active tenure stars on the roster, are part of the same Samoan wrestling family. They work under Roman, and their family ties make it more believable that they are serving as enforcers and less as lackeys.
Their words about themselves: "We the ones."
15. Together, all three men put Roman front and center for his gimmick of being "Head of the Table."
WWE Network
You see some parallels to one of his characters during his stomping ground years, which I always found cool. So, he is now your Tribal Chief, your Head of the Table, and he wants you to "Acknowledge Him" as such.
16. His rivalry with his WrestleMania 38 opponent Brock Lesnar goes way back.
USA
Storyline-wise, the rivalry between Roman and his main event opponent, Brock Lesnar, goes back to WrestleMania 31. They have faced each other a dozen times almost, but only twice on the grandest stage.
Reigns has failed to beat Brock both times.
17. "Bad guy" Roman has yet to be pinned.
WWE Network
Roman calls it "G.O.D. Mode" and he is not wrong. This run by Reigns has been one of the most dominant ever. Being WWE's golden child only fuels the "fan hate" for him more, thus, making him a slam dunk heel and titleholder.
Whoever manages to beat this character will be either a legend like Lesnar or someone the company views as their next golden child.
18. By the way, Roman isn't a stranger to the Main Event scene at WrestleMania.
WWE
*Deep breath* He fought Lesnar in his first main event back at WrestleMania 31, the next year against Triple H, the year after that against the Undertaker, and the year after that against Lesnar again.
That's four straight years that he was the main event in the Show of Shows, which is impressive... Even more? He then led the main event last year where he held the belt that he still holds today, which reminds me...
19. Roman's reign (slaps knee) with the Universal Championship will reach 581 days when he faces Lesnar.
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No one in the modern era has held a belt this long. The amazing thing is that the majority of fans don't think it is getting stale, which shocks me. He's doing enough (example: the newly added G.O.D. Mode factor) with his character that it is still fresh to fans.
So, who the hell can dethrone this guy? Well...
20. Odds are that Roman Reigns will fight The Rock in Hollywood for WrestleMania next year.
Jon Kopaloff / Getty Images
Cousin vs. cousin. I predicted this when he won the title back in 2020: this man won't lose it until he faces The Rock in Hollywood. Guess where Mania is next year? Hollywood. It writes itself and makes a lot of sense that they would want their modern guy to smash all kinds of records and streaks.
The question is: Is this all too predictable? Should The Rock actually win? I say no, but they need to find the right young star to end this long reign. This long Roman Reign. (I'm done, I promise.)
21. Should his contract and net worth be acknowledged? Sure.
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His projected net worth in 2022 is reported to be around $15M. According to a recent report from Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Roman Reigns makes up to $5M a year on his WWE contract. I can only imagine he will be in the double digits once his current deal runs up because the guy is a gold mine right now.
He could be making a lot more, but I don't want to Reign on this man's parade.
*darts for the exit to avoid Pun Jail again*
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