Global InformationRoman Reigns information
Roman Reigns | |
|---|---|
 Reigns in 2023 | |
| Born | Leati Joseph Anoaʻi May 25, 1985 Pensacola, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Spouse |
Galina Becker
(m. 2014) |
| Children | 5 |
| Parent |
|
| Family | Anoaʻi |
Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Leakee[1] Roman Leakee[2] Roman Reigns[3] |
| Billed height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)[3] |
| Billed weight | 265 lb (120 kg)[3] |
| Billed from | Pensacola, Florida[3] |
| Trained by | Afa Anoaʻi[4] Sika Anoaʻi[4] Dusty Rhodes[5] Steve Keirn[2] |
| Debut | August 19, 2010[2] |
| Football career | |
| No. 99 | |
| Career information | |
| CFL status | American |
| Position(s) | Defensive tackle[6] |
| Height | 6 ft 3[6] in (191 cm) |
| Weight | 280[6] lb (130 kg) |
| College | Georgia Tech |
| Career history | |
| As player | |
| 2007 | Minnesota Vikings* |
| 2007 | Jacksonville Jaguars* |
| 2008 | Edmonton Eskimos |
| *Offseason member only | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career stats | |
| Tackles | 9[7] |
| Knockdowns | 0[7] |
| Sacks | 0[7] |
| Forced fumbles | 1[7] * CFL statistics only |
Leati Joseph Anoaʻi (Samoan pronunciation: [a.noˈaʔ.i] ah-no-AH ee; born May 25, 1985) is an American professional wrestler and former football player. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE since 2010[update], and currently performs on a part-time basis on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Roman Reigns. He is the leader of The Bloodline stable and a member of the Anoaʻi family.[4] Reigns's title reign of 1,316 days as WWE Universal Champion was the fourth-longest world title reign in WWE history and the longest championship reign since 1988.[a]
After playing college football for Georgia Tech, Anoaʻi started his professional football career with brief off-season stints with the Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL) in 2007. He then played a full season for the Canadian Football League's (CFL) Edmonton Eskimos in 2008 before his release and retirement from football. He then pursued a career in professional wrestling and was signed by WWE in 2010, reporting to their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). Under the ring name Roman Reigns, he made his main roster debut in 2012 as a member of The Shield alongside Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. They teamed together until disbanding in 2014, after which Reigns entered singles competition, though the trio would occasionally reunite until Ambrose left WWE in 2019.
Reigns is a six-time world champion in WWE, having held the WWE Championship four times and the WWE Universal Championship twice; he won his fourth WWE Championship during his second Universal Championship reign and as such, was recognized as Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. He is also a one-time WWE United States Champion, a one-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, a one-time WWE Tag Team Champion (with Rollins), the 2015 Royal Rumble winner, and the 2014 Superstar of the Year. He tied the WWE record for most eliminations in a Survivor Series match with four in the 2013 event and also previously held the record for most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match with 12 in the 2014 event. Upon winning the Intercontinental Championship, he became the 28th Triple Crown Champion and the 17th Grand Slam Champion. Reigns has headlined numerous pay-per-view events, including WWE's flagship event WrestleMania a record-setting nine times (31, 32, 33, 34, 37, 38, 39, and both nights of XL).[8][9] Additionally, he was ranked at No. 1 in Pro Wrestling Illustrated's annual PWI 500 list of the top 500 singles wrestlers in 2016 and 2022.[10]
From 2014 onwards, WWE positioned Reigns as a heroic character and attempted to establish him as their next "face of the company", which was met with intense disapproval by audiences and critics.[11] Following his return from a hiatus in August 2020, he was repackaged as a villainous character portraying a tribal chief,[12][13] which was generally met with acclaim.[14][15] Reigns is generally regarded as one of the best professional wrestlers active in the world today.[16][17][18]
- ^ "Leakee". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
- ^ a b c "Roman Reigns". Cagematch. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Roman Reigns". WWE. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
- ^ a b c Van Der Griend, Blaine (December 28, 2011). "Islanders put family first in wrestling business". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- ^ Reedy, Joe (March 30, 2023). "Hail to the Chief: Inside Roman Reigns' 3 years as WWE champ". Associated Press. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
- ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference
Techwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference
FormerEskimowas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Guillot, Gene (March 30, 2018). "Roman's empire: Roman Reigns is the face of the WWE". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
- ^ Needelman, Joshua. "WWE WrestleMania 34: Ronda Rousey wins debut; Daniel Bryan returns; Brock Lesnar beats Roman Reigns in dud main event". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
- ^ "WWE Superstar Roman Reigns Tops PWI 500, Twitter Loses Its Mind". Forbes. September 1, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
- ^ Van Doom, Daniel (March 11, 2016). "This weekend WWE will face its toughest opponent: The wrestling audience". CNET. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- ^ "WWE Power Rankings - with Paul Heyman by his side, Roman Reigns makes an immediate impact". ESPN. September 3, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
- ^ Brookhouse, Brent (October 14, 2020). "Big Dog to Tribal Chief: Roman Reigns talks WWE character transition, ongoing feud with cousin Jey Uso". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
- ^ "'He's redefined himself with no audience' - John Cena shares big praise for Roman Reigns". GiveMeSport. April 26, 2021. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ Zucker, Joseph (June 9, 2021). "WWE's Roman Reigns Praised by The Undertaker: 'I Think He's a Great Heel'". Bleacher Report. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ Lambert, Jeremy (September 14, 2022). "Roman Reigns Tops 2022 PWI 500, Second Time At Number One". Fightful. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- ^ Turo, Dante (April 3, 2023). "Roman Reigns is a top-5 WWE superstar of all time". ClutchPoints. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
- ^ Barrasso, Justin (January 6, 2022). "The Top 10 Wrestlers of 2021". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 12, 2023.
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