When we speak about the Top Guy in WWE among the talent from this generation, the conversation starts and ends with The One, The Tribal Chief, The Head of the Table Roman Reigns sitting atop the juggernaut mountain as the longest reigning World Champion of the modern era.
The golden goose of the WWE has been ruthless and unstoppable in his quest of becoming the Greatest WWE Superstar of All Time, with the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship held tight in his clutches.
"I"m the Greatest of all time, kid !" ☝️
AdvertisementLa réponse de Roman Reigns quand un enfant a gueulé "You Suck !" lors de la conférence #WWECrownJewel. pic.twitter.com/IfJ3chDJlM
— Catch Club (@LeCatchClub) September 17, 2022
Roman Reigns may rule over the entire WWE landscape on-screen, but behind that mystique aura and larger-than-life personality is the real person behind it i.e Leati Joseph Anoa’i. Here are the top 5 lesser-known facts about his life that you may not be familiar with:
1. First match against a Wrestling Legend’s family member
The Head of the Table has battled various WWE Legends in his career like John Cena, The Undertaker, and Triple H. But very few do know that his journey in the company also began with his first ever match being against a member of the WWE Hall of Famer, Ricky ‘The Dragon’ Steamboat. Although it was not against the legendary Superstar, but rather his son Richie Steamboat back in 2010 at WWE’s old developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) which saw Reigns suffering a defeat.
2. Bret Hart’s special giveaway
Many hardcore Pro Wrestling fans know about Roman Reigns’ admiration for WWE Hall of Famer, Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart citing him as his biggest influence in the industry. What people don’t know is that much like many kids back in the 1990s aspired to get Bret Hart’s cool rim pink sunglasses that he used to give away to fans ringside. The future megastar of WWE was also amongst those aspirants and spoke about it along with Hitman’s influence on his life and career in an interview with Yahoo Sports back in 2015:
“Every time he’d come out with that leather jacket and give his sunglasses away to a kid in the crowd, I used to dream about being that kid.”
3. His Favorite WrestleMania main event
7 years ago, Roman Reigns said in regards to beating Lesnar at Wrestlemania 31, "I Can. I Will."
It didn't happen that night, but in 7 years he has evolved into a next level competitor, and tonight at #WrestleMania 38, he FINALLY Will.
AdvertisementRoman teaching us to never stop believing. pic.twitter.com/UiFfNLGH5Y
— "Mr. Medicine Spoon" J Double A (@MedicineSpoonNY) April 4, 2022
Roman Reigns has been a part of six different WrestleMania main-events in his 10 year stint in the WWE.
However, it comes as a big surprise that out of those six headlining encounters with some of the top WWE Superstars, The Head of the Table’s favorite in-ring bout at the Show of Shows is his very first Wrestlemania main event at the 31st edition of the extravagant event in a mega showdown with The Beast Incarnate Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship despite Seth Rollins stealing his crowning moment thanks to his Money in the Bank cash in:
“I was a much younger man back then. But that match, to me, was an instant classic unlike, really, any other sports-entertainment match.”
4. 9-5 Reigns
Before stepping under the bright lights of WWE and tasting incredible amount of fame and fortune all across the world, the current Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns was 9-5 personnel working in a furniture store owned by his sister.
5. The Shield’s forgotten triple threat
A dream match came to fruition at one of WWE’s pay-per-view, Battleground in 2016 pitting all three members of the Shield, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns in a massive triple threat match for the WWE Championship and the claim to be called the biggest breakout star from the dominating faction.
But some wrestling fans had already seen this match long before it became a dream encounter that fans would pay to see for. The triple threat match between the Shield brothers happened back in FCW in 2012 for the right to crown the No1 contender for its world championship. The Tribal Chief was victorious in that bout but failed to capture the FCW World Championship later on.
