Getty Roman Reigns is reportedly out of WrestleMania 36 due to concerns about performing amidst coronavirus pandemic.
Roman Reigns, whose real name is Joe Anoaʻi, is reportedly out of his WrestleMania 36 match with Goldberg for the WWE Universal Championship, per several sources.
Reigns, who has been diagnosed with leukemia twice, but has gone into remission both times, does not feel comfortable performing during the coronavirus pandemic. As a cancer survivor, Reigns is more at-risk of having serious, and potentially fatal complications if he contracts the virus.
Breaking: Roman Reigns, who has had leukemia and is immunocompromised, will not compete at WrestleMania 36 against Goldberg due to coronavirus concerns, per @ryansatin
People who contracted the coronavirus who are chronically ill and/or elderly are at a greater risk of dying than others, and Reigns identifies with the first group.
Reigns’ History With Leukemia
Reigns was originally diagnosed with leukemia in 2007 when he was attempting to begin an NFL career. He went undrafted out of Georgia Tech but was signed by the Minnesota Vikings. The diagnosis came during his physical with the team. Reigns worked and was fortunate to have the disease go into remission.
Unfortunately, it returned in 2018 after Reigns had established himself as a megastar with WWE.
.@WWERomanReigns has to relinquish the Universal Championship due to a battle with leukemia. #Raw
After a six-month hiatus, Reigns returned with his disease back into remission.
While he is healthy now, it’s understandable and commendable he does not take this unnecessary risk. Many have praised Reigns for making this decision despite potential pressures from his promotion to push through with this increasingly odd version of WrestleMania.
Roman Reigns is OUT of WrestleMania 36. He’s told WWE he doesn’t feel comfortable performing during the coronavirus pandemic due to his impaired immune system as a result of his battles with leukemia. [@WrestlingSheet]
Full respect and love to Roman for a brave decision.
Roman Reigns is out of #Wrestlemania, as he refused to compete inside the WWE PC.
I guarantee you, it is because of the way the show was being handled, and the fact that NONE of the roster wanted the show go on in this condition.
If so, I respect Roman for walking out
Brave, commendable and absolutely the right move. Roman Reigns has taken himself out of his WrestleMania 36 match with Goldberg because he didn’t feel comfortable performing during the COVID-19 pandemic as he has an impaired immune system as a result of his battles with leukemia.
Why Reigns Decision is Being Made Public Now
Due to the shutdowns across the world, WWE has already had to make massive changes to its signature event. For the first time ever, WrestleMania is set to be pre-recorded from a variety of locations.
The news on Reigns is breaking now, a little over a week before the two-night event is scheduled to take place on April 4-5, because it’s very likely Reigns’ scheduled match with Goldberg was supposed to be recorded soon, or over the last day or so when tapings reportedly began.
Roman Reigns’ Success and WWE Championship History
The 34-year-old has been one of WWE’s most decorated performers over the past 10 years. Along with Seth Rollins and the since-departed Dean Ambrose (now Jon Moxley with AEW), Reigns made a historic splash on WWE’s main roster when the trio debuted as The Shield in 2012.
Since then, Reigns has gone on to win seven WWE championships, including three runs as the WWE Heavyweight titleholder. Reigns is also one of the top merchandise sellers in the company, and content including him on WWE’s social media channels is consistently among the most-watched content.
In addition to his WWE success, Reigns has starred alongside former WWE Superstar, and his real-life cousin Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in a Fast and Furious spinoff called Hobbs and Shaw.