Back on 22nd October 2018, four-time and reigning WWE World Heavyweight champion, Roman Reigns, shocked the WWE Universe by announcing his ongoing battle with leukemia after it had re-appeared from remission. In an emotional speech, Reigns, aka Leati Joseph Anoa’i, spoke for the first time about his diagnosis, driving the audience to tears and making the October show extremely crushing.
In his prime at the time, he relinquished his title to Brock Lesnar as he had to take an indefinite break from the company in order to resume his leukemia treatment. The former Shield star was scheduled to defend his title at the WWE Crown Jewel but was unfortunately halted on his glory run because of his health.
Over the past few months, the unthinkable possibility of a WWE without Roman Reigns became a reality and while the show moved on, a majority of the fans reserved their concern for the well-being of the WWE superstar. Well, not one to disappoint, Reigns came back with a bang on WWE RAW, to announce that he is on course to defeat leukemia once again.
In the same stage, where he announced the heartbreaking message of his diagnosis, Reigns had a different atmosphere around him this time. The crowd was euphoric, and interrupted Reigns’ speech with a rousing chant of “welcome back,” “you deserve it,” and “thank you, Roman”. There were cheers and smiles all around as Reigns announced from the ring once again that “the Big Dog is back”.
“We didn’t just swing for the fences man, we hit for a home run. So when I tell you this, I’m so grateful, so humbled and so honored to announce this – the good news is I’m in remission Y’all.”
He explained how difficult it was for him to announce it to the world about his medical condition back in October.
“I missed you all, there is no other job like this. There is no other fan base like you guys. I said this before I’m a man of faith and I believe in God that he has favored me, looked after me but I’m not going to lie before my announcement [about leukemia], I was terrified. I was insecure and didn’t really know if I wanted to share that secret with the world.
“I was scared to tell you because I didn’t know how you’d react but by the time I reached home, if there was a way to reach me, you guys figured out how to do that. That overwhelming support you guys gave me, gave me strength and new life. It gave me a new opportunity and purpose.”
Reigns then announced that he was going to use the WWE platform to fight in the ring every day because he has the “ability” to do so and will spread awareness about leukemia through the massive platform he had.
“Here in WWE, the purpose is to win the title and go to the top and that’s still very important but for me, the only thing that is important to me is that I have the ability to step foot in this ring every single night. If I can do that, I’m gonna use this platform that is global to raise awareness and support those who are in need just like I was.”
However, that was just not it. The Big Dog’s music hit during a third-hour segment on WWE RAW, only a couple of hours after his remission announcement. Following the no DQ match between Dean Ambrose and Drew McIntyre, a post-match attack loomed large with Bobby Lashley, Elias, McIntyre and Baron Corbin were circling the water when Seth Rollins followed by Roman Reigns showed up to save their fallen brother. The mini Shield reunion then raises the big question of whether there will a major reunion in the coming episodes or not. With a lot over than a month left for Wrestlemania 35, some fans might argue it to be a bad idea, but it can’t be denied that the possibility seems extremely exciting.