Roman Reigns Was Ready to Retire From Wrestling Ahead of Wrestlemania 36

Roman Reigns took a four-month sabbatical from on-screen action because of the worldwide pandemic. Consequently, Strowman replaced him at the last minute at WrestleMania 36 and became the new Universal Champion.

Reigns made a triumphant return at SummerSlam and claimed the title “he never lost” after defeating The Fiend at PayBack. But why did he chose to come back while the reason he left still persisted?

In the latest edition of Corey Graves’ After the Bell Podcast (h/t Sportskeeda), Roman Reigns revealed why he thought about retiring, along with other details of his return. The Tribal Chief says his family is the reason he left.

“The most defined thought I had was that I made many sacrifices on behalf of my family and this is one area I wasn’t going to make that sacrifice. I would sacrifice my career, I’ll sacrifice the performance, I would sacrifice the audience if I had to. To protect my family, I’d quit. I will hang up my boots,” the Big Dog revealed.

He further said that he has achieved almost everything there is to achieve in the industry, so he does not fear going out of business anymore.

“I’ve done everything there is to in this business within sports entertainment, within professional wrestling. There isn’t an accolade, there isn’t a moment that I haven’t had. Whether it was a WrestleMania moment or a little house show, I’ve experienced everything there is to experience. So, for me, it was about putting my family first. Right there, if I had to retire and if that was what was going to be asked of me, I was willing to do it.”

Also read – Roman Reigns Responds to The Rock’s Call Out for a WrestleMania Showdown

Roman Reigns credits WWE’s safety measures for his swift return

After a couple of months, WWE assured Roman of his safety. As a result, Reigns made the big decision. He said,

“I had to wait till we were in a place of a better understanding of the process, knowing exactly what this virus has done and how it has affected everybody. Now, it’s far more comfortable, the way WWE has taken care of me to make me feel safe, make my family feel safe, make my wife feel safe that I’m going out and coming back in. That’s been huge and critical to getting me back in the ring.”

Roman Reigns is known for being a family man. It was the safety of his family that made him quit WrestleMania, and he came back only after WWE gained his trust back.

Thankfully, Reigns overturned his decision to retire. He came back as a heel and now has Paul Heyman by his side. Next, he will defend his Universal Title against his own blood as he faces his cousin Jey Uso at the upcoming Clash of Champions 2020.