Ahead of closing the show at this Sunday’s WrestleMania pay-per-view event, Roman Reigns appeared on The Tonight Show to continue to hype the pay-per-view.
Here are some highlights from Reigns’ appearance on the show:
On wrestling being in his blood: “It started with the High Cheif Peter Maivia. He kind of mentored my father and my uncle, Sika & Afa, The Wild Samoans. They were a tag team, one of the greatest tag teams of all time, Hall of Famers. But, [when] it actually started they were just fans. They went to a show back in the day in San Francisco, at the Cow Palace. Peter Maivia was a huge star back then in the West Coast, at the time back in the territory days. And, he was wrestling Pat Patterson, and Pat was beating him up pretty good. And my dad and uncle, they jumped from the crowd and kind of got involved. So Pat knew, he was like ‘we’ve gotta get these guys out of the crowd, we’ve got to teach them the business, and that way I don’t have to worry about these guys anymore.’ It goes all the way back to the 60s and 70s.”
On the long journey people have to take to get to the WWE: “Oftentimes, I say this is like the blue-collar form of entertainment. You’ve gotta really pay your dues, and go on this journey. And, it’s different for everyone, I’ve been very fortunate. I have my family background that’s guided me along the way. And obviously, I’ve been able to tap into a potential that I was able to unlock. But, there’s a lot of guys, that we have currently in the WWE. Guys like Seth Rollins, that I came up with in WWE that have been journeymen, that have been all over the independent scene, wrestling in armouries, high school gyms. In front of 200 max people. So, it’s not always beautiful. So, WWE is the highest you can get. So, I’m very proud of that, getting to this point. But, it can be rough sometimes.”
On Triple H’s influence on the career of Roman Reigns: “H was very critical in the process to guide me along. Before I met Vince and built a relationship with him, it was Triple H. He was the one that was down there in developmental, helping guide talent along, he’s the one who kinda overlooked it.
“[Developmental] is like the minor leagues of WWE. Now it’s NXT and that’s a big platform for us, they’re on Tuesday nights on USA Network, and they’re a big show themselves. But before that, it was called FCW. Florida Championship Wrestling, in a tiny little warehouse, and we’re wrestling in, it was like those armouries and the high school gyms. In front of 50 people, killing each other for what felt like nothing at the time. But yeah, Triple H was huge at the in guiding me along.”
Did he believe Triple H had faith in him: “I think so yeah, I think he recognized the potential and he was just always good to me. Early on, I was always the type that was asking for raises, I was like ‘can I get some more money?’ and they were like ‘yeah go ahead man.’ Two months later, ‘can I get some more money?’, ‘Yep.’ And then there was a point where they were like ‘no.’ And I was like well, ‘can you ask Triple H?’, and then the next morning, ‘you’re getting more money.’
“So yeah, H has always hooked me up, he’s always looked over me. Inside and out the ring, he’s the best.”
On Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar ‘winner takes all’: It’s checkmate man. It’s time that we close this chapter and move on. For me, I’ve been on the run of a lifetime, I’ve solidified myself clearly in the modern day as the greatest champion to be a part of the WWE. And for me to kinda, get past this chapter of Brock Lesnar, I think it puts me on a level that no one else can touch.”
Who do you think will leave WrestleMania 38 as both Universal and WWE Champion? Will it be Brock Lesnar or Roman Reigns? Let us know in the comments below!
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You can check out both clips, as well as the full interview from Roman Reigns’ appearance on the Tonight Show below:
“Inside and out of the ring he’s the best.”
–@WWERomanReigns reacts to @TripleH’s retirement. #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/EFYR76C10O
— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) March 31, 2022
“It’s checkmate. It’s time to close this chapter and move on.”
–@WWERomanReigns on what to expect at @WWE #WrestleMania this weekend. #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/B6jb5D2In7
— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) March 31, 2022
