Roman Reigns’ Leukemia Returns, Forced To Vacate Universal Title

In an unfortunate and shocking moment, Roman Reigns opened RAW and announced that he is relinquishing the Universal Championship. His leukemia from 2008 has returned and he can no longer defend the title. Reigns told the crowd “I’ve been living with leukemia for 11 years, and unfortunately it’s back […] I’m going to have to relinquish the Universal Championship.”

Reigns spoke for a few minutes, trying his best to keep his emotions in place. He ended the segment by announcing that he would beat leukemia and return to WWE. Reigns said this was not a retirement speech. 

He left the belt inside the ring and the crowd showered Reigns with support. They chanted for Reigns and had negative remarks about cancer. As he headed up the ramp, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose came out to embrace their fellow Shield brother. All three were crying as they went to the back.

This is not a storyline and a really sad moment. This could be why Reigns did not compete at live events over the weekend. Right now, there is no update on what is next for the Universal Championship.

After the commercial, the team addressed what happened and they were getting choked up. A sad moment for Reigns, but everyone at WrestleNewz would like to wish him a full recovery. 

Below is a statement from WWE about Reigns’ battle with leukemia.

ROMAN REIGNS FIGHTS AGAINST LEUKEMIA

STAMFORD, Conn., October 22, 2018 – Tonight on Monday Night Raw, Roman Reigns (aka Joe Anoa’i) announced that he is relinquishing the WWE Universal Championship and taking a leave of absence from WWE as he once again fights leukemia, which had been in remission since late 2008. Reigns is taking his battle with leukemia public in an effort to raise awareness and funds for research in order to advance cures for the disease.