Sika Anoa’i, WWE Hall of Famer and father of Roman Reigns, is dead

Sika Anoa’i, the Hall of Fame professional wrestler who was one half of the 1980s superstar tag team The Wild Samoans and father of WWE’s current biggest star, Roman Reigns, died Tuesday. He was 79.

Anoa’i’s death was announced on Instagram by his nephew Jahrus Anoa’i. Worldwide Wrestling Entertainment also confirmed the death of Sika Anoa’i in a statement. The cause and location of death were not disclosed.

Sika Anoa’i is part of a long line of wrestlers known as the Samoan Dynasty, considered the greatest wrestling family of all time. Not all of them are biologically related. The progenitor was High Chief Peter Maivia, grandfather of Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson, who became a “blood brother” of the Anoa’i family. Sika and his brother Afa “Arthur” Anoa’i formed the Wild Samoans, considered one of the most influential duos in wrestling history.

Sika’s son Roman Reigns, born Leati Joseph Anoa’i, is the undisputed WWE Champion and has headlined WrestleMania a record-breaking seven times. Reigns and his cousins ​​Jonathan Solofa Fatu and Joshua Samuel Fatu, who perform as Jey and Jimmy Uso, captivated wrestling fans with a storyline called The Bloodline, which featured Reigns as the “Tribal Chief” and later included The Rock.

Sika Anoa’i, who was born and raised in American Samoa but whose family later moved to San Francisco, was working as a dock worker when his brother Afa began training him in wrestling. Afa had been trained by Maivia.

According to a biographical video accompanying their induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007, the Wild Samoans won 21 tag team titles in Canada and the United States over the course of 30 years. Their opponents included other top teams such as Tony Garea and Rick Martel, Bob Backlund and Pedro Morales, the Strongbows, and Rocky Johnson, The Rock’s father, and his teammate Tony Atlas.

They began their careers in the 1970s with Stampede Wrestling in Calgary, Canada, where they won two Stampede International tag titles and also appeared in the National Wrestling Alliance and the International Wrestling Association of Japan, according to “Crossbody of Work,” a podcast about wrestlers’ careers.

In January 1980, they entered the WWF scene at Madison Square Garden, where they faced Tito Santana and Ivan Putski for the tag team championship.

However, it wasn’t until April 1980 that the Wild Samoans won their first world tag team title. They won two more world tag team titles, but their reign ended when they were defeated by the older Johnson and Atlas in 1983.