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The professional wrestling industry is one which often brings about a lot of sadness, tragedy, and devastating moments. Over the years, there have unfortunately been many examples of wrestlers being taken far too early and young, and that can sometimes even affect those in the most prominent of families. The Anoa’i family, which hosts a legacy of some of the greatest wrestlers of all time, has been a family that is all too familiar with this. The likes of WWE wrestlers such as Yokozuna and Umaga are each mentioned as some of the more tragic early passings of wrestling stars, and each come from the Anoa’i bloodline. Another is the brother of current Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Matt Anoa’i, who was better known to WWE fans as Rosey.
Rosey Had Popular Gimmicks During His WWE Run
After training alongside members of his family and wrestling on the independent scene, Rosey would first rise to prominence when he signed with WWE in 2001. Following some time in developmental, he made his main roster debut alongside his very own cousin Fatu (who would go on to become better known as Umaga to WWE fans). They worked alongside Eric Bischoff as enforcers in the 3-Minute Warning tag team, who would beat down anyone that Bischoff deemed as deserving of it. Their list of victims includes anyone from fellow wrestlers to ring announcers like Lillian Garcia to even the likes of legends such as Mae Young. They had a few notable feuds such as with Billy & Chuck, but the duo came to an end when Fatu was let go from the company.
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Rosey wasn’t done there though, as he entered a storyline alongside the fan-favorite act of The Hurricane. Although it has been done before and it is clearly something that Vince McMahon finds hilarious, it was an entertaining dynamic to see a different and comedic side of the former monster heel in Rosey. The Hurricane stated that he could see a hero within Rosey, and the pair embarked on superhero training, with Rosey being coined as the “Super Hero In Training”, which was shorted to just the initials, giving some fans a cheap laugh. The pair would even go on to become the World Tag Team Champions, but their stint as a pair came to an end when The Hurricane shed his superhero persona and turned heel. Rosey was left with little direction up until his eventual release, where he would go on to wrestle elsewhere up until his untimely death.
Rosey Tragically Passed Away Due To Heart Problems
Rosey competed on the independent scene and in companies such as AJPW following his time in WWE, but as the years went on, his appearances lessened. A big part of this was due to chronic knee issues, which would go on to cause several other problems for him too from a physical perspective. Unfortunately, during his extended time on the shelf and lack of mobility, he would gain weight, and this led to catastrophic issues within his body.
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PWInsider noted that, “Anoa'i had been dealing with congestive heart failure in recent years”, and this would ultimately play into his death on April 17, 2017. He had been hospitalized earlier that year due to congestive heart failure and atrial fibrillation, and after a few months he unfortunately passed away. PWInder also shared the statement left by his family, “The Anoa’i Family is mourning the loss of Sika’s son, Matt aka Rosey, due to an untimely death. We want to let his fans know that he loved them and the wrestling world so much. In his passing, he left three beautiful young children and a heartbroken family. Please respect the privacy of his children and family as they mourn the loss of this kind, loving, gentle man, who was a father, son, brother and a superhero to us all. Our family appreciates your prayers and continued support during this very difficult time.”
Rosey Has Left A Strong Legacy In Professional Wrestling
Rosey is someone who, despite not spending the longest of times wrestling in WWE, left a memorable legacy. He was able to showcase several sides of his personality, working as both a monster enforcer and as a comedy character as well, and his ability to do both is testament to his talents.
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The legacy of Rosey continues to live on within his family, and with his brother Roman Reigns, who shared his emotions and feelings in an interview on WWE.com. “My only hope now is that I can continue to represent my family and represent my brother and continue to push our legacy. He was my number one fan. He never missed a match, he never missed anything I did in the ring, he always had great advice for me and always reached out to talk.” These words are strong, and they just go to show what a wonderful human being Rosey was.
