WWE Hall of Famer and Legendary Tag Team Wrestler Afa Anoa'i Dies at 81

Pro wrestling legend Afa Anoa'i has passed away just months after his tag team partner. It's the second major loss for the family this summer after his brother passed away in June.




According to WWE, Afa Anoa'i, who performed under the ring name Afa, has died. He was one half of the memorable tag team known as The Wild Samoans, with his brother, Sika Anoa'i, serving as his tag team partner. The pair had a notorious run of villains in WWE during the 1980s, winning the World Tag Team Championship on three occasions.

Afa later returned as a ringside manager in 1992 for The Headshrinkers, a tag team consisting of his son, Samu, and his nephew, Fatu, aka Rikishi. In 1995, Afa retired from WWE, although he would later be inducted into the organization's Hall of Fame along with his brother in 2007. In 2012, they were inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame. Afa and Sika also opened The Wild Samoan Training Facility, where they would help train aspiring professional wrestlers, including Gene Snitsky and Dave Bautista. Afa also served as a wrestling coach for The fighter2008 hit film by Darren Aronofsky.


Afa was the uncle of Roman Reigns, one of the biggest stars in professional wrestling today. In a social media post acknowledging the news, Reigns said, “Our family has suffered another great loss with the passing of my uncle and WWE Hall of Famer, Gataivasā Afa Amituana'i Anoa'i. We thank everyone for their support and are comforted that he is now resting in peace. Afa and my father, Pola'ivao Leati Sika Anoa'I, were loving brothers, the greatest tag team of their generation, and they are now reunited in heaven. Rest in Power Wild Samoans.”


“As we embark on your final journey home, we express our sincere gratitude for the unwavering love and guidance you have given us throughout your life,” Afa’s son, Samu, also said in a tribute post on social media. “We take comfort in knowing that you will soon be reunited with the Lord Jesus, your parents, siblings, and friends who have gone before us. We have no doubt that you will create a Wild Samoan training center in the sky, bringing us all together once again. We believe in the power of your love and legacy and will continue to honor it in all that we do.”

The Wild Samoans have been given a chance to reappear in WWE due to their family members' continued success in the company. Afa and Sika both last appeared together on WWE programming in 2020, participating in a segment where they anointed Reigns as Tribal Chief after the wrestler defeated his cousin Jey Uso at WWE Hell in the Cell.


Source: WWE

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