6 years ago today, Roman Reigns returned to WWE at SummerSlam 2020

Six years ago today, Roman Reigns made one of the most shocking returns in WWE history at SummerSlam 2020. After stepping away from WWE earlier that year, nobody knew when or if Roman would return. So when he suddenly appeared at the end of SummerSlam, just moments after “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt had captured the Universal Championship, the entire WWE Universe was left stunned. But this wasn’t the same Roman Reigns fans had seen before. He returned with a completely different look, attitude, and mindset, making it clear that he was no longer interested in being the “Big Dog.” This was the birth of The Tribal Chief — a ruthless, calculated, and dominant version of Roman who would soon become the Head of the Table. With Paul Heyman by his side, Roman went on to dominate WWE, capture the Universal Championship, defeat some of the biggest names in the company, and build one of the most historic championship reigns of the modern era. His transformation completely changed the trajectory of his career and turned him into one of WWE’s biggest stars. What nobody realized that night was that Roman’s shocking return wasn’t just the beginning of another championship run — it was the beginning of an era. Six years later, The Tribal Chief remains one of the most iconic personas WWE has ever created.