Bray Wyatt, who had won the WWE world championship three times, passed away at the age of 36.
His family described his passing as unexpected, despite the fact that the wrestler had been suffering from an undisclosed health issue that had kept him out of the ring since February.
Triple H, who is the content officer for WWE, was the one who broke the news. He wrote on social media, saying that Wyatt, whose actual name was Windham Rotunda, had “unexpectedly passed away.”
One of the people who paid tribute to the star was Dwayne Johnson, also known as “The Rock.”
Bray Wyatt: WWE champion dies aged 36
In a post that he made on X, which was then known as Twitter, Johnson expressed that he was “heartbroken” and that he had “always had tremendous respect and love” for the wrestler.
I loved his presence, promos, in-ring work, and connection with the @WWE universe,” he wrote in the tweet. I can’t wait to see what he does next. Characters like this are hard to come by in the wild world of professional wrestling because they are so original, cool, and unusual.
Mick Foley, a commentator for WWE, stated further, “I thought so highly of Bray Wyatt… He was a great visionary and had one of the most engaging presences that the sport of wrestling has ever witnessed.
Wrestlers run in Rotunda’s family, including his grandpa, Blackjack Mulligan, his father, Mike Rotunda, and his younger brother, Bo Dallas. Rotunda himself was a member of the family business.
Wyatt was crowned the state wrestling champion while still in high school and went on to win a football scholarship to Troy University. Wyatt was born in Brooksville, Florida, on May 23, 1987.
However, he abandoned his studies before completing them in order to pursue a career as a professional wrestler, and he made his first appearance in the ring in 2009.
There were rumours that the celebrity had passed away from a heart attack.
He was known by a number of aliases over his career, including Husky Harris, Alex Rotunda, Duke Rotundo, and The Fiend.
Together with Erick Rowan, Braun Strowman, and Luke Harper (as Brodie Lee), he played the role of Bray Wyatt, the nefarious leader of a cult group known as the Wyatt family.
After being let go by WWE in 2021, he finally made his long-awaited comeback in October of last year at the pay-per-view event Extreme Rules, where he unveiled a revamped version of his character.
According to Wrestling News, he had lately missed several months of work due to illness, but he was reportedly on the verge of returning to WWE before his death.
Paul Levesque, better known by his ring name Triple H, revealed that his father was the one who broke the news to him of Rotunda’s passing.
I just received a call from WWE Hall of Famer Mike Rotunda, who informed us of the tragic news that our WWE family member for life, Windham Rotunda, also known as Bray Wyatt, unexpectedly passed away earlier today,” he said.
I just received a call from WWE Hall of Famer Mike Rotunda, who informed us of the tragic news that our WWE family member for life, Windham Rotunda, has passed away.”
“At this time, we ask that everyone respect his family’s request for privacy and know that our thoughts are with them.”
Later, wrestling writer Sean Ross Sapp stated that the 36-year-old had passed away as a result of a heart attack after having come into contact with COVID, which exacerbated his preexisting cardiac issues.
“There was a lot of positive progress towards a return and towards his recovery,” he said. “There was a lot of positive progress. “Unfortunately, he suffered a heart attack today and passed away.”
Wyatt is survived by his fiancee, who used to work as an announcer for WWE rings, Joseann Offerman, as well as their four children, Wyatt’s brother Bo Dallas (Taylor Rotunda), and Wyatt’s sister Mika.