Windham American professional wrestler Lawrence Rotunda is most known for his performances with WWE as Bray Wyatt and The Fiend. Former WWE and Universal Champion Rotunda.
He was removed from WWE programming in February 2023 as a result of catching COVID-19, which made his heart problems worse. Unexpectedly, he tragically died in August 2023 from a heart attack.
Early Life
On May 23, 1987, in Brooksville, Florida, Bray Wyatt was born. He attended Hernando High School, where he also won the title of State Wrestling Champion. Wyatt had a lifelong passion for athletics and, in addition to wrestling, played American football. He received a football scholarship to Troy University because of his football skills in defensive tackling. He left Troy University, nevertheless, just before receiving his bachelor’s degree because he wanted to go into professional wrestling.
Professional Wrestling Career WWE
WWE and Rotunda have a development agreement. He was assigned to FCW, where he and his brother started their training. The team took home the FCW Tag Team Title. The brothers were defeated by Dude Busters for the title in November.
Under Cody Rhodes, Rotunda debuted in NXT. He was on the show for a few weeks before being booted off. He went back to FCW, where he competed for a while before going back to the main roster.
He and Michael McGillicutty showed up at Hell in a Cell and attacked John Cena, which caused Cena to join the group. He joined the group and took on Cena and Orton. After Orton punted him, they removed him off the television.
The Wyatt Family (2013-2017)
After being sent to NXT, Rotunda was rebranded as Bray Wyatt. He established the Wyatt Family as his stable. Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Eric Rowan make up the stable. Adrian Neville and Oliver Grey’s NXT Tag Team Championship was won by Harper and Rowan. They were defeated by Neville and Graves for the belts on NXT.
The stable attacked Kane in their first appearance on the main roster. Rotunda defeated Kane in a Ring of Fire bout at SummerSlam. The Wyatt Family’s victory over Daniel Bryan at TLC resulted in Bryan joining the stable. Bryan manipulated the stable a few weeks later. Bray Wyatt defeated Daniel Bryan at the Royal Rumble. The next evening, Wyatt attacked Cena, costing him the championship.
The Shield presented the largest challenge for the Wyatt family. At the Elimination Chamber competition, the trios engaged in combat, and The Wyatt Family prevailed. Wyatt intensified his conflict with Cena at the same gathering. Bray Wyatt was beaten by John Cena at WrestleMania XXX. With a Last Man Standing match that Cena won, the feud came to a conclusion.
Throughout the year, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns were opponents for Rotunda and the stable. Rotunda defeated Ambrose but fell short against Reigns. Rotunda competed in the Royal Rumble match but fell short. He challenged the Undertaker to a fight at Fastlane. He competed against the Undertaker at WrestleMania 31 and lost.
Wyatt resorted to targeting Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns after falling to the Undertaker. Braun Strowman joined the family as a fresh addition thanks to Wyatt. After that, the stable went on to defeat Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Ryback, Chris Jericho, and more. In response to his defeat to Roman Reigns at Hell in a Cell, Wyatt came back and confronted the Undertaker. The Brothers of Destruction defeated The Wyatt Family in the Survivor Series.
The Wyatt Family attacked Brock Lesnar at Royal Rumble, taking him out in the process. The conflict between Lesnar and Wyatt was planned up, but it never materialised. The Wyatt Family was defeated by John Cena and The Rock at WrestleMania 32.
The stable and The New Day started fighting on RAW. The Wyatt Family defeated The New Day at Battleground. Wyatt and Randy Orton started fighting when Wyatt was selected for SmackDown. Randy Orton joined The Wyatt Family after they exchanged victories over one another. The pair captured the SmackDown Tag Team Championship at TLC after triumphing in the customary survivor series battle against Orton.
Randy Orton won the bout at Royal Rumble and hinted at a conflict with Wyatt. Wyatt triumphed over Elimination Chamber to claim the WWE Championship. Orton began the Wyatt Family feud on SmackDown by setting fire to their home. Randy Orton defeated Wyatt at WrestleMania 33 to win the WWE Championship.
Various Feuds and Deleters of The World (2017-2019)
Wyatt’s feud with Seth Rollins started after he was chosen for RAW. He prevailed against Seth Rollins at Great Balls of Fire. The conflict between Wyatt and Finn Balor started throughout the summer. Demon Balor defeated Bray Wyatt at SummerSlam. Matt Hardy and Wyatt started fighting in November. Hardy was broken as a result of multiple pinfall victory by Wyatt over Hardy.
Hardy triumphed against Wyatt in an Ultimate Deletion bout. Wyatt made a comeback at WrestleMania 34 and helped Hardy prevail in the battle royal. Hardy and Wyatt established a group named Deleters of the World following Mania. Deleters of the World won the RAW Tag Team Championship at Greatest Royal Rumble. B-Team defeated the team to win the Extreme Rules championship.
The Fiend (2019-2021)
Wyatt made a comeback on RAW with a new character called The Fiend after taking a year off. The Fiend defeated Finn Balor at SummerSlam. Wyatt attacked various WWE legends over the course of several weeks while posing as The Fiend. The Fiend challenged Seth Rollins to a match for the Universal Championship at Hell in a Cell. But there was no contest at the end of the match. The Fiend won the Universal Championship at Crown Jewel.
SmackDown selected Wyatt as a member. Following the draught, Wyatt engaged in a number of contests against The Miz and Daniel Bryan and successfully defended his title. Goldberg put an end to The Fiend’s run as champion at Super Showdown. The Fiend defeated John Cena at WrestleMania 36 in a Firefly Fun House bout.
Following WrestleMania, The Fiend and Braun Strowman got into an argument. At SummerSlam, where The Fiend won the Universal Championship, the rivalry came to an end. Roman Reigns attacked both contestants after the contest. Roman Reigns defeated The Fiend to win the Universal Championship at Payback a week later.
They choose The Fiend and Alexa Bliss for RAW in the draught. The Fiend and Randy Orton’s feud, which lasted until WrestleMania 37, started on RAW. Randy Orton used a match at TLC to burn The Fiend alive. The Fiend visited Fastlane again after a lengthy absence in order to assist Alexa Bliss. The Fiend defeated to Randy Orton at WrestleMania 37 as Alexa Bliss turned against him. Rotunda left the company in July after serving there for 12 years.
Return to WWE in 2022
At the 2022 Extreme Rules, Bray Wyatt made his comeback to the organisation. At the conclusion of the Premium Live Event, Wyatt was finally identified as the White Rabbit following months of tease and rumours. Wyatt gave an emotional promo on the most recent SmackDown, which was followed by a White Rabbit segment.
Bray Wyatt stated that he confessed that he will not regret his behaviour during the promo for the SmackDown episode airing on October 21. Wyatt also stated that he is a servant and will follow the circle wherever it leads. The lights went out while Bray Wyatt was cutting a promo on the next SmackDown. Uncle Howdy then appeared on the large screen to tell Bray that he cannot flee and that he is a liar.
Wyatt made his way to the ring at the Crown Jewel PLE and gave a stirring statement. Bray claimed that in his pursuit of excellence, he turned into a monster and had feelings of dissatisfaction. He went on to declare that he would change the story’s conclusion. Once more, Uncle Howdy interrupted and called Wyatt a liar and advised him to wear his mask at all times.
Later, he engaged in conflict with LA Knight, and the Royal Rumble’s Pitch Black match was revealed on SmackDown on December 20. On the same SmackDown, Wyatt was attacked by Uncle Howdy, who also gave him Sister Abigail. Wyatt prevailed at the Royal Rumble. After winning, Wyatt declared that he would pursue the victor of the Brock Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley fight. That bout was won by Lashley by way of disqualification, and a feud between the two erupted before Wyatt was covertly removed from the show due to a legitimate sickness.
How did Bray Wyatt die?
Due to an undisclosed sickness, Bray Wyatt’s return to WWE was cut short in February 2023. At the age of 36, Wyatt passed away on August 24, 2023. WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H made the announcement of his passing.
Wyatt had COVID-19, which made an existing cardiac condition worse. It was subsequently discovered. Reports had indicated that Wyatt was progressing well and might return at any point two weeks before his tragic death. The former WWE and Universal Champion, however, tragically passed away from a heart attack.
Bray Wyatt’s Wife
Bray Wyatt is engaged to JoJo, another WWE employee. Real name Joseann Alexie Offerman, JoJo is a WWE-affiliated American professional wrestler and ring announcer. Offerman, who was born on March 10th, 1994, had also contributed to Total Divas in the past.
JoJo and Wyatt have been dating since about 2017. They gave birth to a daughter in May 2020 and a son in May 2019. It is well known that Braun Strowman, a former WWE Superstar and a member of the Wyatt Family, is their son’s godfather. Wyatt proposed to JoJo in 2022.
Bray Wyatt’s Net Worth
Bray Wyatt, a WWE Superstar, has a net worth of at least USD 2 million as of 2023, according to numerous online sources.
Faqs
How did Bray Wyatt die?
Due to contracting COVID-19, Bray Wyatt was covertly removed from WWE programming during the Road to WrestleMania 39. He unexpectedly died in August 2023 after a heart attack.
How tall is Bray Wyatt?
WWE had Bray Wyatt listed as 6 feet 3 inches tall.
