10 WWE Superstars and their original WWE gimmick names

Braun Strowman, Nia Jax, Andrade "Cien" Almas and Roman Reigns are some of the most prominent Superstars on WWE television today.

However, their paths through WWE’s developmental system to the main roster were met with a few challenges, starting off with their first gimmick names.

Every top WWE Superstar needs a captivating character to fulfill their potential in the business and grab the audience’s attention, but it can sometimes take longer than expected to come up with a strong name.

Hulk Hogan, for example, is a name that has Superstar written all over it. Curtis Axel’s original name, Michael McGillicutty, on the other hand? Not so much.

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at 10 current WWE Superstars and reveal what they were originally called when they debuted for the company (including developmental brands).

Character names in this article are from the archive match results on wrestling stats database profightdb.com.

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#10 Nia Jax was called Zada

The Zada name actually suits Nia Jax!

Real name Savelina Fanene, Nia Jax initially debuted in WWE under the ring name Zada.

However, this name only lasted for one NXT live event in May 2015, where she teamed with Devin Taylor in a losing effort against Bayley and Carmella.

Two days later, she began using the name Lina, which was changed to Nia Jax in August 2015.

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#9 John Cena was called The Prototype

WWE did the right thing allowing John Cena to use his real name

John Cena has 16 World Championships to his name in WWE, and he can also boast of having one of the most obscure original gimmick names in the company’s history: The Prototype.

In fairness to WWE, they didn’t give him the name – Cena began using it during his time in Ultimate Pro Wrestling – but he still competed as The Prototype in WWE’s OVW developmental system in 2001.

When he was called up to the main roster in June 2002, WWE ditched the gimmick name and called him by his real name instead.

#8 Bray Wyatt was called Tank Mulligan

In the end, Bray Wyatt created a legacy all on his own

The Bray Wyatt character has never been associated with his father (Mike Rotunda) or grandfather (Blackjack Mulligan) on WWE television.

It was a different story when he debuted, though, as he initially began his career in WWE’s FCW developmental system with the names Tank Mulligan and Tank Rotunda.

He went on to use several other names, including Duke Rotunda and Husky Harris, before being repacked as Bray Wyatt in April 2012.

#7 Tyler Breeze was called Mike McGrath

Mike McGrath is too generic for WWE!

After initially appearing under his real name, Matt Clements, Tyler Breeze became known as Mike McGrath from December 2010 to February 2011.

That name soon transitioned into Mike Dalton, which he kept for over two years before becoming Tyler Breeze in June 2013.

#6 Andrade “Cien” Almas was called Manny Andrade

Manny Andrade never made it to television

Andrade “Cien” Almas made his name as La Sombra during his time in CMLL and NJPW.

After joining WWE’s NXT brand in January 2016, he became known by his real name, Manny Andrade, which he used at live events but never on television for the next four months.

In May 2016, his name was changed again to Andrade "Cien" Almas, with the "Cien" Almas part of the Mexican's name translating to "100 souls".

#5 Fandango was called Johnny Curtis

Fandango defeated Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29

While Fandango never used his real name, Curtis Jonathan Hussey, early on in his career, WWE went down the Bryan Danielson route of mixing it up to give him the name Johnny Curtis.

His name then changed in November 2012 when he became known as Fandango on live events, later making his in-ring debut with the gimmick against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29.

#4 Kane was called Dr. Isaac Yankem

Kane is a lot more menacing than evil dentist Dr. Isaac Yankem

Glenn Jacobs originally made a name for himself in the wrestling business by facing the likes of Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson during his time as the Unabom character in SMW in the mid-90s.

However, his first name in WWE was actually Dr. Isaac Yankem, which he used between August 1995 and April 1996 before returning in September 1996 as Fake Diesel.

After a short-lived run impersonating Diesel, Jacobs began his role as the monstrous Kane character in October 1997.

#3 Sheamus was called Sheamus O’Shaunessy

So Sheamus DOES have a surname!

WWE has been known to remove names from Superstars in recent years: (Alexander) Rusev, (Antonio) Cesaro, Big E (Langston), (Erick) Rowan, (Luke) Harper... the list goes on.

But this isn’t a new phenomenon – it actually happened back in January 2009 with Sheamus.

The Irishman debuted in FCW as Sheamus O’Shaunessy in October 2007 but his name was shortened a little over a year later.

#2 Braun Strowman was called Braun Stowman

'Stowman' doesn't quite have the same ring to it

Braun by name and Braun by nature, there was no way WWE would change the 385-pounder’s magnificent first name when he was called up to the main roster from NXT.

They did, however, decide to change his surname to Strowman, which was originally Stowman during his days working live events with NXT.

#1 Roman Reigns was called Roman Leakee

The Roman Reigns name debuted in August 2012

Love him or loathe him, Roman Reigns’ WrestleMania main-event record alone is enough to cement his legacy as one of the top WWE Superstars since the Attitude Era.

“The Big Dog” likely would have made it to the big time regardless of his surname, but there’s no denying that Roman Reigns sounds a lot stronger than Roman Leakee, which is the name he debuted as in August 2010.

In April 2011, he became known simply as Leakee, which was changed to Roman Reigns in August 2012.