5 Current WWE stars you didn't know were third-generation wrestlers

Did you know that these stars came from a long line of wrestlers in their own family?
Did you know that these stars came from a long line of wrestlers in their own family?

There are many couples in WWE currently who have recently been able to announce that they have welcomed a child, Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella, Miz and Maryse and Mike and Maria Kanellis which has led to many fans questioning if they will ever see Birdie Joe face off against Monroe Sky or Fredrica Moon in a WWE ring.

These couples are currently on the main roster so they are much more mainstream than many wrestling couples have ever been, but that doesn't mean that there aren't many other superstars who have welcomed children before them and in turn introduced them to the business that made them famous.

Charlotte Flair is one of WWE's best-known second-generation stars after following in her father's footsteps. Natalya is the best-known third generation since her grandfather and father were both in the business before her, but it appears that several third-generation stars have skated under the radar.


#5. Curtis Axel

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Curtis Axel hasn't been used much on WWE TV over the past few years, but he is a former Intercontinental Champion and was once managed by Paul Heyman, but is seen as one of the stars that Heyman wasn't able to thrive with. (Others include Cesaro and Ryback)

Even though Curtis Axel has been unable to have the same success in the ring as his father and grandfather, the former Champion is still seen as one of WWE's current third-generation stars since he's the son of WWE Hall of Famer Mr. Perfect and grandson of Larry "The Axe" Hennig.

His ring name comes from his father's real name of Curt Hennig and his grandfather's ring name "The Axe." Axel also has a sister who is wrestling outside of WWE called Amy Hennig.

#4. Bray Wyatt/Bo Dallas

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Bray Wyatt and his girlfriend JoJo Offerman welcomed their first child together last year, whom they called Knash Sixx. Knash already has the best gimmick name and the perfect godfather in Braun Strowman but he will also now be a fourth-generation star if he ever decides to follow in his father's footsteps.

Bray and his girlfriend JoJo are currently employed by WWE whilst his uncle Bo Dallas often appears on Monday Night Raw. Many other members of his family are also still employed by WWE including Mika Rotunda who's Knash's aunt and Wyatt's sister.

Wyatt and his brother Bo are third generation superstars because their father Mike Rotunda was employed by WWE throughout the 1990s where he was best-known as IRS (Irwin R. Schyster) whilst his grandfather Blackjack Mulligan is still seen as one of the company's biggest legends.

Mulligan performed throughout the 1970s and 80s and teamed with the likes of Andre The Giant and Ric Flair, but after a successful career, he opted to retire in 1988. Mulligan and his Blackjack's partner Jack Lanza were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame back in 2006.

#3. Humberto Carrillo

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Humberto Carrillo has made quite a splash on WWE TV over the past few months since his feud with Andrade has now led to Angel Garza being promoted to the main roster. Carrillo performed on 205 Live before he was moved to Monday Night RAW as part of the WWE Draft back in October and he's recently been able to show why WWE are so hot on the third-generation star.

Carrillo only made his debut in the business back in 2012 but after wrestling as Último Ninja in Mexico at promotions including Nueva Generacion Xtrema, Lucha Libre Del Norte, Lucha Libre Azteca, The Crash Lucha Libre, Empresa Regiomontana de Lucha Libre, RIOT Wrestling Alliance, for more than six-year he was signed by WWE.

Carrillo's father Humberto Garza Jr. was also a wrestler in Mexico, whilst his grandfather Humberto Garza is at the top of the wrestling family tree. Carrillo's family tree means that he's related to the likes of Mario Segura, Máscara Púrpura, El Ninja Jr El Sultán, and fellow WWE star Angel Garza.

#2. Angel Garza

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Angel Garza is a former WWE NXT Cruiserweight Champion but he was thrust in the spotlight this past week on Raw when he was able to step into Andrade's feud with his cousin Humberto Carrillo after El Idolo was suspended following last weeks show.

Garza debuted by attacking Carrillo whilst being aligned with Zelina Vega before then having an impressive match with Rey Mysterio where he seemingly put the WWE legend out of action with a Hammerlock DDT on the exposed concrete.

Much like his cousin, Angel Garza comes from a wrestling family in Mexico but has been wrestling longer than Carrillo since he made his debut back in 2008 under the ring name El Hijo del Ninja, giving him almost 12 years of experience.

Garza is the grandson of wrestler Mike Segura who was known as "El Ninja" who was the man who trained Garza to become a professional wrestler. The former Impact Wrestling star has wrestled under a mask for much of his career but voluntarily unmasked back in 2012 and has wrestled without it ever since.

#1. Andrade

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Andrade has been successful throughout his WWE career which comes as no surprise since the third-generation star was introduced to the business at a young age which meant that he made his official debut before his 14th Birthday.

The former NXT Champion competed in a number of promotions all over the world before he was signed by WWE back in 2015 and a spotlight was finally shone on the man known as La Sombra.

Andrade is another star who is a third-generation wrestler, given the fact that his grandfather José Andrade wrestled under the "El Moro" ring name and his father was known as "Brilliante." Andrade's uncles and cousins are also wrestlers and whilst he was growing up many of his family members helped with running the local Lucha Libre promotion in Durango which is why Andrade was able to enter the business at such a young age.

He made his debut on October 3rd, 2003 which was just a month before he turned 14, now at 30 years old, Andrade is already a veteran with almost two decades of in-ring experience.

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