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There have been several masked Superstars throughout WWE and wrestling history. The most famous ones of them are the Luchadors, who, by tradition, wear masks while wrestling. Some of the current Superstars on Monday Night RAW and Friday Night SmackDown who wear masks are Rey Mysterio, Kalisto, Gran Metallic, and Lince Dorado.
There are also WWE Superstars like Bray Wyatt, who wrestle under a mask as "The Fiend" but otherwise appear without it. What many fans might not know or might not remember is that there are several other current WWE Superstars who once used to wrestle under a mask.
Here are five WWE Superstars who once used to wrestle under a mask. Be sure to comment down and let us know who you would want to see bring the mask back.
#5 Bayley (WWE SmackDown)
One of the biggest Superstars of WWE's women's division right now is the SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley. While her current heel character is being praised by the fans, what many might not remember is that she once used to wrestle under a mask in NXT, as seen in the tweet above.
She signed with WWE in 2012 and on her NXT Live event debut, she wrestled under a mask. Later, she dropped the mask and adopted the fan-girl gimmick and the ring name Bayley. Three years later, at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn in 2015, Bayley won the NXT Women's Championship by defeating Sasha Banks. She held on to the title for 223 days before losing it to Asuka.
Bayley made her main roster debut for WWE in 2016 and joined RAW. After being a top babyface for a long time, she turned heel last year in 2019 and has since impressed the fans by her versatility.
Bayley has a huge list of accomplishments throughout her WWE career. A four-time Women's Champion and two-time Women's Tag Team Champion, Bayley became the first WWE Superstar to complete the women's Grand Slam. She is the current SmackDown Women's Champion, a title which she has held on for almost a year now.
#4 Andrade (WWE RAW)
Before joining WWE, Andrade ("Cien" Almas) had a long journey, which started with him working for his family's local Lucha Libre wrestling promotion. He then signed with CMLL and began wrestling under the ring name "La Sombra" with a mask. He later became part of the Los Ingonerables stable alongside La Mascara and Rush and won several championships in CMLL.
After spending five years in New Japan Pro Wrestling, he won the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. It was in November 2015 when he signed with WWE and started competing in NXT under the ring name Andrade "Cien" Almas. He formed an alliance with Zelina Vega and went on to defeat Drew McIntyre at NXT TakeOver Wargames 2017 to become the NXT Champion. He lost the title to Aleister Black after 140 days before being drafted to SmackDown.
WWE later shortened his name to just Andrade. He has had several top-level feuds with multiple WWE Superstars and won the United States Championship once. Angel Garza joined him and Zelina Vega, but there has been a lot of tension within the trio. It is to be seen whether Andrade will decide to bring back his masked version in the future.
#3 Daniel Bryan (WWE SmackDown)
Before becoming a huge WWE Superstar, Daniel Bryan's first stint with the company was in 2000, where he was trained by William Regal. Performing for MCW, Bryan was closed to being called up to the main roster but was then released in 2001. He then went to New Japan Pro Wrestling, where he started wrestling under a red, blue, and white mask, as seen in the picture above.
After competing on the independent circuit and promotions like Ring of Honor, Daniel Bryan returned to WWE in 2009. He was introduced as one of the members of The Nexus but then released by the company only to return a few months later at SummerSlam 2010.
Daniel Bryan's career highlight came at WrestleMania XXX when he won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Randy Orton and Batista in the main event. Unfortunately, he had to relinquish the title after a few months. A similar situation took place the next year as he was forced to relinquish his Intercontinental Championship.
In February 2016, Daniel Bryan announced his retirement from WWE due to his medical conditions and soon became the General Manager of SmackDown.
Weeks before WrestleMania 34, Daniel Bryan was cleared to compete after more than two years. He made his return to the ring at The Grandest Stage of Them All, starting his career once again. Since then, he has been one of the top Superstars on SmackDown.
#2 Sami Zayn (WWE SmackDown)
If you think Sami Zayn became popular after signing with WWE, you might want to go on the internet and watch his amazing journey before signing with the company. Wrestling on the independent circuit and promotions like Ring of Honor, Dragon Gate, Chikara, and others, he competed with a mask under the ring name El Generico. The rivalry between him and Kevin Steen (now known as Kevin Owens in WWE) is considered one of the most iconic rivalries in modern-day pro-wrestling.
After signing with WWE in 2013, he dropped the mask and adopted the ring name of Sami Zayn. Considered one of the biggest Superstars in NXT history, Zayn won the NXT Championship in December 2014. He then reignited his rivalry with Kevin Owens and lost the title to him 62 days later.
Sami Zayn debuted on the main roster when he answered John Cena's United States Championship Open Challenge in 2015. He has had several amazing feuds and matches on the main roster and won his first main roster championship, the Intercontinental title, earlier this year at WWE Elimination Chamber 2020. After taking a hiatus after WrestleMania 36, Zayn has now returned to WWE.
#1 The Undertaker (WWE legend)
The Undertaker is arguably one of the greatest WWE Superstars of all time. Be it his legendary WrestleMania streak, chilling gimmick, and humbling personality, Superstars like The Undertaker truly come once in a generation.
What many fans might not remember is that there was a time in The Undertaker's career when he used to compete wearing a mask. The reason behind the same was a real-life injury that The Undertaker suffered during his feud with King Mabel that led to him wearing a mask to protect his face.
It was at Survivor Series 1995 where The Undertaker wrestled with the mask and defeated Mabel's team. Later, the Phenom again defeated King Mabel in a casket match. Later, at next year's Royal Rumble PPV, Bret Hart removed the mask from his face.
The Undertaker's last appearance for WWE took place at this year's WrestleMania in a Boneyard Match against AJ Styles. Soon after that, WWE Network started airing a docuseries "Undertaker: The Last Ride" that saw the Phenom break kayfabe and give the fans a peek into his life outside of the gimmick.
On the final episode of the highly-praised docuseries, The Undertaker seemingly announced his retirement from WWE, albeit ending it with "Never say Never". It is to be seen whether The Undertaker would ever return or not, but given that The Phenom is still listed as a current Superstar on WWE's website, there's a chance we will see him return one last time.
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