5 WWE Superstars and their original gimmick names

Pro Wrestling is not a bed of roses especially if you are working for the world’s biggest wrestling promotion, WWE. A wrestler we now see had been through many changes in his career. Let it be a gimmick or name change, almost every popular superstar has gone through these significant changes.

Most of you already know that John Cena once was The Prototype in WWE. Similarly, Roman Reigns worked as Roman Leakee for a short period. However, I am not going to talk about these two wrestlers in this article. Instead, I will disclose other wrestlers who had a different gimmick name when they first debuted in the WWE.

So here are 5 WWE Superstars and what gimmick name they used after debuting the WWE.

(Note: I will only include a superstar if he/she had a name change in WWE, any other promotion (except WCW) is not included. Record as per ProfightDB)

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#5 Christian

Real name: William Jason Reso

Original gimmick name: Christian Cage

Matches he wrestled under this name: 1 (in the WWE only)

Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Christian worked for the company from 1998 to 2001, during his first run. Most of you, Attitude Era fans, may not believe that Christian worked as Christian Cage for some time.

However, this name only lasted for one night when Christian wrestled at WWF Shotgun Saturday Night tapings. In this event, he faced Adam Copeland in a match that never aired live.

The former World Tag Team Champion then started working under the ring name Christian. And if you read the above paragraph carefully then you would know that Copeland is actually Christian's Tag Team Partner, the R-rated superstar Edge. They have been together since their early days and now host a weekly podcast on E&C’s Pod of Awesomeness.

Both are retired but still are remembered by the WWE Universe.

#4 Braun Strowman

Hey, Braun Stowman?

Real name: Adam Scherr

Original gimmick name: Braun Stowman

Matches he wrestled under this name: 20

Braun Strowman saw a dramatic change in his career in the last 2 years. A few years ago, WWE introduced Strowman as one of the Adam Rose's "Rosebuds". Not to mention, it was not something that fits Strowman.

The Monster Among Men then wrestled many matches under the name Braun Stowman and defeated Chad Gable in his first match in an NXT Live Event. WWE then readjusted his name when he joined The Wyatt Family. Most of the fans are not aware of this name change as Strowman only used it during NXT live events.

In 2015, Bray Wyatt introduced Braun Strowman to the WWE Universe as a new recruit of The Wyatt Family. However, the 2016 brand split separated him from the group. Since then the WWE is pushing him as a monster but still, Strowan has not won any titles in the WWE except the Raw Tag Team Championships.

#3 Nia Jax

Nia Jax was formerly

known as

Zada. But for just 1 day.

Real name: Savelina Fanene

Original gimmick name: Zada

Matches she wrestled under this name: 1

The last few months have been very difficult for Nia Jax. She is facing the backlash from the fans, mostly because of her botched moves in the ring. In 2014, she signed a developmental contract with the WWE and made her in-ring debut in 2015.

She wrestled under the ring name Zada in a tag team match where she teamed up with Devin Taylor to take on against Bayley and Carmella. This was her first and the last match as Zada as the WWE then changed her name to Lina.

She then worked under her new name for some time and fought 21 matches in total. After that, she became Nia Jax and soon made her main roster debut.

Jax won the Raw Women’s Championship last year at Wrestlemania by defeating Alexa Bliss but in just a few months, Bliss regained the title. Now, Jax and Tamina are looking forward to winning the new Women’s Tag Team titles and could face Bayley and Sasha at WWE Fastlane.

#2 Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins with Roman Reigns (formerly known as Roman Leakee)

Real name: Colby Lopez

Original gimmick name: Tyler Black

Matches he wrestled under this name: 1 (in the WWE only)

The 2019 Royal Rumble winner Seth Rollins will face Universal Champion Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania, this year. Rollins made his WWE debut in 2010 and defeated Trent Barreta in his debut match (as Tyler Black). In this very match, he fought under the ring name Tyler Black.

The WWE then changed his name to Seth Rollins and now the entire WWE Universe know him by this name. Rollins was also the member of popular faction The Shield.

He broke the group in 2014 before reuniting it in 2017. However, last year as well, The Shield got broken again when Dean Ambrose turned on Seth Rollins.

The former World Champion, reportedly, is suffering an injury right now but it is not a serious one. Fans are now hoping for Rollins to slay The Beast at Mania to become the Universal Champion. Now, only time will tell if something like this is going to happen or not.

#1 Triple H

Hunter or Triple H? You decide.

Real name: Paul Michael Levesque

Original gimmick name: Jean-Paul Levesque (in WCW) and Hunter Hearst Helmsley (in WWF)

Matches he wrestled under this name: 1 as Jean-Paul Levesque and 155 as Hunter Hearst Helmsley

Triple H, the 14-time WWE Champion, is the COO of WWE. He is working for this company since 1995 and has done so much for the business.

The Game also worked for the WCW under the ring name Jean-Paul Levesque. However, he wrestled only one match for this promotion before joining Vince McMahon's WWF. Triple h then worked for this promotion as Hunter Hearst Helmsley.

He used this name for 3 years before becoming “The Game” Triple H. His career then skyrocketed and now he has become a major part of the WWE. The former World Champion is currently injured and no one knows if he will work at the WrestleMania.