Coolest and Dumbest WWE names.

[MartialHorror]

Most wrestlers don't use their real names and go for something that sounds catchier and more awesome. Before Steve Austin (which isn't even his real name) adopted the Stone Cold monicker, apparently one of the considered names for his new gimmick was something like 'Chilly McFreeze'. As Mick Foley has said, he could've had the same persona but never would've taken off with some a stupid name.

Right now, it seems like WWE prefers real sounding names...Dean Ambrose isn't the performers real name, but it sounds like a name someone could have in real life while having a cool ring to it.

So what are some of the cooler sounding names in WWE right now? And what ones do you think sound stupid...or at least come across as bland or don't fit the character.

My favorites include

-Titus O'Neil
-Heath Slater
- Curtis Axel (odd that these three are among the jobber squad)
- The Great Khali (one of the only gimmicky names I like)

I think the first 3 names sound incredibly badass without trying too hard to sound badass. The Great Khali is just impressive sounding.

My least favorites are

- The Big Show- Admittedly it's less obnoxious than 'Big Nasty', but this sounds too much like a gimmick. This name feels like it belongs to someone who gets gets pushed to a single main event before jobbing the rest of his days out. "The Giant" is also a gimmick name, but it sounds less corny and temporary.

- Adam Rose- To be fair, it's not a bad name, but it's a name that won't go very far. Even if people had a stronger reaction to the character, can you ever imagine a wrestling event headlined by a name like Adam Rose?

- Jack Swagger- This is a good name on its own, but I feel like it belongs to Adam Rose. I feel like someone with the name 'Swagger' should be fun loving and cool.

 

[Wrestlingaholic]

People put too much emphasis on the name - I remember everyone thought WTF when Spirit Squad Nicky came back as the awful sounding Dolph Ziggler. Yet look what happened there!

 

[MartialHorror]

I don't think Dolph Ziggler is a bad name. Nicky on the other hand...

 

[Taimurk]

cm punks a good name as is stone cold, hbk, brock lesnar, the undertaker and the rock

 

[Navi]

What I find interesting is there are only four males on the main roster that use their real names, John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Mark Henry and Randy Orton. A few of the Diva's do, Natayla Neihart, Stephanie McMahon, Layla and AJ to an extent as AJ are her initials, but her last name isn't Lee.

No one on the NXT roster uses their real names at all, and they've all been given one, although I'll have to check on Charlotte Flair.

On topic though the best names are The Rock, Stone Cold, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Undertaker.

Worst would be Rusev, Hornswoggle, Ryback and I just can't stand the name The Miz. Most of the other names are passable.

 

[InZayn]

Well for best names i believe Bray Wyatt wold be on the top of my list along with William Regal, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, Sami Zayn, Corey Graves, Baron Corbin, Rey Mysterio, and last but not least THE AYATOLLAH OF ROCK AND ROLLA CHRIS JERICHOOOO!!!!!

Worst names well I'd have to go with The Miz, Rusev (I liked it better with Alexander in it), Hornswoggle, Adam Rose, Tyler Breeze, Big Dick Johnson (Bundy), Xavier Woods (I like the name Xavier A LOT but woods like seriously WTF) and well the worst name in the history of all names ever (Not only in wrestling) is.......Big E I don't think i need to explain.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

What I find interesting is there are only four males on the main roster that use their real names, John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Mark Henry and Randy Orton. A few of the Diva's do, Natayla Neihart, Stephanie McMahon, Layla and AJ to an extent as AJ are her initials, but her last name isn't Lee.

No one on the NXT roster uses their real names at all, and they've all been given one, although I'll have to check on Charlotte Flair.

On topic though the best names are The Rock, Stone Cold, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Undertaker.

Worst would be Rusev, Hornswoggle, Ryback and I just can't stand the name The Miz. Most of the other names are passable.

Very few are allowed to use their own names, it's very much something that either comes with tenure or was contractual... even back in 02, Brock was playing hardball on his deal and that included using his own name... Same for Henry, as he had Olympic credentials they wanted to capitalise on.

Some of the ones you mention are plays on their real names, which is the closest you will get... Ryback is actually Ryan Reeves, who was known as Silverback at one point... so Ry-Back is actually a pretty suitable name and basically a mash-up... Same for the Miz... his name is Mizanin and he used that nickname before he got to WWE ...

The worst names on the roster are the ones that scream out "phoney wrestler name"... Dolph Ziggler is indeed the worst by quite a margin... it is the main reason he hasn't made it mainstream, cos his name just sounds crap... The time to change it was 2 years ago when he dumped Vicky and went with AJ... Nick Nemeth is a fine name for a wrestler but pure merchandising drives it...

Other bad names at the moment are Hideo Itami (refuse to use it), Curtis Axel (should have been Axel Hennig or Curt Hennig Jr) and Zeb Colter...why they couldn't just call him Dutch Mantell is beyond me...

The better names are guys like the former Shield, the Wyatts and Adrian Neville... it's a pretty strong UK name, Wade Barrett fits him well too.

 

[d_henderson1810]

I will cop heat here, but read carefully what I say first.

I think Dolph Ziggler is a dumb name. When I first heard it, I thought his gimmick was a take on Dirk Diggler from "Boogie Nights", and thought that they were trying to recycle the adult movie star gimmick from Val Venis to Dolph Ziggler.

This is partly why I haven't seen him as the massive superstar you all have. If he had a more powerful sounding name (since it isn't his own real name anyway), it might have been more believable. But as Dolph Ziggler, it looks like a ripoff of Val Venis's gimmick, and Billy Gunn's look.

 

[Mustang Sally]

What I find interesting is there are only four males on the main roster that use their real names, John Cena, Brock Lesnar, Mark Henry and Randy Orton.

Ironic that all four have been world champions.

To me, the coolest name was Cactus Jack......not even sure why, but the name and the man seemed to fit so cleanly.

Dumbest name?.....Sparky Plugg..... for cryin' out loud. How do you take seriously a wrestler with that stupid name? ("What a dropkick by Plugg!")

 

[Torgo]

The Good

Anyone of the Shield: All their names are cool sounding and fit their characters well.

Titus O Niel: Shame he's a jobber, his name is sweet.

Hideo Itami: I don't care what others say it's a great name.

Kofi Kingston: Again, I like the name. It fits him and is believable.

Cesaro: Frickin badass name.


The Bad:

Jack Swagger: What a fake sounding name. It's marketable at least.

Heath Slater: What a fake sounding name. It's not even that marketable.

Curtis Axel: Ehh, it's ok. Just sounds like a stereotypical "pro wrassler" name.

Big E: Was cool with the "Langston" part. Now....

The Ugly:

Dolph Ziggler: I like the name, it's just such a weird sounding name.

Xavier Woods: See dolph Ziggler


There's a ton more but it's very early where I am and I don't feel like writing anymore.

 

[Jonyboyuk2]

Off the top of my head - coolest names - The Undertaker, Kane, Hitman, The Rock, Stone Cold, HBK, Triple H (Spelled in that way; but as Hunter Hurst Helmsley- we always used to say as kids he was the worlds lamest jobber wrestler). Cactus Jack, Dude Love and Mankind were all pretty cool names; Y2J was a brilliant name too. HeadCheese the tag team was amusing haha. Too Cool, Jake the Snake, Ultimate Warrior, Legion of Doom, Natural Disasters, Million Dollar Man, Big Boss Man, the Rockers, British Bulldog. All of these names were a branding of a wrestler; which made them stick in your mind after you'd seen them.

Branding is important. For example; I remember more about Duane Gill when he was Gillbert rather than when he was Duane Gill the jobber. branding.

Lame ass names - Techno Team 2000, TL Hopper, The Goon, Duke the Dumpster Drose, Test, Puke, Salvatire Sincere, Wildman Marc Mero, Bastion Booger, Bertha Faye (who was actually an incredible womans wrestler in Japan), The good-father, Truth Commission (what was that about), Beaver Cleavage, Headbangers, TAFKA Goldust/Gimpdust and Bob Backlund in 1994 just before he turned heel on Bret (which was a pretty decent character once he turned).

 

[closet_fan]

Can we add Speed Force to the "dumb" section?

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/514...for-3-man-group-including-kofi-kingston-big-e

 

[TDFG]

Kerwin White. Whoever made that decision needed sacked, everyone knows the guy as Chavo Guerrero, yet some idiot decides to repackage him as a golfer type guy.

 

[MartialHorror]

Yeah Speed Force is a pretty moronic stable name. Sounds like it belongs in a childrens cartoon.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I remember when Rocky came back as The Rock and Hunter was being branded as HHH thinking both were lame and horrible mistakes. The name has more to do with the man representing it than the order of the letters.

That being said, Dolph Ziggler is not doing him any favors. A name like that does not belong in the main event. Not that I believe the man or character belong in the main event but the name is hurting him.

The other one that I thinks hurts is Seth Rollins. No offense to any Seth's out there but it isn't the most macho name available. Then again Henry is not that imposing of a name and Henry Rollins made it work for him.

Jack Swagger isn't a bad name but don't fit a guy who looks so uncomfortable being on TV.

Dean is kind of a nerdy name.

I think initials work nicely. C. Montgomery Punk worked out. Initials are just cool and leave you wondering what the actual name is.

 

[Pedigree1]

Anyone forget the Yeti?? God Awful gimmick and even worse wrestler! WTF was that supposed to be?

 

[closet_fan]

Anyone forget the Yeti?? God Awful gimmick and even worse wrestler! WTF was that supposed to be?

What made that trainwreck even worse was Schiavone pronouncing him as the Yet-AY. I never understood why he did that.

 

[Jimmy Carter]

Can we add Speed Force to the "dumb" section?

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/514...for-3-man-group-including-kofi-kingston-big-e

Since Woods wears his love for Power Rangers and anime on his sleeve it seems to fit. Expect them to main event the new season of Saturday Morning Slam.

What about John Cena? Cena means dinner in Spanish. Have you ever heard of such an absurd name, John Dinner?

 

[fenderjapan]

Curtis Axel is one of the ones that makes me cringe. Finn Balor makes me cringe. I can't wait to see what Kevin Steen ends up as (regardless of the internets I do not believe he will get to keep his name, at least not long term)... Steen Kevinson? Quebec Jones? Cannonball French?

 

[mral82]

I remember when Rocky came back as The Rock and Hunter was being branded as HHH thinking both were lame and horrible mistakes. The name has more to do with the man representing it than the order of the letters.

That being said, Dolph Ziggler is not doing him any favors. A name like that does not belong in the main event. Not that I believe the man or character belong in the main event but the name is hurting him.

The other one that I thinks hurts is Seth Rollins. No offense to any Seth's out there but it isn't the most macho name available. Then again Henry is not that imposing of a name and Henry Rollins made it work for him.

Jack Swagger isn't a bad name but don't fit a guy who looks so uncomfortable being on TV.

Dean is kind of a nerdy name.

I think initials work nicely. C. Montgomery Punk worked out. Initials are just cool and leave you wondering what the actual name is.

Phil Brooks has stated that CM stands for Chick Magnet Punk when he started out but decided to let people COME MAKE stuff up for the CM like Jake Roberts did w/ the DDT as he stated that move initials he doesn't know what they are. To me it doesn't matter what the name is of any guy or gal it has to do w/ what they can do w/ it and make a career from it as Celebrities always have used a stage name. Alot of the Cheesy Named Stars have became Hall Of Famers.

 

[HBKistheHOF]

My Current Favorites:
Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins & Roman Reigns - All of the former members of The Shield have cool names & they fit well with their respective personas.
Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper & Erick Rowan - Same deal with The Wyatt Family, along with the former shield members they are probably the best & most accurately named superstars in years.
Cesaro - I like it with or without the Antonio before it. I think it fits Claudio & it has a cool european sound to it.
Hideo Itami - I'm still somewhat undecided on this one but I think it fits him so far & will probably end up being a pretty cool name.
Baron Corbin - I hardly know anything about him apart from his promos hyping his NXT debut but I gotta say not only am I anticipating his debut in general now but his name alone sounds so badass that I can't wait to see what this guy is all about.

Names I Can't Really Decide On:
Sami Zayn - I absolutely love El Generico as a performer but I still don't really know what to make of his new name. It's grown on me a little but at the same time it still seems odd & kind of like a jobber name.
Adrian Neville - A decent name but it just sounds way too nerdy to me.
Curtis Axel - I initially loved Hennig's new name change & while it's still much, much better than Micahel McGillicutty, the name has just lost it's luster for me. Also I keep getting him confused with Adam Rose now, I don't know if it's because of Axel Rose or what?
Rusev - I like it but it sounds too much like a last name, I think it fit better with the name Alexander before it.
Bad News Barrett - Using the bad news moniker as a nickname like Wade "Bad News" Barrett is cool but actually changing the characters name to Bad News Barrett is kinda silly.
Big E - It was alright with the Langston at the end, now it just sounds kinda weird.
Xavier Woods - Just kind of an odd jobber name.

My Current Least Favorites:
Finn Balor - My most hated name right now, EASILY! It sounds like a tool for cooking fish, "Hey Frank I gotta skin this trout & cook him up good for tonight, pass me that finn balor!"
Bo Dallas - The name has grown on me a lot since losing the whole "generic cowboy that wears one glove like MJ" gimmick but it's still just a stupid name.
Damien Mizdow - I put this on here just because I think it's ridiculous Damien has been delegated to such a pathetic role considering before his character started flopping around endlessly & they couldn't decide on anything for him, as the Damien Sandow character, he was world champion material & now they have made him into a jobber at best. & while I wasn't a huge fan of the R-Ziggler thing either, at least that was sort of funny & only lasted a couple weeks.
Diego & Fernando - At least as Primo & Epico I could tell them apart.

 

[Wrestlingaholic]

To address various points from various posts:

• agree that Nicky is a crap name for a wrestler; however the whole Spirit Squad gimmick was nerdy, so it worked.

• Charlotte isn't the NXT Divas champion's real name, it's a reference to her father's billed home town

• Finn Balor? Hmm... I guessed Finn was after Finn McColl, but never heard of 'Balor', could of been anything. Could even have been Finn DeVitt or something (Kevin Steen = Steven Keen?)

• Wade Barrett is hardly a traditional British sounding name, Wades are fairly rare in the UK

• Curtis Axel may be the worst name in wrestling today.

• the Undertaker SUCKED as a name (and Paul Bearer!) but the man behind the gimmick made it work

• Cesaro, Rusev and especially Big E worked better with surnames

 

[MartialHorror]

I don't like Hideo Itami. I personally feel they should've stayed with Kenta. Besides obviously being more marketable in Japan, Kenta is just easier to remember. Hideo Itami is a name I have to constantly check to see if I'm getting it right.

 

[RobbieGQ]

My biggest gripe with current wwe wrestler's names is wrestlers with 1 name. Sheamus, Cesaro, Big E, Rusev, Natalya, etc. It annoys me, what was wrong with alexander rusev or antonio cesaro? It makes them sound like real people. Having just Sheamus as a name is as corny as having someone named Peter or Kevin, "your winner and new wwe heavyweight champion....Kevin!" doesnt sound right. It nit-picky but it irks the hell outta me.

 

[d_henderson1810]

Can we add Speed Force to the "dumb" section?

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/514...for-3-man-group-including-kofi-kingston-big-e

Speed Force? Don't you mean, Strike Force?