There are numerous cases throughout WWE history of wrestlers who have been stuck with bad gimmicks in the early part of their careers. As wrestling fans know, your gimmick as a wrestler can make or break you. Here is a list of WWE stars who survived bad gimmicks in their early careers. All of them have gone on to become World Champions for the company.
11) Edge
Edge has accomplished it all in the WWE. He is one-half of one of the greatest tag teams of all time (Edge & Christian), he is also a multiple-time World Champion as a singles star.
Edge makes the list strictly based on how funny some of his ring-names were before he eventually landed on ‘Edge’.
He first wrestled on the Canadian independent scene in the 1990’s as Sexton Hardcastle, one of the great ring names in wrestling history. A name that could double as an adult film actor or a professional wrestler.
He eventually teamed up with his childhood friend Christian ‘Primetime’ Cage to form the tag team: The Suicide Blondes. The duo was billed as being from California, even though their Canadian accents were in full force.
Edge was also briefly known as Damon Striker in WCW.
Edge would eventually sign with WWE and get repackaged as Edge. He would go on to win multiple World Titles in the company and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
10) The Rock
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is one of the most popular wrestlers in WWE history. He is also one of the biggest movie stars in the entire world. It took him some time to become ‘The Rock’ character that we all know and love.
An honorable mention goes out to his first gimmick name. He was first known as “Flex Kavana” in the United States Wrestling Association (USWA).
When he came to the World Wrestling Federation in 1996, he was given the ring name: Rocky Maivia. This was a combination of his father’s (Rocky Johnson) and his grandfather’s (‘High Chief’ Peter Maivia) ring names. He was dubbed as “The Blue Chipper” and pushed as a clean-cut babyface and the companies first ever third-generation wrestler.
His made his debut at Survivor Series 1996, where he was the sole survivor of his team.
Fans rejected his cheesy character and eventually would chant “Die Rocky Die” at him during matches. He eventually turned heel and became “The Rock” character that we all know and love.
The Rock won the World Title on multiple occasions and would go on to become one of the most electrifying and entertaining performers in the history of professional wrestling.
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