Wrestlers Whose Ring Names Are Completely Different From Their Real Names

There are a whole bunch of wrestlers who got away with using their real names, getting over with the name they were handed at birth, with it managing to sound like something a professional wrestler would use. At times, many wrestlers use their real names as influence for their ring names – such as Daniel Bryan (Bryan Danielson), Shawn Michaels (Michael Hickenbottom), and various others. At times though, some ring names have been completely different to real names.

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When looking across the wrestling world today, there are examples in both the likes of WWE and AEW of wrestlers who have a ring name that simply could not be farther away from what they are called outside of the ring, both for better and for worse.

Kenny Omega

Real Name: Tyson Smith

Kenny Omega is a striking ring name that has carried him to so much success over the years in various promotions. The surname of ‘Omega’ carries so much weight, meaning, and coolness, and is certainly one that fits in perfectly with the professional wrestling world.

His real name is very different, as Omega was born as Tyson Smith. The name wouldn’t perhaps be the absolute worst for a wrestler, but it is far more simple and every day than ‘Kenny Omega’. We think it’s a good thing he didn’t wrestle with the surname of ‘Smith’ – we’d find it difficult to think a ‘Smith’ could become a multi-time world champion in major promotions.

Liv Morgan

Real Name: Gionna Daddio

Usually, a wrestler will create a ring name due to their real name not sounding quirky or different enough to stand out in the world of pro wrestling. The opposite is true for Liv Morgan. She may have made a name for herself as Liv Morgan, becoming a multi-time champion in WWE, but her real name of Gionna Daddio screams of being a wrestling moniker.

These two names are very different, with one being rather simple and basic, whereas the other is full of syllables and feels very unique.

Angelo Dawkins

Real Name: Gary Gordon

Angelo Dawkins is a stylish professional wrestler name, and it has led to him having a lengthy run in WWE. If he competed under his very different real name, we aren’t so sure he’d have had the same sort of success.

The name ‘Gary Gordon’ is so simple and not fitting to Dawkins that it feels bizarre to even think that it is his real name. Gary Gordon sounds like someone who would sit in an office and pour over legal documents (or else be a complete jobber), and not someone winning tag titles in WWE.

Bayley

Real Name: Pamela Martinez

WWE have had a tendency over the years to give the women’s division singular basic names – see Melina, Emma, Sable, Layla, Jillian, and others for example. Bayley fell into that same group, and she was handed a very basic ring name that she managed to change up herself to make it more interesting – adding a ‘y’ instead of an ‘i’.

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However, it could not be more different to her real name of Pamela Martinez, which reminds fans that Bayley does in fact have hispanic heritage, something that is not displayed at all in her ring name.

Hook

Real Name: Tyler Senerchia

Hook is a punchy, one word name and it does its job of standing out on the AEW roster. With a lot of singular names, sometimes they can spawn from real names, taking either just the first or last name. In the case of Hook, his real name is Tyler Senerchia, which is very different.

The name of Hook does feel similar in design to the ring name of his father, Tazz. It is one syllable, it has harsh sounding consonants, and it doesn’t use their family surname of Senerchia, which might be a bit of a mouthful for some fans to say and remember.

CM Punk

Real Name: Phil Brooks

Fans have long debated over the real meaning of the ‘CM’ in ‘CM Punk’, but to this day nothing has been outright confirmed. One thing is for sure though, it doesn’t have anything to do with his real name of Phil Brooks.

CM Punk and Phil Brooks sound like two completely different people, and there is no influence on his ring name that comes from his birth name. Punk has managed to make his name one of the most recognisable in wrestling, leading him to a lot of world title success and classic matches over the years.

PAC

Real Name: Benjamin Satterly

‘The Bastard’ PAC carries himself in a brooding, mean, and violent manner in AEW, but when his hair is tied back and he becomes his real name of Benjamin Satterly when he’s away from competing between the ropes, the two personas couldn’t be anymore different to one another.

PAC is a name for a hardened performer and it firmly stands out from the crowd. Benjamin Satterly is very much an every day kind’ve name, and it wouldn’t fit his gimmick and character in AEW in the slightest.

Apollo Crews

Real Name: Sesugh Uhaa

Prior to joining WWE, Apollo Crews wrestled under the name of Uhaa Nation, using his real name of Sesugh Uhaa to influence his identity in wrestling. This name took on his real Nigerian heritage – something the WWE-given ring name of Apollo Crews doesn’t provide.

In truth, his ring name in WWE is a strong one, and if he were given the right sort of push when he came to the main roster many years ago, he might’ve been able to find himself higher up the card. One thing is for sure though – the two names are incredibly different.

MVP

Real Name: Alvin Burke

Montel Vontavious Porter, MVP, has always been one of the most ‘wow’ ring names in wrestling. It is extravagant, it certainly stands out, and it carries an aura along with it. It is a good thing that he was given this ring name, as ‘Alvin Burke’ wouldn’t have worked too well.

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The real name of Alvin Burke trying to lead The Hurt Syndicate/Business or calling himself the most valuable player would not have landed, with him sounding more like someone who’d be selling you insurance.

Rhea Ripley

Real Name: Demi Bennett

Rhea Ripley is now a household name in professional wrestling, and is one of the most popular wrestlers the WWE women’s division has ever seen, with various world title reigns to match. Her real name is one which would likely work well in the professional wrestling landscape, but it still sounds very different.

Her real name outside of the ring is Demi Bennett, which still feels unique enough to work if she used it to wrestle. However, there is nothing similar about it, perhaps aside from the fact that her first name is four letters long, but even then we are clutching for comparisons.