"That scared me a little bit" - Adam Cole reveals WWE wanted to change his name and look on the main roster
AEW wrestler Adam Cole has revealed that WWE offered to change his ring name and look after his main roster call-up.
The former NXT Champion was a major star in the black and gold brand, holding the title for a record 396 days. When his time on the brand was over, he was expected to make the lateral move to either Monday Night RAW or SmackDown, but he chose instead to sign with rival promotion, AEW.
During a recent interaction with Chris Jericho on his Talk is Jericho podcast, Adam Cole opened up on what was planned for him on the main roster.
“It was funny because apparently, there were a lot of ideas, but they were very vague on what exactly they wanted to do," said Cole. "This is interesting too because I remember when I first had the conversation, they had mentioned something about ‘maybe we’ll do a name change or maybe we’ll change your look a little bit.’ So that scared me a little bit just because I’d spent nearly 14 years as Adam Cole, and then our latest conversation, they were definitely more open to me being me and being myself and stuff like that. They could tell I was not too thrilled about the idea.”
“It was definitely something that made me a little bit more timid about maybe pulling the trigger on that one," he added. "Of course, they could not have been nicer, but when I think about me and my career and what is best for me, the idea of that being an option did scare me a little bit, where I was like, okay, what if I do go, and then something happens anyway because at that point, I can’t really say or do anything. Red flag is the perfect way to put it." (H/T Wrestling INC.)
It’s @TalkIsJericho time BayBay!!! Had a great convo w/ @IAmJericho
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tal…
Adam Cole wasn't in favor of changing his name
Before signing with WWE several years ago, Adam Cole made a name for himself under his current moniker, which is recognizable among fans. That's why he didn't feel very comfortable changing it to something else.
Adam Cole stated that it would've been a challenge for him to build himself back up after the name change.
“I understand where they’re coming from, to some extent, but I feel like a big part of what has made me work is, I’m not 6’3″, and I’m not, 285 pounds," said Adam Cole. "The ‘Adam Cole baybay’ and the ‘boom’ and all that stuff is such a big part of what I do and how I connect with the audience, aside from the wrestling and the promos. I feel like it would have been quite the challenge if that would have happened, as far as the name change goes, to kind of build myself back up.”
It's @AdamColePro, BAY BAY!
#AEWAllOut https://t.co/eHchHsYZ52
Adam Cole made his AEW debut at All Out and reunited with The Elite, which consists of AEW Champion Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks and Doc Gallows, and Karl Anderson.