5 Worst WWE Wrestler Names
A wrestler's name is a hugely important part of a superstar package. When people hear "The Rock", they immediately think of the jabroni-beating, pie-eating, eyebrow-raising "People's Champion", The Rock, a man who transcends the sport and is the epitome of cool.
Likewise, when people hear names such as The Undertaker, Hulk Hogan and others, they think fearsome wrestling competitors.
However, for every credible wrestler name, there are plenty more duds, which do nothing for the athlete portraying the character.
Think Damian Demento. Think Max Moon. Ridiculous names only succeed in making the character look silly and thus, prevent the WWE Universe from developing a money making engagement with them.
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin has one of the most memorable and famous character names in the history of the sport. However, had things worked out differently, it could have been a very different story. Austin had watched a television documentary on American serial killer, Richard Kuklinski who was famed for freezing his victims to mask their time of death. This modus operandi led to the media nicknaming him, the "Iceman."
This ruthlessly cold personality was a character trait Austin wanted to incorporate into his on-screen character, which at the time was the nondescript, Ringmaster. However, when he first pitched the character idea to the WWE creative team, he was met by ludicrous suggestions for ring names such as: "Otto van Ruthless", "Fang McFrost" and "Chilli McFreeze." Austin and his pal, Brian Pillman would roar with laughter when he received a series of faxes listing the suggested monikers.
When Austin's then-wife, Jeannie Clark, who was English and had begun converted Austin to drinking cups of tea, suggested he better start drinking his tea before it goes "stone cold"; only then was the most successful wrestler in history born.
It's debatable whether "Chilli McFreeze" Steve Austin would have become a six-time WWE Champion and the most famous wrestler of all time; which only highlights the importance of a ring name to a talent.
In this slideshow, we look at five WWE wrestlers who were saddled with unfortunate character names which devastated their careers.