5 WWE name changes fans immediately disliked
Sometimes WWE finds it best to put their wrestlers through a little rebranding. It's important to give their performers something to bite into, especially if what they've been doing lately hasn't worked. We saw the success of this tactic with Stone Cold Steve Austin when he abandoned "The Ringmaster" gimmick. The same goes for Rocky Maivia when he simply went as "The Rock."
However, sometimes the rebranding ends in complete failure. There's an old saying that goes, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," but that doesn't stop WWE from wrapping everything they own in duct tape.
Today we'll be looking at five WWE name changes that fans immediately disliked. Some of these ended up working better in the long run, as rare as that may be. Let's go ahead and get the most obvious choice out of the way.
#5 Piper Niven becomes Doudrop on WWE RAW
Yeah, you knew this was going to be on here. Piper Niven came to NXT UK back in 2019 with major fan support. On the independent scene as Viper Niven, Piper was quite the dominant force. Both she and longtime frenemy and NXT UK Women's Champion Kay Lee Ray were known for their brutality inside the ring.
Both women brought their fierceness with them to NXT UK to resounding success. As rumors swirled of Piper coming to the main roster to work as Eva Marie's back up, fans were cautiously optimistic. That is until they heard the name "Doudrop."
Though WWE touts the importance of WWE Network and Peacock, they tend not to worry too much about any credibility someone builds up on there. Stars from NXT and NXT UK have made transitions to other brands only for the main roster to act as if they've never been a part of the company before, and that's what we're seeing with Piper now.
To be fair, WWE seems to have played the fans on this one. While reports revealed the idea for the name last week, the company decided to play on that outrage and give Eva Marie a lot of heat. When Piper Niven was asked to give her name on RAW, she was cut off by Marie, who thought for a moment before calling her Doudrop.
Niven, er...Doudrop, was not happy about this at all and even left All Red Everything to be pinned in a tag team match that night. What this means for the duo remains to be seen.
Hopefully, Doudrop is only around for a cup of coffee and the powerhouse known as Piper Niven can reveal her name to a company that should already know it by now. Fans will realize, quite soon, just how great she is, though. Whether she's Doudrop or Piper Niven, she's going to be a star.