5 WWE Superstars' surprising career aspirations before becoming wrestlers
In a recent interview, current WWE NXT General Manager William Regal revealed that as a child, he wanted to become a clown or a comedian before settling on becoming a professional wrestler. The choice to become a wrestler turned out to be a great one for William Regal, as the star is a multiple-time champion in WWE and won the King of the Ring tournament in 2007.
William Regal isn't the only WWE Superstar who had different career ambitions before turning their hand to wrestling.
Before deciding to dedicate their life to in-ring competition, many WWE Superstars had very contrasting original plans, and some even began training in a different field before becoming a wrestler.
Here are some WWE Superstars who wanted surprising careers before becoming wrestlers.
#5 WWE NXT Star Tegan Nox originally wanted to be a footballer
WWE NXT star Tegan Nox grew up as a huge fan of wrestling but had first set her heart on becoming a footballer. As a youngster, Nox loved sports and played netball and rugby, but football (soccer) was her favorite, and she took part in the sport from a young age.
As a teenager, Tegan Nox was a keen footballer and played for local teams before having trials for both Cardiff and the Welsh national team. However, a knee injury at the age of 13 cost her a coveted place on the Welsh national football team, and Nox eventually gave up on her football dream at 16 years old.
Following this, Tegan Nox then began to consider a wrestling career and started training in Port Talbot, Wales.
In her early wrestling career, Tegan Nox formed friendships with fellow future NXT stars Pete Dunne and Mark Andrews, the latter of which she became a tag team champion with on the independent scene, and the team dubbed themselves Bayside High.
She later took part in the inaugural Mae Young Classic tournament in 2017 but suffered an injury early on. Thankfully, she recovered in time for the 2018 tournament before suffering another injured knee.
More recently, Tegan Nox has established herself as one of NXT's biggest talents in their women's division and challenged Io Shirai for the NXT Women's Championship. Currently, Nox is sidelined with a torn ACL and is expected to be out of action for some time.