WWE has been the landscape for producing some of the biggest and most captivating personalities in wrestling history. These larger-than-life personas come into existence through the hard work of the superstar portraying the gimmick, as well as the efforts of many backstage personnel who put their creative minds and efforts into presenting those characters to the fans.
One interesting trait of the character presentation is WWE assigning them ring names to separate their onscreen identities from their real-life identities. This has been the case with the majority of the stars for a long time, with the Stamford-based promotion having good reason for the same.
Why does WWE give ring names to its talent and not let them use their real identities?
Upon signing any new prospect, WWE begins to develop their on-screen personas. For many years, the company has been giving them new names for their character presentation. Various examples have been stars like Edge, Finn Balor, Ludwig Kaiser, Gunther, Tiffany Stratton, and others from the modern era.
WWE has been practicing this principle for a long time and has multiple reasons to build a new identity for the superstar instead of letting them use their real name. One of the biggest ones is the Ownership and Trademark. The promotion requires years of hard work and perseverance to build their character.
Moreover, giving them unique ring names helps them in merchandise sales, promotions, and other deals, which is a difficult task if the talent uses their real name. Another important reason is to have their gimmicks appeal to a worldwide audience.
A name like “Roman Reigns“, who is a cancer survivor and still takes chemotherapy, had a much bigger impact than Leati Joseph Anoa’i would have had. Such unique and distinct names are a major boost to their marketing strategy and reasoning with the WWE Universe.
The first video package for Mariah May since joining WWE NXT – announcing her new name as BLAKE MONROEpic.twitter.com/mxmA5k3xoq
— WrestleTalk (@WrestleTalk_TV) June 11, 2025
The last and perhaps one of the most significant reasons for WWE giving in-ring names to superstars is that they are used even after the talent leaves the company. Moreover, it helps protect their years of effort and value built for that individual, who cannot utilize it in other promotions after leaving the global juggernaut, and is a highly strategic and calculated practice adopted by them.
Mariah May is the latest example of WWE giving new identity to superstars
NXT’s newest signing, Mariah May, is the latest example of the company giving a new in-ring name. She used her real name during her entire stint in AEW and the independent circuit. However, WWE utilized its traditional practice and gave May a new name.
On the June 10th edition of WWE NXT, a vignette aired promoting her arrival in the Black and Grey brand. Following a glamour-filled video with May in full focus, her new name was revealed to be “Blake Monroe.” This was possibly to move away from her AEW tenure and build a new character that was WWE’s homegrown talent.
However, it is also important to note that WWE had previously given the privilege to a select list of superstars to use their real names in the company. It includes stars like Brock Lesnar and John Cena, the reigning WWE Champion, who once held the title for only five minutes. That was a long time ago, and now WWE has been strict with its policy, which has helped them build compelling characters while protecting their years of work at the same time.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
