As professional wrestlers play different gimmicks after stepping in the squared circle, they tend to use different names, which are known as ring names. While a myriad of wrestlers uses ring names in WWE, it certainly isn't always the case.
There have been many wrestlers who use their real names while portraying their on-screen characters. If a Superstar wrestles with a real name in the ring, it is unlikely to change afterward, especially when a character gets over. Needless to say, some popular names in the history of the company compete under their birth name and a few might surprise you.
10 Matt Riddle
Matt Riddle is an integral part of the current RAW roster. He has recently graduated from NXT to get on the main roster.
Matt Riddle is an abbreviation of his original name, Matthew Riddle. When he was in UFC before opting to be a professional wrestler, he fought with his actual name. However, WWE has shortened his name to just 'Riddle' in recent months.
9 Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle hung up boots in 2019, but his achievements in WWE were remarkable. He was a Grand Slam Champion, and a five-time World Champion to headline multiple pay-per-views, including WrestleMania.
Kurt Angle won the Olympic Gold medalist in 1996, which already made him a known face as a sportsman. It might've helped his stellar rookie year in WWE. Since he achieved his biggest feat under his real name, he didn't need to adopt a ring name.
8 Mickie James
Mickie James was a pioneer in the success of the women's division in the Ruthless Aggression Era when her rivalry with Trish Stratus made her a star. James' success as a performer helped her to win the Women's Championship a record six times in her career.
When James made her WWE debut in 2005, she did it under her real name as a big fan of Trish Stratus, and she never needed to change her original name. Before her WWE run, she was known as Alexis Laree.
7 Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin has been in WWE for years, making his official debut in 2002. He has won the United States Title, Intercontinental Title, and the Tag Team Titles multiple times. As a member of The Hurt Business, Shelton has also captured the RAW Tag Team Championship.
Shelton Benjamin has been using his birth name from the beginning of his WWE career after having success with it in college.
6 Keith Lee
While Keith Lee had ring names when he was wrestling in the independent circuit, he decided to use his actual name upon his arrival in WWE. Right after signing with NXT in 2018, the heavyweight Superstar embraced his real name, and it didn't change after receiving a ticket to the main roster, unlike some of his NXT peers.
Lee has won the NXT Championship as well as the NXT North American Championship in the black and yellow brand. While he is now a former WWE star after being released, Lee will no doubt make a big splash wherever he goes.
5 Bret Hart
Bret Hart, the cornerstone of The Hart Foundation as well as the Hart dynasty, wrestled under his real name, which was a primary reason for the popularity of the Hart family in the wrestling business. Debuting in 1984, Bret Hart used his real name, and hence, he didn't need to utilize any ring name when he went to WCW afterward.
Bret Hart is one of the most accomplished Superstars to grace the WWE ring. He is a five-time WWE Champion, with many classic matches to his name.
4 Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy had signed for WWE for the first time in 1994, but he wasn't on TV with a serious character until 1998. Initially, Jeff Hardy worked as a jobber, but when The Hardy Boyz started the journey in 1998, he began wrestling under his real name.
Jeff Hardy built a huge legacy in his phenomenal WWE career, becoming a Grand Slam Champion. Besides winning the Tag Team Titles multiple times as a tag team specialist, he won the World Title thrice.
3 Stacy Keibler
Stacy Keibler initiated her wrestling career in WCW, where she was known as Miss Hancock. However, when WWE brought WCW in 2001, she wasn't Miss Hancock anymore. Instead, she started using her real name, Stacy Keibler, in WWE.
Stacy was known for her look, not wrestling skills, so she never won the Women's Championship in WWE. She was part of several raunchy segments in her five-year WWE stint.
2 John Cena
John Cena signed to OVW in 2001 as Prototype, but he didn't continue the ring name. When he made his WWE debut as a young rookie in 2002, he simply took his real name, John Cena.
While he had different gimmicks in WWE, he always used the real name in the squared circle. Cena was certainly the biggest name of the company after WWE went PG. He won a record sixteen World Titles in his illustrious career.
1 Brock Lesnar
Right after signing with OVW, Brock Lesnar used his birth name, considering it was already a unique name to be used in the ring. Subsequently, he also used the same name after his blockbuster debut in 2002. O course, Lesnar also used his real name in places like UFC.
Lesnar is certainly of the greatest wrestlers of any generation. The dominant Superstar has won eight world titles thus far.