10 Fascinating WWE Backstage Facts About The Rock
8. His Original Wrestling Name Was Flex Kavana!
A wrestler's name is a major part of their character. The right one can lead to plenty of success with creating signature chants and selling merchandise. The Rock, for example, is an amazing name. But, before he was The Rock, he was Rocky Miavia, and before even that, he was Flex Kavana.
One of these things is not like the other.
Johnson went into wrestling after he failed to find the success he wanted in the Canadian Football League. As a member of the Anoa'i family, wrestling was in his blood, but Johnson didn't want to make it thanks to his legacy, so when he joined the United States Wrestling Association, he had to come up with a new name.
He ended up settling on Flex Kavana to keep his position as a third-generation wrestler out of his presentation. It's certainly a name, but one can easily assume it would have struggled to catch on with audiences. Eventually, once he signed with WWF, he was re-branded with something reflecting his legacy.
Ultimately, he was given the name Rocky for his father, Rocky Johnson, and Maivia for his grandfather, Peter Maivia. That's how Rocky Maivia, the victim of the infamous "Die Rocky die" chants, was born.