10 Rejected Wrestler Names WWE ACTUALLY Pitched

2. Adam Hole (Mr Kennedy)

John Laurinaitis
WWE.com

John Laurinaitis signed the wrong one-legged wrestler, took Jim Ross' remarkable Talent Relations legacy and lost an entire generation of wrestlers with his own warped version of it, and once pitched Adam Hole as a wrestler's name because it would read like "A-Hole" and that might make a few people laugh once.

The creative team had agreed that Ken Anderson was an a*shole, see, and, in conjunction with Anderson himself all got together to try and label a performer that was fast becoming a Vince McMahon pet project.

Jim Ross revealed Laurinaitis' inane suggestion during an episode of his podcast centred around the man that eventually became Mr Kennedy. The name - inspired by McMahon's middle name - would have taken on greater significance had the company managed to get through the father and son storyline between them in the middle of a nightmarish 2007. Utlimately, it became something Kennedy had to leave behind when he departed WWE two years later.

Something about the original pitch must have stuck too - Mr Anderson embraced being an a*shole as a key part of his persona upon signing with TNA.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett