Adam Cole Says WWE Wanted To Change His Name On Main Roster

Adam Cole let his WWE contract run out without inking a new deal. He did meet with Vince McMahon prior to a SmackDown taping and they discussed his options on the main roster. As Ringside News exclusively reported, WWE wanted Cole to be heel manager. It was later revealed that WWE wanted Cole to manage Keith Lee. They also wanted to change Mr. Bay-Bay’s name.

While speaking to Talk Is Jericho, Adam Cole opened up about WWE wanting to change his name and gimmick on the main roster. He said that it scared him a little because he didn’t want to lose a name he spent nearly 15 years building. In the end, that 30-minute discussion with Vince McMahon didn’t convince him to sign on the dotted line.

“Apparently, there were a lot of ideas, but they were very vague on what exactly they wanted to do. When I first had the conversation, they had mentioned something about doing a name change or changing my look. That scared me a little bit because I spent nearly 14 years as Adam Cole. Our latest conversation, they were definitely more open to being me and being myself. They could tell I was not too thrilled (about a name change).”

Adam Cole is in AEW now and he got to keep his name. It’s hard to imagine what WWE would have named Cole, but the fact that Michael Cole is an announcer on the blue brand might have caused some confusion within members of the fan base who weren’t aware of Adam Cole’s work already.

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Thanks to Fightful for the quote