How AJ Francis Ended Up with “Top Dolla” Name by Accident

After leaving WWE in September 2023, AJ Francis found success in other wrestling companies like TNA Wrestling, MLW, and independent promotions. He was a highlight in WWE as Top Dolla and now Francis has revealed how he got that name by accident.

While speaking on the Going Ringside podcast, Francis shared how he got the name “Top Dolla” by mistake. He originally wanted to use his real name, AJ Francis, since he had already used it on Most Wanted Treasures. When he sent WWE a list of possible ring names, “Dolla” was his first choice.

The list was split into sections, and the last section was labeled “top five.” WWE misunderstood and thought he wanted to be called “Top Dolla.” Francis decided to go with it because he thought the name was fun and different. Now that he is wrestling under his real name again, he feels it suits him better.

“I actually got the name Top Dolla by mistake. I wanted to just be AJ Francis because I did the Most Wanted Treasures show as AJ Francis and now I’m back as AJ Francis, clearly AJ Francis was a better idea. So, I put in this list of names and the number one name I had on the list was Dolla. It was just Dolla by itself. Then I had these 20 names but I broke them into five groups of five, so it said bottom five, next five, next five, and then it said the top five. When you look at it, it said top five and then the right name underneath of it was Dolla. So they thought that I wanted my name to be Top Dolla. I was like, yeah, that sounds great, sounds like a cool name, you know what I’m saying? It’s a unique thing. It’s funny, it’s a happy accident.”

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In the meantime, AJ Francis already made it clear that he is more than open to returning to WWE as part of their ongoing partnership with TNA Wrestling. Regardless, Francis is clearly having a great time in TNA Wrestling but we’ll have to see if he will return to WWE as Top Dolla, even as a one-off appearance.

Do you think WWE’s mistake actually worked in his favor, or was AJ Francis always the better choice? Would you like to see Francis return to WWE through the TNA partnership? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!