10 current WWE Superstars and what happened on their WWE debut (Part 2)

With so many WWE Superstars making their main-roster debuts since WrestleMania 34, it got us thinking about how some of the established members of the current roster performed on their first appearance inside a WWE ring.

Kurt Angle, for example, had a career so legendary that he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017, but do you remember his debut? And do you know who Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar had their first matches against in 2002?

In this article, the second in a three-part series, we select 10 current WWE Superstars who debuted between 1999 and 2005 and check out how they fared when they were thrown into the WWE spotlight for the first time.

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#10 Stephanie McMahon (1999)

Stephanie McMahon has improved a lot as an in-ring competitor!

Stephanie McMahon has competed in 25 televised matches during her time in WWE, most recently facing Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle alongside Triple H at WrestleMania 34, with her first appearance coming way back in 1999.

At a time when Jeff Jarrett was locking in the Figure Four on female members of the WWE roster, his attempt to make Stephanie submit on an episode of SmackDown backfired when Shane McMahon attacked him and rescued his sister.

Also read: 10 current WWE Superstars and what happened on their WWE debut (Part 1)

The next week on Raw, Stephanie teamed with fiancé Test against Jarrett and Debra in a mixed tag match, which Test largely dominated before making a tag at the end so that Steph could pin Jarrett for the 1-2-3.

#9 Kurt Angle (1999)

After 36 dark matches throughout 1999, Kurt Angle finally made his televised debut when he defeated Shawn Stasiak with an Olympic Slam at the Survivor Series pay-per-view in November of the same year.

The build-up to the match centred around a series of interviews with an obnoxious Angle, who was referred to as “the most celebrated real athlete in WWE history” before his debut.

During the match, the 1996 Olympian received boos from the crowd and he was told by the referee, who had communication through his earpiece, to tell the audience, “You do not boo an Olympic gold medallist”.

Angle did just that, instantly becoming a mega heel, and the rest is history!

#8 R-Truth (2000)

Remember the Katie Vick story? Well, the long-term plan was originally for WWE to introduce a new character – Scott Vick, Katie’s brother – who would go on to feud with Kane and Triple H, but his dark show matches didn’t go well and the company decided not to sign him.

One of those matches was against R-Truth, then known as K-Krush, who defeated Vick in a dark show match before a Jakked taping in April 2000.

Later that year, K-Krush became known as rapper K-Kwik, and he was victorious on his televised debut when he teamed with Road Dogg against Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn on a November episode of SmackDown.

#7 Brock Lesnar (2002)

Brock Lesnar was introduced to WWE fans for the first in March 2002 when he interrupted a Hardcore Championship match on Raw and dismantled the two participants, Maven and Al Snow, before memorably hitting three powerbombs on Spike Dudley.

His first televised WWE match, however, didn’t come until a month later at the Backlash pay-per-view, where he was ruled the winner against Jeff Hardy after the referee decided that Jeff had taken too much punishment and he could no longer compete.

Lesnar’s original opponent was supposed to be Matt Hardy but, in typical “Beast Incarnate” style, he injured Matt (in storyline) a week before the scheduled match and Jeff had to step in.

#6 Randy Orton (2002)

Randy Orton is a 13-time WWE world champion

In a storyline typical of WWE’s Attitude Era, Vince McMahon’s personal assistant Stacy Keibler was enamoured by a 22-year-old Randy Orton and granted the rookie his debut match against veteran Hardcore Holly on SmackDown in April 2002.

The man who would go on to be known as “The Legend Killer” was very impressive in his first match, picking up the win with a cradle pinfall over Holly, and he defeated the Tough Enough trainer again a week later via disqualification.

#5 John Cena (2002)

The 2018 John Cena is a lot different to the 2002 John Cena!

One of the most memorable debuts in WWE history took place on a June 2002 episode of SmackDown when Kurt Angle’s open challenge was answered by a 25-year-old John Cena.

When Angle asked the rookie to tell him one quality he possesses that makes him think he can hang with the best in the business, Cena simply stated “ruthless aggression” before slapping his cocky opponent in the face.

The future 16-time world champion was instantly a fan favourite in the eyes of the electric Chicago crowd, but Angle was able to avoid an upset and get the win with a unique pinfall technique.

Later in the show, Cena was congratulated on his performance by Rikishi, Billy Kidman, Farooq and, most famously, The Undertaker.

#4 Daniel Bryan (2003)

Daniel Bryan swapped the independent scene for WWE in 2010 to be part of NXT Season 1, which began with him losing to Chris Jericho.

However, it was actually seven years earlier that he made his first televised appearance in a WWE ring, losing to Jamie Noble on an episode of Velocity in January 2003.

Then going by the ring names Bryan Danielson (his real name) and the American Dragon, he also faced Rico, John Cena and Brian Kendrick & Paul London on television but he wasn’t offered a WWE contract.

#3 The Miz (2004)

Almost two years before he became a full-time member of the WWE roster, The Miz competed in a “Dixie Dog Fight” against fellow Tough Enough finalist Daniel Puder at the Armageddon pay-per-view in December 2004.

Rather than a typical WWE match, the two men competed in a boxing match with three one-minute rounds.

Sadly for Miz, known to viewers as Mike Mizanin at the time, the fight went the distance and the Atlanta fans decided that Puder was more worthy of the victory.

#2 Bobby Lashley (2005)

In September 2005, fitness guru Simon Dean issued an open challenge for anybody on the SmackDown roster to face him in a one-on-one match.

Ring announcer Tony Chimel then took to the microphone, listing various wrestling accomplishments before revealing that the debuting Bobby Lashley would be Dean’s opponent.

Lashley proceeded to put in a very impressive performance, showing off his power with a series of push-ups whilst Dean was on his back, before wrapping the victory up inside three minutes.

#1 Mickie James (2005)

Mickie James’ first appearance on WWE television came when she helped Trish Stratus fight off an attack from Victoria on an episode of Raw in October 2005.

A week later, Mickie made her in-ring debut in a six-woman tag match, teaming with Trish and Ashley Massaro in a losing effort against Victoria, Torrie Wilson and Candice Michelle.

The debutant spent most of the short match battling with Victoria and didn’t seem to mind that she lost, as her sole purpose was to impress Trish, which she did following the match by hitting Stratusfaction on Victoria.

Edited by Amit Mishra