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Former 24/7 Champion EC3 has opened up about the tactic he used to avoid getting his name changed by WWE during his second run with the company.
After a lackluster first stint from 2009-2013, EC3 signed with WWE as a made-man in 2018 on the back of his spectacular run in IMPACT Wrestling. However, just like many performers in NXT whose in-ring names are changed, even the 40-year-old was considered to be granted a new on-screen identity.
Speaking on Sportskeeda Wrestling's The Wrestling Outlaws, EC3 revealed that when WWE asked him about a possible name change, he explained how his current name was already a recognizable one. Despite refusing, the former NXT star was made to note down potential new in-ring names.
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"So I trademarked EC3, and when I went to NXT, they asked if they wanted to change the name or can we change the name. I was like, 'I don't really want to; it's three characters, it's easy to chant, [and] it has recognition.' So they said, 'We'll just throw some names on the list,'" said EC3.
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He explained that to avoid this, he came up with some hilarious names like "Edgar Crushington," which compelled WWE to allow him to stick with his identity.
"I said okay. So to avoid changing the name, I put some of the worst possible names on this list. Like they all had E, and they all had C. So at the top of the list was something like Edgar Crushington. They were just like, 'Whatever, just go ahead,'" added EC3. (3:49 - 4:32)
Check out the full video below:
EC3 on receiving pushback from WWE for starting his own business
In a previous edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's The Wrestling Outlaws, EC3 revealed how a few within WWE advised him not to start his own business while working for the company. The former NXT star explained that he had started his own fitness and nutrition app to prepare for life after wrestling.
"During that time, I was creating 'join.freeec3.com,' a nutrition and training app, and doing outside things. The small office people were like, 'Oh, I don't know if I should do this.' I got to do something; I sit at home, brain dead concussion, I have no guarantees in life. I can't make something on my own," said EC3.
EC3 was one of the many victims of the promotion's budget cuts, as he was shown the door in 2020 after an uneventful two-year stint.
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