Why Apollo’s Name Was Really Changed, Planned Mix Match Challenge Final

WWE likes to switch up their Superstars’ names in an attempt to keep them fresh and there is a variety of other reasons as well. But it turns out WWE’s most recent name change wasn’t planned and most certainly wasn’t for a happy reason.

Apollo Crews recently dropped his last name and it was right after he came up with a catchphrase of “Crews can’t lose” which is highly unfortunate. But there is a much heavier subject matter at the root of this story.

In the wake of the tragedy in Parkland Florida where Nikolas Cruz opened fire on his former classmates, WWE decided to make a change for Apollo. Reports were that WWE changed Apollo’s name by dropping the Crews because it was too similar to the Florida shooter’s surname.

Although WWE initially denied these claims, Dave Meltzer confirmed in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE did indeed switch up Apollo’s last name due to the horrible events on Valentine’s Day in Parkland Florida. It was reported that WWE never denied this fact but only said they never released this information. But internal emails from WWE have reportedly confirmed the reason for this name change and in the end, it was probably for the best that they made this decision.

Braun Strowman’s match against The Miz at WrestleMania is apparently on the cutting room floor. But there were plans of making this rivalry the spotlight of WWE’s latest social media endeavor.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter also reports that the initial plan for the finals of the MMC consisted of Braun Strowman and Alexa Bliss vs The Miz and Asuka. But this might be changed due to the fact that The Monster Among Men’s IC Title shot has reportedly been nixed.

Although this WrestleMania shake-up means Strowman won’t be in line for an IC Title shot, it certainly gives The Miz a better chance of retaining his title through Mania to go on and break the all-time IC Title run record.