What is the real name of JBL?
John "Bradshaw" Layfield has had multiple character and name changes during his 15-year Hall of Fame career in WWE, but what is his real name?
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JBL as the WWE champion (via Pinterest)
JBL is one of the best heels to step foot in a WWE ring. His in-ring work and mic skills are among the best in the business. Whether it is his role as a manager, as a wrestler, or as a commentator, he excelled in every field and has performed to the best of his caliber.
Born on November 29, 1966, in Sweetwater, Texas, JBL started wrestling under the ring name John Hawk at Global Wrestling Federation in 1992. He wrestled under other names as well, such as ‘Vampiro Americano’ in CMLL and ‘Death Mask’ in the Japanese promotion WAR. Even in WWE, he had multiple name changes before settling on his current moniker.
One of his major stints in WWE was when he formed the Acolytes with Farooq. He went by the name Bradshaw during his run as a tag team star. The group later came to be known as Acolytes Protection Agency (APA) and won the WWE tag team championship three times. In 2004, Bradshaw finally adopted the gimmick he is known for today. He started coming out in a cowboy hat, a tie, and a suit and referred to himself as John “Bradshaw” Layfield. This was a mix of his WWE name and real name, John Charles Layfield.
He was soon competing for the WWE Championship against Eddie Guerrero on SmackDown. JBL eventually won the title for the first time in a controversial match at The Great American Bash. Eddie was initially awarded the win in their Texas Bull Rope match, but the then-SmackDown GM, Kurt Angle, reversed the decision after seeing the replay and gave the win to JBL, who had his sole WWE Championship reign.
Related: JBL asserts that WWE Hall of Famer and his wife are two of his favorite people in the world
Who suggested the name “Bradshaw” to JBL?
JBL is a former football player who played for the San Antonio Riders in the World League of American Football (WLAF). He began his pro wrestling career in 1992, training under Black Bart and Brad Rheingans. After wrestling in the GWF and Japan as John Hawk, JBL was signed to the WWE in 1995. In a WWE Network documentary series, WWE Untold, the Wrestling God revealed how he got the name Bradshaw in a meeting with Vince McMahon.
The WWE Hall of Famer said, “I finally made it to WWE in December of 1995. I went to meet with Vince [McMahon] for the first time up at Titan Towers and he said, ‘We’ve got this idea for ‘Justin Bradshaw’ and so I said, ‘How about we use Justin Hawk?’ because I’d been wrestling under the name John Hawk and that way I could keep the name and go back to Japan when eventually I would get fired at WWE, I figured after two or three years. [laughs] So, it was self-preservation and Vince just said, ‘OK, we’re going to name you ‘Justin ‘Hawk’ Bradshaw’ and that’s how we got the name. I have no idea where that name came from. I don’t mind it, people call me ‘Bradshaw’ to this day.”
The Wrestling God has won the United States and Intercontinental championships as well, making him a Grand Slam champion. After losing to Rey Mysterio in 21 seconds at WrestleMania 25, JBL announced his retirement from pro wrestling. During his later years, he became a prolific commentator, where he still performed the role of a heel to perfection.
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Harsh Pandey
(222 Articles Published)