Summary

Finn Balor said one of the more unusual parts of his move to WWE came when he and company officials worked through possible ring names.

Speaking on Stephanie McMahon's podcast, Balor said Paul Levesque was especially keen on the name "Liv" at one stage. Balor also remembered having "Rux" on his own list, but said Levesque quickly dismissed it because he believed fans would connect it to RuPaul.

Balor then explained that the name he ultimately brought to television came from mythology, combining Balor, the one-eyed demon king from Gaelic folklore, with Finn McCool.

Quotes

Quote from Finn Balor

"The name Finn Bálor is based in mythology, because Bálor is the one-eyed demon king from Gaelic folklore, and Finn McCool... It's very similar to David versus Goliath, where Finn McCool is the David in this story, and he slays the one-eyed demon. So I put the two together. Because I remember the list you were talking about, of names, it's super funny. I've never said this to anyone else. One of those names, and Paul (Levesque) was especially leaning towards this name, was Liv. I can't remember other names that were on there. I had actually Rux (listed). Paul said, 'No, no, no. People will think of RuPaul.' Yeah, I remember him specifically saying that."

Balor and McMahon then joked about the rejected idea:

**Stephanie McMahon:** "You and RuPaul look a lot alike."

**Finn Balor:** "RuPaul? I don't even know who he is. Is it a drag queen or something?"

Why the Finn Balor name fit WWE better

Finn Balor said the final name had a mythology-based origin, and that gave the character a stronger identity than either "Liv" or "Rux" would have offered. That matters because Balor's WWE presentation, especially during different stages of his run, has often leaned on a larger-than-life aura that a more distinctive name helped support.

It is also a small reminder of how much thought can go into WWE branding before a wrestler ever appears on television. In Balor's case, the name that survived gave him something far more memorable to build around over the last decade.

Sources

Finn Balor while speaking on Stephanie McMahon's What's Your Story? podcast