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- One of the most important things a wrestler has to do to succeed in this business is stand out. Eye-catching attire is one of the quickest ways to do just that. Face paint became especially popular among American wrestlers in the 80s. popularized by stars like the Ultimate Warrior. Masks, on the other hand, have been a tradition in wrestling for over a century. The modern-day luchador mask finds its origins in Mexico City and has been carried across the globe, inspiring countless wrestlers to don masks of their own.
Flawless in-ring skills are the primary requirements to become a successful professional wrestler, but the thing that adds more value to the wrestlers' legacy is the characters they portrayed throughout their careers.
There are different ways in which wrestlers can package themselves to present to the audience, and wearing masks and face paint is one of them. Over the years, we have seen multiple wrestlers in WWE and other promotions don unique facial gear and makeup that make an everlasting impression among the fans. With that said, let's take a look at what these WWE wrestlers look like without their iconic masks and face paints.
UPDATE: 2023/08/25 16:44 EST BY LIZZY FLANAGAN
One of the most important things a wrestler has to do to succeed in this business is stand out. Eye-catching attire is one of the quickest ways to do just that. Face paint became especially popular among American wrestlers in the 80s. popularized by stars like the Ultimate Warrior. Masks, on the other hand, have been a tradition in wrestling for over a century. The modern-day luchador mask finds its origins in Mexico City and has been carried across the globe, inspiring countless wrestlers to don masks of their own.
Fans grow so used to seeing their favorite wrestlers with their masks and face paint on, it can feel a bit strange to see them with their bare faces. Let's take a look at some!
15 Umaga
Umaga is one of the most imposing men to ever compete in WWE. He made his debut on an episode of Monday Night Raw in 2002 alongside his cousin Matt Anoa'i as the tag team 3-Minute Warning. Umaga was let go from WWE in 2003 after getting involved in a bar fight. He returned to the company in 2006, this time performing as a singles star. It was during this run that Umaga became a two-time WWE Intercontinental Champion.
14 Ultimate Warrior
Even though Ultimate Warrior’s makeup and masks were only small, it did such a huge job in making him stand out and feel like a larger-than-life superstar.
Without it, he did look a little more human. Often in matches, the makeup and face paint would rub away, leaving him looking less like the unbeatable babyface hero and more like a human being.
13 Sting
For a lot of his professional wrestling career, Sting wore some form of face paint or mask. Of course, there are times in which he didn’t don his iconic look, for instance in his heel TNA run, but for the most part he is most recognisable with the black and white across his face.
With Sting still wrestling and being in his 60s, his face paint helps to retain an ageless aura that he might not otherwise keep if he didn’t have it. Sting has carried his face paint everywhere he has gone - through WCW, TNA, WWE and now AEW.
12 Sin Cara
Since its debut in 2011, the Sin Cara character has been portrayed by two different superstars. The original wrestler to don the mask was Luis Urive, who performs in the independent scenes as Mistico. He made his debut on the April 4, 2011, episode of Raw in a segment where he saved Daniel Bryan from Sheamus.
He got a 30-day suspension for a wellness policy violation in July 2011, and WWE decided to introduce another wrestler, Jorge Arriaga, in the same character as a replacement. The two superstars eventually feuded as Sin Cara Azul and Sin Cara Negro over the character, with the former going over. However, situations forced Arriaga to portray the Sin Cara character once again after Urive's release. He continued to perform as Sin Cara until WWE released him on his request in December 2019.
11 El Torito
El Torito signed a developmental contract with WWE in April 2013 and made his debut as the mascot of the Los Matadores tag team. He donned a mask throughout his time in WWE and the fans never got to see him unmasked, but his picture would give the fans the chance to witness the man behind the character.
He performed for WWE between 2013 and 2016 and the promotion used him as a comedic attraction throughout his time with them. He got released from his contract in May 2016 and is now performing in the independent circuit as Mascarita Dorada.
10 Kamala
The late WWE legend Kamala is known for the portrayal of his character donning a unique face paint throughout his career. He started his career in 1978 and competed across various promotions before Andre the Giant persuaded him to sign with WWE in 1984.
The Ugandan Giant made an instant impact in WWE following his debut and even went on to challenge Hulk Hogan for the WWE Championship. He had an on-and-off relationship with WWE over the years and had various short runs with the promotions in the 80s and 90s, and made several sporadic appearances in the 2000s. He passed away in 2020 following a cardiac arrest, and he hasn't taken his place in the WWE Hall of Fame yet, owing to his involvement in a class-action lawsuit against WWE in 2016.
9 Demolition
Demolition was an iconic tag-team comprised originally of Smash, Ax before Crush joined the mix in 1993, who dominated the WWE tag team division in the late 80s and early 90s.
They made their debuts in 1987 and competed for WWE until 1993 and went on to become 3-time tag team champions and held the record for the longest reign with the titles with 478-days until The New Day broke their record in 2016. They are known for their iconic face paint, which added value to their characters throughout their careers, and this picture would give us a glimpse of what they look like without the makeup.
8 Luchasaurus (Judas Devlin In WWE)
Fans may not know, but Luchasaurus did once wrestle in WWE! Luchasaurus’ character in AEW has gone from a dinosaur with a degree to an emotionless monster heel, all the while wearing a mask to shield his face. This has helped him stand out in AEW, especially seen as he’s a big man in a mask compared to other luchadors on the roster who are much smaller.
Luchasaurus wrestled in NXT, and in that time he wrestled without a mask. His time as Judas Devlin in WWE’s developmental was short, but there was a brief time where fans could see him maskless. In truth, he has a great look and would no doubt still work without a mask.
7 Doink The Clown
Doink the Clown was a unique gimmick portrayed by various wrestlers over the years. But the original two wrestlers to portray the character on WWE television are Matt Borne and Ray Licameli.
The character debuted in 1992 by making various appearances in the crowd and at ringside. Matt Borne, portraying the character, made his in-ring debut in January 1993. Apart from the imposter Doink he had a feud with, Borne had to leave the character after getting fired from WWE, and Ray Licameli took over and continued to portray the gimmick until 1995.
6 Road Warriors
Known as The Road Warriors or The Legion of Doom, Hawk and Animal were one of the iconic tag teams in pro-wrestling history. Making their debuts in 1983, The Road Warriors performed across various promotions, including WCW over the years they signed with WWE in 1990.
Vince McMahon changed the team's name to The Legion of Doom owing to other wrestlers like The Ultimate Warrior, who already used the term warrior. However, they continued to call them individually as Road Warrior Hawk and Animal. They went on to become 2-time WWE Tag Team Champions throughout their time together and had three runs with the promotion until Hawk's death in 2003.
5 Slapjack
Retribution is one of the most infamous factions to ever come out of WWE. The group formed in 2020 as a bizarre parody of the leftist political group, Antifa, which was participating in protests across America at the time. Retribution took several underutilized WWE stars and repackaged them as masked performers with very strange names. The weirdest out of all of them is undoubtedly Slapjack, who was previously known as Shane Thorne in NXT. Now, he competes in NJPW as Shane Haste.
4 Rey Mysterio
Rey Mysterio's name has to be on the list as he is one of the greatest masked wrestlers in pro-wrestling history. Making his debut in 1989, Mysterio performed across promotions like AAA, ECW, and WCW before signing his first contract with WWE in 2002.
He has won numerous championships throughout his career and is also a former 3-time world champion and a Grand Slam Champion in WWE. He's shared the ring with the most iconic names in the industry, and he's now sharing the spotlight with his son Dominik Mysterio both as a tag team partner and as a rival.
3 Los Conquistadores
The Los Conquistadores were a jobber tag team who first made their appearances on WWE television in 1987. Originally portrayed by José Estrada Sr. and Jose Luis Rivera were previously known as The Shadows, with Randy Colley portraying the character with Rivera.
Over the years, various WWE superstars have sporadically portrayed the characters, including Edge and Christian, The Hardy Boyz, and Christopher Daniels and Aaron Aguilera in 2000. Rob Conway and Nick Dinsmore played the characters in 2003, followed by Rob Conway and Johnny Jeter. The last wrestlers to play the roles were Kurt Angle and a local wrestler named Billy Bain in 2018. The pictures, however, are of the original superstars to portray the characters, José Estrada Sr. and Jose Luis Rivera.
2 Axiom
Before he came over to America to compete in NXT in 2022, the man behind the Axiom character spent a decade wrestling across Europe and in NXT UK under the name A-Kid. He is the winner of the inaugural NXT UK Heritage Cup, the only title that still exists from NXT UK.
Axiom wows audiences week in and week out with his acrobatic skill and technical wizardry. His mask is a rarity as it completely blocks out his face, whereas most wrestlers who wear masks have eyeholes or mouth holes.
1 The Boogeyman
The Boogeyman had one of the coolest and most terrifying face paints in WWE history. He made his WWE debut in 2005 as a creepy worm-eating freak of nature who struck terror and disgusted the guts out of his targets.
His feuds against the likes of The Miz, Booker T, and JBL had some of the most entertaining segments, with The Boogeyman grossing out his opponents along with all the fans. He got released from his WWE contract in 2009 but made several sporadic appearances down the road, and his most recent appearance came on the January 4, 2021, episode of Raw.
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