1. Windham Lawrence Rotunda, better known by his ring name Bray Wyatt, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his tenures in WWE from 2009 until his death in 2023.
31 Facts About Bray Wyatt
1. 2.
Bray Wyatt's younger brother Taylor is a wrestler under the ring name Bo Dallas.
3.
Bray Wyatt wrestled under various ring names between 2008 and 2012 in FCW, and wrestled on WWE's main roster from 2010 to 2011 as a member of The Nexus under the ring name Husky Harris.
4.
Bray Wyatt subsequently became a one-time WWE Champion, two-time WWE Universal Champion, one-time SmackDown Tag Team Champion, and one-time Raw Tag Team Champion.
5.
Bray Wyatt was released from WWE in July 2021, but returned in October 2022 with a new character that claimed to be his "real-life" self, though he gradually reincorporated his previous personalities in addition to new ones.
6.
Bray Wyatt's younger brother, Taylor, is a wrestler who performs under the ring name Uncle Howdy in WWE.
7.
Bray Wyatt attended Hernando High School, where he won a state wrestling championship at 275 pounds in 2005, the year of his graduation.
8.
Bray Wyatt played football as a defensive tackle and guard.
9.
Bray Wyatt earned a football scholarship to Troy University, where he played college football for two years.
10.
Bray Wyatt left Troy 27 credit hours short of earning a bachelor's degree after deciding to become a professional wrestler.
11.
When WWE rebranded FCW into NXT, Bray Wyatt debuted on the July 11,2012, episode of the rebooted NXT taped at Full Sail University, where he defeated Aiden English.
12.
Bray Wyatt had his first match back from injury on the February 21,2013, episode of NXT, where he defeated Yoshi Tatsu.
13.
The Bray Wyatt Family continued their attacks on wrestlers such as R-Truth, Justin Gabriel, Drew McIntyre, Heath Slater and Jinder Mahal while sending cryptic messages to Kane asking him to "follow the buzzards".
14.
The feud culminated in an ambulance match on the January 5,2015, episode of Raw, which Bray Wyatt won to effectively end their feud.
15.
Bray Wyatt then faced Kane in a No Holds Barred match, which he lost when Orton interfered.
16.
Later that month, Bray Wyatt began to appear in pre-recorded segments as the host of a surreal children's program known as Firefly Fun House, sporting different hair and a shorter beard with a leaner physique.
17.
Bray Wyatt then appeared in more sinister clothing and a demonic mask resembling an evil clown, a persona he called "The Fiend" that was here "to protect us".
18.
The title was transferred to SmackDown, due to Bray Wyatt being a member of the brand.
19.
At the closure of the event, Bray Wyatt returned to WWE as a face, accompanied by live-action versions of his Firefly Fun House characters and a new mask, revealing himself as the person behind the "White Rabbit" teases.
20.
Bray Wyatt's return included a masked character, Uncle Howdy, portrayed by his real-life brother Taylor.
21.
At the Royal Rumble, Bray Wyatt defeated Knight in what ended up being Bray Wyatt's final televised match.
22.
Reports later indicating that his sudden disappearance was due to Bray Wyatt dealing with a real-life illness.
23.
Bray Wyatt's character from 2012 to 2018 was a villainous cult leader who believed himself to be the "nagging conscience of an immoral world".
24.
Bray Wyatt used a lantern to light the way in the dark arena during entrances; he would invariably be accompanied by fans in attendance lighting the torches on their cell phones, which were affectionally referred to as his "fireflies".
25.
Bray Wyatt started hosting the "Firefly Fun House" where he would perform as a friendly-mannered children's television show host, similar to Mr Rogers.
26.
Bray Wyatt adopted the mandible claw as a finishing move.
27.
Bray Wyatt's alternate persona The Fiend was a pre-order bonus for WWE 2K20.
28.
The new attire and appearance Bray Wyatt had planned to use for a new iteration of The Fiend was added to WWE 2K24 in October 2024.
29.
Bray Wyatt's death was announced on X by WWE's chief content officer Triple H, following a phone call he had received from Rotunda's father Mike Rotunda.
30.
Bray Wyatt had been hospitalized for a heart issue one week before his death, and was advised to wear a specialized vest containing a self-activating defibrillator; at the time of his death, he was not wearing the vest, which police found in his car.
31.
Bray Wyatt's iconic rocking chair was placed in front of the ramp while the crowd sang "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands", a song often affiliated with Bray Wyatt throughout his WWE career.