Rikishi

WWE Hall of Famer, Rikishi always touched his nose upon making his entrance in WWE. The reason why Rikishi did this was to show his wife and kids watching at home that he was thinking of them, and that he loved them. This was a subtle gesture, yet when you realise what Rikishi was doing, it’s hard not to notice when re-watching any of his matches from his WWE catalogue.

Goldberg

Most wrestlers have pre-match rituals that don’t involve any significant physicality, yet when it comes to Goldberg, he notoriously decided to harm himself before commencing his match. Whenever Goldberg would be escorted out of the locker room as part of his notable entrance, he would headbutt the door, this was to get in the mood and character, yet it was always a questionable pre-match ritual, as Goldberg would often hurt himself.

Jon Moxley

Jon Moxley’s matches are often filled with intensity and violence, and to calm the former AEW and WWE World Champion down, Moxley often listens to Hank Williams, and tells some jokes. According to Moxley during an interview with NJ.COM, he doesn’t like to use too much energy before the matchup, and he prefers to save that for the ring, and he notes that the pre-match time-period is often the calmest time of his day.

Mick Foley

Like a lot of wrestlers who have ever competed at a high-level, Mick Foley liked to listen to relaxing music before competing in the squared circle. According to Foley, he loved the work of Tori Amos before wrestling, and his favourite song was called Winter, which was a piano ballad. Foley once told a hilarious story of Kane catching him listening to Amos, and awkwardly walking out of the locker room.

Sasha Banks

WWE’s digital content such as their ‘Day Of’ series always reveals secrets of WWE, and lets fans see behind the curtain. During a Day Of series for the 2020 Hell in a Cell PPV, Sasha Banks revealed that her pre-match ritual is wearing the t-shirt of her opponent. In this case, she was wrestling Bayley on the show, so Banks could be seen sporting Bayley merchandise.

Booker T

Red Bull is one of the most popular energy drinks across the world, and numerous wrestlers have used it over the years for a pre-match ritual kick. According to Booker T in his autobiography, he would often drink two red-bulls before a match to get laser focused:

“Many wrestlers have pre-show rituals they do in order to help them focus on the match ahead… Although it was just two Red Bulls, for me, they represented two important steps in preparing to head out to the ring.”

Tyson Kidd

Relaxing before a wrestling match was out of the question for Tyson Kidd, as he revealed in an interview with The Atlantic City Weekly that before he wrestled, he opted to perform 100-squats:

“A little bit before my match I make sure I stick to my old Japanese roots and bust out 100 hindu squats, especially since my knee injury, I make sure the blood is warmed up in my legs. I do a bunch of pushups and I play with this resistance band that I have….”

The Bella Twins

Former WWE stars, The Bella Twins were open and honest regarding their pre-match rituals. Speaking to WWE.COM, Brie Bella revealed that The Bella Twins’ pre-match ritual involves the two slapping each other’s backside:

“… Nikki knows how to calm me down if I’m overly nervous, and she can tell when I’m distracted. We’ve been together for 29 years: She knows what to say if I look distracted to get me back into the mode. She knows how to keep me on track. And one thing we do when we’re in Gorilla is we’ll kiss each other on the cheek and slap each other’s butts. Then we’ll say, ‘We’re going to do amazing out there.”

John Cena

As John Cena spent years as WWE’s top guy, the nerves often got to him before his matches, so Cena had a bizarre pre-match ritual to combat any last-minute anxiety. Appearing on the Kelly Clarkson show, the WWE legend revealed:

"My thing was always Tic Tacs. It's a nervous superstition that I always have before we go on a broadcast. It's pretty much 10,000 calories and straight sugar. I've had to wean myself off of them, I would up to like three boxes a day and it's right in the 20 minutes before broadcast."

Cody Rhodes

Due to Cody Rhodes’ elite position in WWE, it’s easy to assume that Rhodes would have a pre-match ritual that settles his nerves and gets him ready to perform at such a high level. However, when appearing on The Today Show in April 2024, Rhodes revealed that his ritual is that he bites down on a Reese’s Butter Cup:

"I bite down on a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. I was told that it makes the veins come out when you're out there, and you want to look your most jacked. I don't know if it actually does."