Wrestlers Who Surpassed Their Parents In The Ring

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Professional wrestling was built on the success of a select few families.

In Mexico, the Guerrero name carries so much weight that anyone affiliated with them is automatically seen as someone to keep an eye on, even if wrestling isn’t their main passion. In Canada, you’d be hard pressed to find a wrestler who hasn’t been influenced by a member of the Hart family, and it would be just as difficult to find a wrestler who hasn’t at least attempt to try their hand at training in the legendary Hart family dungeon.Â

When it comes to the United States, Cody Rhodes literally has the phrase “Wrestling has more than one royal family” in his entrance song due to how important the Rhodes family name is, and the fact that the McMahon family is seen as royalty due to how different the industry would be without them. Throw in the Anoa’i family, which has dominated the wrestling industry — especially over the last few years — and you have a business filled with families that have helped shape the world of wrestling as we know it.

Coming from a famous wrestling family has its perks, but it can also lead to the second, third, and even fourth generation stars having so much pressure to succeed and surpass their parents that it may prove to be too much. However, the same can’t be said for these individuals, the children of famous wrestlers who have not only flourished on their own, but have arguably gone on to surpass their parents in the eyes of the fans.

Jey Uso

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The Anoa’i family has been the focal point of WWE since the COVID-19 pandemic started to settle down, as the company wouldn’t have had the success it has experienced without the Bloodline. Every member of the faction has become household names, but for Jey Uso, he has reached a level of stardom not many people had originally expected.

A tag team specialist for many years along with his twin brother Jimmy, the Usos are the sons of WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi, who had many different gimmick changes in his career before finally getting a main event run during the Attitude Era. That period of time is widely regarded as one of the best and most popular times in all of wrestling, and Rikishi was right there with the likes of Steve Austin, the Rock, and Triple H in the main event scene. However, he would miss the bulk of 2001 due to injury and would never reach the main event scene again, finishing his career without ever holding the WWE Championship.

Jey, on the other hand has become one of the biggest stars that WWE has seen in years. In 2025 alone he has won the Royal Rumble, held the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, and made the word “Yeet” part of people’s everyday vocabulary for the first time since Vine was the most popular social media platform. Of course, he already had tag team success with his brother, with the Usos holding the WWE Tag Team Championships longer than anyone, and his younger brother Solo Sikoa has become a main event star in his own right. But out of all of Rikishi’s sons, it’s Jey Uso who has shone the brightest.

Roman Reigns

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The Bloodline might have given the world “Main Event Jey Uso,” but it also gave the world the absolute best version of Roman Reigns, who had already achieved more than his dad ever had before he became the “Tribal Chief.”

Joe Anoa’i is the son of the legendary Sika Anoa’i, one half of the Wild Samoans — one of the most chaotic tag teams of their time due to how unpredictable they were — alongside his brother, Afa. The Wild Samoans had a Hall of Fame career as a tag team, but the career that Roman Reigns has had far exceeds any expectations Sika might have had for his son.

Right from the start, it was clear that WWE saw something special in Roman. He debuted on the WWE main roster as a member of the Shield, one of the most successful factions in modern wrestling, before becoming a staple of the main event scene, much to the disdain of the WWE audience who thought Roman’s push was a little too manufactured for their liking. He was already a four-time WWE world champion, a WWE Grand Slam Champion, and had main evented four consecutive WrestleManias by the time he had to take a step back from the ring to battle leukemia, but once he made his return, Reigns reached another level of success.

Returning to WWE at SummerSlam 2020 as the “Tribal Chief,” Reigns would go on to have a four-year run as WWE’s “Head of the Table” and not only reached the level of success WWE always knew he could reach, but exceeding it by some distance. Six of the last ten WrestleMania main events have involved Roman Reigns, and even though he is starting to wind down his time as an in-ring performer, Reigns has achieved things his dad could have only dreamed about in his prime years.

The Rock

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It’s a hat-trick for the Anoa’i family, and there is no one in the Samoan wrestling dynasty more famous than Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

When he debuted at the 1996 Survivor Series pay-per-view, Rocky Maivia had a lot of hype surrounding him, as many people wondered if the third generation star could go on to achieve what his father, Rocky Johnson, and his grandfather, “High Chief” Peter Maivia, achieved at their peaks. Rocky Johnson was one of the many black wrestlers who paved the way for future generations of black wrestlers to achieve success in wrestling, winning multiple championships across a number of the NWA’s biggest territories during the 1970s and 1980s. Peter Maivia achieved more success internationally, dominating the NWA territories in places like Hawaii, New Zealand, and Australia before going to on the becoming one the biggest international stars in the old WWWF.

Take both of their legacies, multiply it by any number you can think of, and you probably aren’t even close to what the Rock has done with his career. In WWE alone, he is a 10-time world champion, a five-time WWE Tag Team Champion with three different partners, and one of the best WWE Intercontinental Champions of the 1990s. He was one of the two biggest stars of WWE’s Attitude Era alongside Steve Austin, and being that popular and successful at that time made him a celebrity before he even entered the world of acting.

Since going full-time in Hollywood, the Rock has been one of the most famous people in the world, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and if the reviews for “The Smashing Machine” keep being positive into the new year, Dwayne Johnson could have an Oscar statue sitting next to his 10 world championships.

Randy Orton

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Breaking through in the OVW class of 2002 alongside the likes of Brock Lesnar, John Cena, and Batista, Randy Orton arguably had the most pressure of those names listed due to the fact that he is a third generation performer.

His grandfather, Bob Orton Sr., was one of the biggest names during the 1960s, wrestling the likes of Bruno Sammartino in Madison Square Garden and winning dozens of championships around the NWA territories of the day, as well as the AWA. His father, “Cowboy” Bob Orton Jr., found even more success as he was involved in the first-ever WrestleMania main event (albeit in a non-wrestling capacity), made the arm cast famous, and also won a whole host of championships through his time working in WWE, WCW, AWA, and the NWA. Having all of that history linked to your family name gives you very big shoes to fill, but once Randy Orton found his footing on the WWE main roster, he surpassed both his father and grandfather in no time.Â

Throughout his 23-year career, Randy Orton has established himself as one of the greatest WWE superstars of all time. Originally included in Triple H’s Evolution stable, a group used to symbolize the past, present, and future of the business, Orton went on to become the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in WWE history at just 24-years old. He would win the WWE world championship a total of 14 times, and is still regularly featured in WWE’s main event scene to this day, with his RKO finishing move rivaling the Stone Cold Stunner as the most famous finishing move of all time. No one knows when Orton is going to hang up his boots, but when he does, he will take his rightful place atop the Orton family tree as the greatest wrestler his family has ever produced.

Bret and Owen Hart

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At one point in time, Stu Hart, the patriarch of the Hart wrestling family, was made a member of the Order of Canada, the highest civilian honor that anyone can get in Canada, and the second highest when it comes to merit. He’s one of the most influential people in wrestling history, so how can not one, but two of his children surpass his accomplishments in wrestling?Â

In the case of Bret “The Hitman” Hart, he can make a legitimate claim to being the single greatest professional wrestler of all time. Arriving in WWE at a time when star power was everything, and size really did matter, Hart forged his own path within the company and was seen by many as one of the greatest technical wrestlers of his generation. As time went on, Bret’s star power rose, as did his popularity, and he would go on to have a legendary career, with seven world championship reigns, three separate inductions into the WWE Hall of Fame, and being part of the match many consider to be the best in WrestleMania history, the submission match against Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13.

As for Owen Hart, he never did win the WWE Championship or any world championship for that matter, but that didn’t stop him from being one of the most influential wrestlers of all time. He was the first non-Japanese wrestler to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship in New Japan Pro Wrestling, his feud with Bret over the WWE Championship from 1993 to 1994 is as critically acclaimed now as it was when it originally took place, and no wrestler ever made the Slammys feel as important as Owen. Had his life not been cut tragically short at Over The Edge 1999, there is every chance that Owen not only surpassed his dad even further, but would have had a solid shot at surpassing his older brother as well.

Terry and Dory Funk Jr.

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Given how long the Funk brothers had been in wrestling, it’s easy to forget that they are the sons of one of the greatest wrestlers the state of Texas has ever produced.

After serving in the navy during World War II, Dory Funk Sr. decided to take up a career in professional wrestling, a decision that would ultimately change the course of many people’s lives as he would have a successful career in the United States, as well as being part of All Japan Pro Wrestling during the company’s infancy in 1972. However, it was his work as a promoter that really changed the game for the Funk family as Western States Sports, an NWA territory, was Dory’s home promotion and would eventually buy into it in the 1950s. This is where Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk first got the chance to strut their stuff on a major stage, and for as successful as Dory Sr. was, his sons would become icons in their own right.

Terry is often cited as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, while also having one of the greatest minds for the business. Unlike other veterans, Terry was more than happy to help the younger generations out, as he knew there wouldn’t be a wrestling business without the next generation, leading to his knowledge being passed down through different companies and performers. CM Punk, Eddie Kingston, and virtually everyone who wrestled for ECW was influenced by Terry Funk.

Amazingly, Dory Funk Jr. was still wrestling as recently as 2024, working a one-off match in Japan for Atsushi Onita’s FMW-E promotion, with Onita being a close friend of the Funk family. Dory Jr. had a legendary run during his prime, having the second longest individual run with the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship at over 1,500 days (a title Terry would also hold), and that title win happened in front of his father who knew right there that both of his boys would surpass his own career in every way possible.

Eddie Guerrero

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The Guerrero family name is sacred in Mexico as the four sons of Gory Guerrero all went on to become professional wrestlers. Of the four brothers, it was Eddie who had the most success, surpassing his fathers accomplishments in the process.

The fact that the Guerrero name is as beloved in Mexico as it is boils down to Gory actually being from Arizona, but he would move to Mexico as a child and be considered as one of EMLL’s (the former name of CMLL) best American imports when he became a wrestler. Gory won Mexican National Championships at three different weight classes while working in EMLL, as well as finding success in the state of Texas whenever he traveled north of the border.

Gory’s first three sons, Chavo, Mando, and Hector, all found success in their own right, but Eddie came along and immediately possessed everything it took to be world champion. Stints in New Japan Pro Wrestling, CMLL, and AAA gave him a unique hybrid style that was unlike anything people had seen at the time. Guerrero’s growth in the business was aided by the internet and footage from Japan and Mexico becoming more accessible, and sooner rather than later, he was working for ECW alongside the likes of Dean Malenko and Chris Benoit, with all three of them getting jobs in WCW thanks to how good they were.

His WCW run would eventually fizzle out as he made the jump to WWE in 2000, and after fighting his own personal demons away from the ring, Eddie returned in 2002 and became one of the most popular wrestlers of all time, winning the WWE Championship along the way.

Randy Savage

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Another man you might not have known was a second generation star, “Macho Man” Randy Savage is one of the most famous professional wrestlers in history, and you can guarantee that if you mention his name around any of your friends, at least one of them will try and do an impression of him.

Randy and his brother, “The Genius” Lanny Poffo, are the sons of Angelo Poffo, a man who was well respected all over the United States during the mid-20th century. He worked for a number of different NWA territories after his debut in 1948, winning tag team gold with Bronco Lubich and Chris Markoff, and singles gold in states like Texas and Indiana. Angelo even started his own promotion in 1978, International Championship Wrestling based out of Kentucky, and it was here where his two sons started to become well known.

While Lanny had a successful career, Randy stole the show everywhere he went, embracing the larger than life element of professional wrestling and eventually becoming the “Macho Man” we all know and love. After holding titles in the NWA territories, Savage would join WWE in 1985 as the hottest free agent in the business at the time, and worked his way up to becoming the most popular man in the company not named Hulk Hogan. Savage and Hogan would famously join forces to form the Mega Powers, but when that team exploded, it produced one of the greatest feuds in WWE history.

Savage would leave WWE in 1994 after Vince McMahon didn’t see him as someone who could work as well as he used to, but WCW was more than happy to offer Savage a deal, and with two more world championship wins, and years of memorable moments, Savage cemented his place as an all-time great by the end of the 1990s

Dominik Mysterio

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Easily the most contentious pick on the entire list, but out of the current crop of next generation stars in wrestling, it’s a very tough category to choose from. Obviously, Cody Rhodes has achieved so much, but you can argue that he’s still not at the level of where Dusty Rhodes was. Bron Breakker is a future main event star as part of the Vision, but he still has a way to go before topping what Rick Steiner did in his prime, and even Shota Umino in NJPW has main evented the Tokyo Dome while his dad has been refereeing his match. However, Dominik Mysterio is one man who might not have done it yet, but is one course to surpassing what his father accomplished.

Rey Mysterio is a WWE Hall of Famer and one of the most famous luchadors of all time. He was the most exciting wrestler in the world when he broke on to the scene in the 1990s, and would go on to achieve the unthinkable by becoming a two-time WWE world champion.Â

What lands Dominik Mysterio on this list is just how quickly he’s gone from being “Rey Mysterio’s son” to one of the most in-demand wrestlers on the planet. Currently a double champion as he holds both the WWE Intercontinental Championship and the AAA Mega Championship, the latter of which is a title that wasn’t around when Rey was in AAA but he never got close to winning AAA’s top prize despite how popular he was. Dominik has mastered the art of being a heel at such a young age that he is on course to not only main eventing WrestleMania, but probably multiple WrestleMania’s with the WWE Championship on the line. His dad might be an icon to many, but Dominik Mysterio is creating his own legacy as we speak.

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