Mike Santana Confirms Recent WWE Trademark Is His New Name

Mike Santana will debut a new WWE name tomorrow night on NXT.

The former TNA World Champion, who has been competing under the Santana name since 2017 across both TNA and AEW, will no longer utilize that name in WWE. Santana made his surprise debut at the close of last week's episode, confronting current NXT Champion Tony D'Angelo.

Despite working six matches on WWE NXT programming over the last year and a half as part of their ongoing partnership with TNA Wrestling, Mike Santana will be officially undergoing a name change for the brand.

Mike Santana will now go by the name Cruz Montana in WWE

On July 24, WWE filed a trademark with the USPTO for the name Cruz Montana. Once the news got out, there was immediate speculation that this could end up being Mike Santana's new WWE name.

Well, it's no longer speculation, as the former Mike Santana took to social media this afternoon to cut a promo ahead of tomorrow night's episode of NXT and revealed his new name as part of the video:

"Hey yo, check it. Last week I made my official debut on NXT and set the wrestling world on fire, all without saying a thing. But my actions let everyone know exactly what my sights were set on. But tomorrow night, live, I put words behind those actions. And for the first time, we get to hear what Cruz Montana has to say. I see y'all there. Let's get it."

Last week, I set the world on fire…
Tomorrow night, I throw gas on the flames.

LETS GET IT!

8PM | LIVE ON @WWENXT pic.twitter.com/kFHx06JAWB
— Mike SANTANA🇵🇷 (@Santana_Proud) July 27, 2026

How does WWE decide who gets their name changed?

With yet another high-profile name change, it has to be questioned how WWE decides who gets to keep their previous name and who doesn't.

For example, "All Ego" Ethan Page, who established his name in TNA and AEW, was allowed to come into WWE NXT and keep his name without a problem. However, other established names like Ricky Starks, Mariah May, and now Mike Santana have all suffered a WWE name change.

So what is the rhyme or reason behind WWE choosing to name-change one talent but not another? The Mike Santana situation is particularly confusing due to the amount of time he's spent on the NXT brand over the last year and a half due to the TNA partnership.

Your guess is as good as ours, but it would certainly be nice for WWE to explain.

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