Versus: Reality-TV-Star-Turned-Wrestler

by Violet Buttle

"Mr. PEC-Tacular" Jesse Godderz (TNA) vs. Mike "The Miz" Mizanin (WWE) vs. David Otunga (WWE)

Jesse Godderz: Jesse first appeared on Big Brother during its tenth season. From there he would go on to be the first contestant to appear on five consecutive seasons of the show. Mr. Pec-tacular debuted on Impact Wrestling as Tara’s “Hollywood Boyfriend,” playing on his reality TV show past to create his arrogant and delusional character.  Though Jesse has only been on the TNA roster for a short period of time, he does get a lot of exposure. He is usually seen ringside during Tara’s matches, though he occasionally does wrestle.

The Miz: Mike Mizanin didn’t debut The Miz character in a wrestling ring; it was on MTV’s The Real World that The Miz first appeared on TV. After his run on the tenth season of the Real World, The Miz would appear on several other reality TV shows, such as Fear Factor and several seasons of The Real World/ Road Rules Challenge. In fact, The Miz’s first appearance on WWE programming was as a contestant on Tough Enough where he came in second place.  After joining the WWE roster, The Miz experienced a fair amount of adversity due to his reality TV past. Luckily for The Miz, he would go on to hold multiple championships in the WWE, including one run as the WWE Champion. 

David Otunga:Though it is rarely mentioned, David Otunga was a contestant on I Love New York 2. Otunga finished the competition for New York’s heart in third place. The loss is probably okay with the Harvard Law graduate, because he would later marry singer and actress Jennifer Hudson. While Otunga has been involved in some important storylines, he hasn’t been in the ring much as of late.

The Better Reality-TV-Star-Turned-Wrestler: The Miz

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@VioletButtle