Photo: Give Me Gimmicks / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Erick Rowan, born Joseph Ruud, has a detail in his story I keep coming back to: before WWE signed him in 2011, he trained and wrestled for Pro Wrestling Noah in Japan. That overseas apprenticeship feels like the foundation of his looming, deliberate ring presence. He carried major WWE programs for years, left, and returned in 2024, which tells me his durability runs deep. Behind the imposing red-bearded menace I read a craftsman, someone who learned the trade properly and stuck with it. I respect wrestlers built on substance rather than gimmick, and Rowan strikes me as exactly that.
Overview
Joseph Ruud (born November 28, 1981), better known by his ring name Erick Rowan, is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in WWE from 2011 to 2020 and again from 2024 to 2026. Having previously wrestled in Japan, where he trained and performed for Pro Wrestling Noah, Ruud signed a contract with WWE in 2011.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Erick Rowan
- Name (Japanese)
- ジョセフ・ルード
- Reading
- じょせふ・るーど
- Born
- November 28, 1981 (age 44)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Sagittarius / Rooster
- Origin
- Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 2 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- professional wrestler
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Professional wrestler — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.