WWE 2K23 CAWs keep on landing, enabling you to keep your roster up to date and match reality – or add favourites from old and new rivals such as WCW or AEW. 'CAW’ stands for create-a-wrestler in WWE 2K23. It offers 100 slots for you to add grapplers, and doing so is easy: head to Online > Community Creations > Downloads. Below we profile 19 essential additions in your WWE 2K23 CAWs guide.
1 Ava
You may not have heard of this budding NXT talent yet – but you’re going to in the coming years. Why? She’s Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s daughter! Ava was surprisingly paired up with Joe Gacy on her company debut, and he’s heading to the series in July as WWE 2K23 DLC. Be sure to grab this creation by rowdydivatwo before then.
2 Bronson Reed
The big lad known as Jonah outside of WWE was surprisingly let go following an encouraging NXT run, only to debut on Raw at the back end of last year. Alas, he was too late to make the WWE 2K23 roster. This effort from LoganSaib features Reed’s current attire and his gear from NXT Takeover XXX. The same creator has also produced classic versions of Mankind, Dude Love and NWO-era Randy Savage.
3 Chelsea Green
Green returned to WWE this year playing the character of an internet ‘Karen’ - and was tossed from the women’s Royal Rumble within five seconds. She’s nailed down the role with self-effacing humor, and is an essential add for your Smackdown roster. BlenkKrieger is the mastermind behind this WWE 2K23 CAW, in a collaboration with thatboiblunty.
4 Emma
Another piece of outstanding work from BlenkKrieger here. Australian bombshell Emma returned to WWE in 2022 following a five-year absence, and while her use on TV has been sparing, she’s an incredibly solid hand. In real life she’s dating ponytailed powerhouse Madcap Moss, a long overdue addition to the on-disc roster this year.
5 Finn Balor (Demon)
The Irishman’s demonic alter-ego has long been a fixture of the WWE 2K series – but it was bafflingly removed this year after Balor’s commitment to the Judgment Day faction. This caused fans and developers alike a headache when he brought the gimmick back for a WrestleMania clash with Edge. WhatsTheStatus is the dude to credit here. The model comes with bespoke Demon Finn commentary and crown signs.
6 The Giant
Paul Wight hasn’t appeared in a series entry since WWE 2K20, and won’t be back anytime soon given his current place on the AEW roster. Amend that using this collab between WhatsTheStatus and KelsCreation. It offers hidden voice taunts and crowd chants for the 7 ft 2 colossus. You need to search for The Giant, but can easily change to his WWE name of the Big Show should you wish.
7 Isla Dawn
This fiery Glaswegian debuted in WWE as Stacy Coates, but has since established herself under a much more memorable name – first on both NXT UK and NXT, then most recently as Alba Fyre's tag partner. This creation is by DivaDadde, with a moveset made by lexveraux.
8 Jeff Hardy
The most downloaded WWE 2K23 CAW as of late April belongs to the ‘charismatic enigma’, AKA Jeff Hardy. It was made by VirtualAK, and has been imported more than 114,000 times since the game’s March 17 release date. It offers his full moveset from WWE 2K22, and two attires: one with paint, and one without.
9 Lyra Valkyria
Ireland’s latest grap export is looking to follow in the footsteps of names such as Becky Lynch and Finn Balor. She’s had an encouraging start on NXT, falling just short of title glory in a decent tilt with Tiffany Stratton. This creation lives up to its creator’s monicker – Fantastic by name, fantastic by nature.
10 Mandy Rose
WhatsTheStatus is again your boy here, having resuscitated a hidden Mandy Rose model. The long-time NXT Women’s Champion was removed from WWE 2K23 at the last minute, following her surprise pre-Christmas release from the company. Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne are both on this year’s roster, in case you wish to reunite the once-dominant trio of Toxic Attraction.
11 Matt Hardy
This veteran is getting plenty of search traffic over the summer, after appearing as a pre-order bonus for WWE's new rival game. Hit our AEW Fight Forever Broken Matt Hardy guide for all the details, or download this WorldsFinest and Azorthious collab to deploy him in 2K23.
12 MJF
Maxwell Jacob Freidman is a key element of AEW Fight Forever, having captured that company’s world title in November 2022. However, he’s rumored to be on WWE’s radar in the longer term. This Iconic creation enables you to see how he’d fare against Roman Reigns and Randy Orton. The same creator has also made great versions of Samoa Joe, Billy Gunn, Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler.
13 Odyssey Jones
This fresh face made the leap from NXT to Raw in the most recent WWE Draft, and so immediately becomes a name you need to add. His man-mountain sized doppelgänger is the work of creator HeadBussr, who also has three different versions of NXT newcomer Dragon Lee to chose from. Pick up Jones and then grab one of those too.
14 Ric Flair
This classic take on Charlotte’s legendary daddy is a collaboration between three creators: WhatsTheStatus, KelsCreation and SkyMovesets. It’s based on his 1988 WCW run, and features authentic entrance chants, crowd chants and voice taunts for the Nature Boy. Woo!
15 Roderick Strong
Strong may have been the most baffling WWE 2K23 omission of all – he was the leader of NXT faction Diamond Mine, and has been a series regular since WWE 2K18. No matter: this fine Ikeakarl effort enables you to reinstall the veteran. Turns out being left off the roster was prescient: Strong showed up in AEW in late April to side with former Undisputed Era buddy Adam Cole.
16 Sanga
Two existing roster members, Jinder Mahal and Veer, were joined by Veer’s former partner Sanga in spring 2023 to reform NXT stable Indus Sher. Their promise as a trio was rewarded with a call-up to Raw, where Mahal is flourishing in a manager role. Now you can bring them together in-game with this excellent Yarliixx CAW.
17 Thea Hail
One of the best models we’ve seen in this or any other year belongs to spritely NXT starlet Hail. It has two outfits, and a render to display on menu screens too. Illitegaming made this one, in collaboration with XayPlays2K and Lexveraux. Looking to bring Naomi back to WWE after her departure in 2023? The same creator has made her, too.
18 Tegan Nox
Yet another lady who was released in 2022 only to be brought back by Triple H just too late for the WWE 2K23 roster cut-off. IoShinice has done us a service by not just getting her face right, but also including all the Welsh lady’s tattoos from WWE 2K22. Nox’s moveset, meanwhile, is credited to WolfpacPrinxe.
19 Xyon Quinn
Daniel Vidot spent eight years as a professional rugby league player in his home nation of Australia before trying his hand as a wrestler. After debuting in NXT back in 2020, he finally received a main roster call up earlier this year. This model is by LRitchie, using logos and face textures from Iconic2K. It has a bespoke moveset, entrance, victory and render.
