Love, Pro Wrestling Style

Brian Damage

If my wrestling storyline senses are accurate, it looks like there is going to be an eventual split between Rusev and the ‘Ravishing Russian’ Lana. Lana is receiving loud reactions and chants and she is starting to acknowledge them. Not really a big deal on the surface…but a deeper look into the history of love and pro wrestling might tell a different story. Especially for those couples who are really an item behind the scenes.

Sometimes or actually many times….life imitates art and the once happy couples break up after a split up on screen. Maybe there were problems in the real relationship to begin with and the angle just brought them up to the surface. Is it all a coincidence or does love and wrestling something that really doesn’t mix…like oil and water? Let’s look at relationships that didn’t stand the test of time….

Marc Mero and Sable

The “happy couple” worked together in the early stages of Marc Mero’s WWE career. All seemed well when Mero dedicated his Intercontinental victory to his better half Sable. Then, the WWE decided to turn Marc Mero heel and with that became a controlling man who put down Sable at every turn.

Needless to say, Mero and Sable broke up on screen and while the couple still remained a married couple for a while later…the two eventually divorced and Sable ended up in the arms of the ‘Beast incarnate’ Brock Lesnar.

Randy Savage and Elizabeth

The real life rocky relationship of Randy and Elizabeth has been well documented here on this blog. Art truly imitated life with the way Savage was overprotective of his valet/wife. When Liz and Randy split up on screen…the two remained a couple off. By the time the couple reunited and got “married” at Summerslam ’91…the relationship was really starting to fray. The couple would eventually divorce in 1992.

Matt Hardy and Lita

Matt Hardy and Lita were boyfriend and girlfriend on camera and off camera. They were the epitome of a solid, happy couple. The WWE did an angle where Matt broke it off with Lita with Matt as a heel.

Then Matt Hardy went down with a legitimate injury and Lita ended up having an affair with Edge. The break up and affair made wrestling headlines and even worked an angle out of it.

DDP and Kimberly

Diamond Dallas Page and wife Kimberly were a power couple in WCW. Not only were they often paired together..but while DDP was acending the ranks as a main event wrestler…Kimberly became the head of the Nitro Girls dance troupe. WCW would do an angle where Kimberly turned heel and dumped DDP. Kimberly eventually quit the wrestling business to focus on acting and within time…filed for divorce from Page.

Kevin Sullivan and Nancy Daus

Kevin and Nancy were married and worked together for years. Once Kevin was made booker in WCW, he booked his wife Nancy to have an affair with his nemesis Chris Benoit.

As it turned out, what Sullivan really did was book his wife into a real life affair with Benoit. Nancy wound up leaving Kevin for Chris and as we all know..sadly…the rest is tragic history.

Dustin and Terri Runnels

Dustin and Terri Runnels met and married while both were working for WCW in the early 1990’s. When they went to the WWF/E as Goldust and Marlena…a storyline was booked for Marlena to turn heel and align with Brian Pillman. After Pillman’s sudden and tragic death, Dustin was chosen to turn heel and aligned himself with Luna Vachon. Dustin and Terri would soon divorce in real life…

Now we may ask ourselves, why so many failed relationships? Diamond Dallas Page has stated that in the business of wrestling…it is probably best to keep each life separate from one another. In real life, 50% of all marriages end in divorce…as DDP has stated…the number increases with two people in pro wrestling. Perhaps that can be accredited to being around each other 24/7.

Of course, it isn’t all doom and gloom for couples both involved in the business of pro wrestling. There have been some exceptions to the rule. For instance, promoter/announcers Joe Pedicino and Boni Blackstone have been married for over 25 years. Jimmy Garvin and his valet/wife Precious have been married for over 43 years. So there is hope…

When and if a split occurs between Lana and Rusev on screen…where will they end up as a couple behind the scenes? Only time will tell, but it certainly is something to keep an eye out for in the future. Love is a very fickle thing.