Wrestling can be a pretty tough business on a personal level. The long hours on the road, the physical stress, the close proximity to Byron Saxton, it’s tough being both a WWE superstar and a functioning human being. But, fortunately for our favourite grapplers, many of them are able to find happiness, friendship and, most importantly, love whilst also throwing themselves around a ring for our entertainment. Whilst there are plenty examples of famous wrestling couples – Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth, The Miz and Maryse, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, etc. – there are plenty of top stars who have managed to keep their marriages mostly out of the public eye and, when you do a little digging, some of these partnerships are pretty shocking.

Whether it’s two wrestlers you had no idea even knew one another getting hitched, a wrestler marrying a celebrity outside of the realms of rasslin’ or a wrestler just getting married to, you know, a normal person, these marriages are nothing if not interesting. So, if you’re a fan of wrestling, weddings and trivia, boy, have you come to the right place, because here are 15 of the most surprising wrestling spouses ever.

15 15. Gail Kim

Spouse: Chef Robert Irvine

Well, this is an interesting combination.

When it comes to great female wrestlers, the conversation will often miss out on Gail Kim and that is a crime. This is the lady who won the Women’s Championship in her first ever match in WWE (a seven-woman battle royal on Raw in 2002) and is a record-tying six-time TNA Knockouts Champion, as well as the first female inductee into the TNA Hall of Fame. No, stop laughing. There is nothing funny about the TNA Hall of Fame. Ok, maybe it is a little bit of a joke, but that doesn’t mean Gail is. She is very good.

Kim’s husband is called Robert Irvine, a name that might be familiar to those food lovers amongst you. Irvine is an English TV chef, best known for his shows The Robert Irvine Show (obviously), Worst Cooks in America and Dinner: Impossible, on the set of which Kim and Irvine first met. Irvine has appeared a few times in a wrestling capacity, including at the most recent edition of Bound For Glory, where he got in the face of “The Miracle” Mike Bennett. Can’t wait for their “Cookbook on a pole” match at next year’s show. Gonna bring the house down.

14 14. Brock Lesnar

Spouse: Sable

Another kinda famous inter-wrestling marriage here, but still a shocking one.

Brock Lesnar is an incredible specimen. College wrestling champion, standout wrestler, talented performer, most successful pro wrestler-turned-MMA fighter of all time, biggest box office draw of his generation and looks like he’s been chiselled out of stone. The dude is something else. A four-time WWE Champion, a King of the Ring and Royal Rumble winner, multi-time WrestleMania headliner and the youngest WWE Champion in WWE history, Lesnar has a Hall of Fame legacy already and shows no signs of stopping any time soon. All this and he married one of the hottest women in WWE history. Jealous doesn’t even begin to cover it.

As you may know, Brock’s married to Rena Greek, better known to a generation of pre-pubescent teens as Sable. Sable was the Attitude Era’s hottest draw (in more ways than one) and will go down as one of the most popular women to ever grace a WWE ring. Together, the two have had two children (Turk and Duke, because they have names like that) and Lesnar is stepfather to Sable’s daughter, whom she had with her first husband. Sable also used to be married to Marc Mero, a fact I’m sure Marc loves to hear. Sable and Brock have been married for over a decade now and are one of wrestling’s strongest couples, which is surprising, considering they are never mentioned on WWE TV. Maybe Vince McMahon finds it awkward that the wife of his biggest star used to be his storyline mistress. I know I’d be terrified.

13 13. Mickie James

Spouse: Magnus

Somehow, Mickie James is back in WWE again. Mickie James and Goldberg, crazy times.

Mickie’s first run in WWE was a pretty good one. Debuting on the main roster in 2005, James would have notable feuds with the likes of Trish Stratus and Lita. She would win the Women’s title five times and would reign once with the Divas Championship, making her one of the most successful female performers in WWE history. This, combined with her three Knockouts Championship reigns in TNA, makes her one of the most decorated female athletes in the business, but, and this is the most impressive part, it also makes her the greatest country and western singer to ever step foot in a WWE ring. Seriously, look it up. She’s released two albums.

James’ husband is another wrestler and is one that perhaps doesn’t sound as weird when you remember her lengthy stint in TNA. Nick Aldis, better known as former TNA Heavyweight Champion, Magnus, married James in 2015. The two have a child together and plan to open an equine training centre when their wrestling days are done, which is the absolute definition of the American Dream. (No, not Dusty Rhodes.) James and Magnus might be one of wrestling’s lesser known couples, but perhaps that’s a good a thing. At least we won’t be seeing Mickie and her hubby job out to Cena and Nikki anytime soon. Especially considering John and Mickie’s history.

12 12. Aiden English

Spouse: Shaul Guerrero

Oh, Aiden, what happened to you?

The one true rival to Sheamus’ claim as “palest WWE wrestler of all time”, Aiden English forms one half of The Vaudevillains, alongside Simon Gotch. The act was pretty hot in NXT, winning their tag team championships at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, widely regarded as one of the promotion’s best shows. Then they called up the main roster, almost killed Enzo Amore with a botched Irish Whip and plummeted down the card faster than a whirling dervish at full speed. Poor fellas.

Anyhow, English qualifies for this list thanks to his January 2016 marriage to former WWE developmental talent, Raquel Diaz, real name Shaul Guerrero. Yes, she is one of those Guerreros, being the daughter of WWE Hall of Famer “Latino Heat” Eddie Guerrero. This makes English the late legend’s son-in-law and part of one of wrestling’s greatest families. Shame they couldn’t pull some strings and get him a push on the main roster.

11 11. AJ Styles

Spouse: Wendy Jones, a schoolteacher from rural Georgia

For a man they call “Phenomenal”, his personal life is actually pretty tame.

AJ Styles began his wrestling career, of all place, in WCW, appearing a handful of times for the doomed promotion in the early 2000s. Despite not getting picked up by WWE, Styles still went onto become of the most popular wrestlers in America, winning championships with promotions such as Ring of Honour and TNA. After a brief, but successful, stint in Japan, Styles eventually turned up in WWE at the 2016 Royal Rumble in one of the best-received WWE debuts of all time and went onto have one of the greatest debut years in WWE history.

Styles is a devout Christian, so its perhaps no surprise to find that he’s been married to the same woman since 2000. Beyond her name being Wendy and her profession being a schoolteacher, not much is known as Styles’ wife, but it’s certainly a little strange that a man capable of superhuman feats in the ring and one of the most popular wrestlers of his generation is married to a schoolteacher from rural Georgia. I’m not complaining – far from it – AJ seems to be one of the most grounded, down-to-earth guys in WWE right now and his loving family is definitely one of the reasons for this. Also, you wouldn’t wanna misbehave in Mrs. Styles’ class. You wouldn’t get detention, you’d get a Styles Clash.

10 10.  Jeff Jarrett

Spouse: Karen Angle

This is soap opera levels of confusing.

Jeff Jarrett made a name for himself in the WWE in the 1990s, winning a handful of Intercontinental and Tag Team Championships throughout him time with the Fed. He would jump to WCW in 1999, and would be even more successful there, winning their World Heavyweight Championship four times. Whether those reigns were any good or not is another matter entirely.

Alongside his in-ring achievements, Jarrett is also the co-founder of TNA, which is where our story takes place. Jarrett’s wife, Karen, met Double J through his involvement in what is now called Impact Wrestling, and the pair got married in 2010. However, there’s a little more to it than that. Before Karen married Jeff, she was married to another WWE and Impact wrestler, Kurt Angle, between 1998 and 2008. If you think that’s a little too close to Karen and Jeff’s marriage, well, you’d be right. You see, according to rumour and hearsay, Karen was actually romantically involved with Jarrett whilst still married to Angle. Of course, being a sensitive and thoughtful company, Impact made no mention of this real-life scandal on their TV product and treated the whole thing- wait, hang on... oh no, that’s right, Karen and Jeff faced Kurt and Chyna in a mixed tag team match at Sacrifice 2011 using the supposed affair as a storyline. Because of course they did.

9 9. Kelly Kelly

Spouse: Former NHL Star Sheldon Souray

So, are her last name and first name both Kelly? No wonder she got married.

Ms. Kelly certainly made a big impression on the WWE Universe when she turned up on the ECW brand in 2006 as the exhibitionist girlfriend of big man Mike Knox. Who remembers him, eh? Anyone? Didn’t think so. Kelly would soon break out into her own character and would become Divas Champion in 2011 after being selected by a fan vote to challenge Brie Bella. Huh, Brie Bella, now there’s a wrestling marriage we don’t hear anything about...

Kelly Kelly now goes by the name Kelly Kelly-Souray (she doesn’t, but you get the idea), as she married NHL mainstay Sheldon Souray in 2016. Souray’s career took him to teams in New Jersey, Edmonton, Dallas and Anaheim and he finished second in the 2005 World Cup with the Canadian national team. Please don’t ask me anything else about hockey, because I won’t be able to tell you anything. Sorry, I’m a wrestling guy.

8 8. Sasha Banks

Spouse: WWE Costume Designer Kid Mizake

Well, that’s another dream girl off my list...

Signing with NXT in 2012, Banks quickly rose up the ranks and, alongside Charlotte, Bayley and Becky Lynch, revolutionized the women’s division in WWE by putting on amazing matches and presenting themselves in a way WWE women hadn’t been presented in a long, long time. She’s a former NXT and Raw Women’s Champion and was one half of both the first NXT and WWE pay-per-view main events to feature all-female competitors. She’s also been in the first ever all-female Hell in a Cell and Iron Man match. Suppose that should be “Iron Woman” match, really, shouldn’t it, WWE?

Banks got married in August 2016 to a man known professionally as Kid Mikaze. Mikaze is also a wrestler, but has found more recent success as a costume designer, working for the WWE to create some of the colourful ring attire that is commonplace in the world’s biggest wrestling company. For a woman with some of the brightest and elaborate ring gear on the main roster today, it’s perhaps no surprise that Banks was attracted to someone who makes costumes for a living. I’m not saying that I could do a better job than Mikaze, but for a lady like Sasha, I could try.

7 7. Bo Dallas

Spouse: Sarah Backman

It’s a little strange that Bo Dallas is married at all. Not being nasty, but he looks about 12 years old without the goatee.

Dallas’ WWE career started out so promisingly. He was the longest-reigning NXT Champion in history (he has since been surpassed by Finn Balor and Neville) and his main roster career began with an impressive win streak, which was ended by... R-Truth. Yeah, that pretty much sums up the rest of his career. Dallas has been a bona fide jobber for many, many years now and shows no signs of reverting back to any sort of winning form. Poor guy.

Dallas is just 26 years old, but has been married since 2014. His wife is Sarah Backman, a Swedish former wrestler who was once on the Swedish version of the TV show, Gladiators. That’s not all; she’s also a real estate broker and (this is the fun part) is an eight-time World Arm Wrestling Champion. Yep. That’s a thing. Apparently, she’s done this since she’s done this since her early teenage years and has also won arm wrestling titles in her native Sweden 11 times. Impressive. Backmann might not be a wrestler in the traditional sense anymore, but there’s no denying she’s one tough chick and, let’s be honest, eight arm wrestling titles is still way more impressive than anything Bo Dallas has done in the last three years. Poor Bo.

6 6. Michelle McCool

Spouse: The Undertaker

Okay, so some of you might actually know this one, but I still find it hilarious.

Michelle McCool (which is her real name, by the way) was a very successful wrestler, who worked for the WWE between 2004 and 2011. In her time, she captured the Women’s championship twice and was the first ever Divas champion, a belt she would also hold twice. She also totally stole the Styles Clash, but we won’t hold that against her.

McCool has been married twice, but it’s current relationships we’re interested in here. You see, McCool actually has a bit of a weird kink; her husband actually died years ago. Okay, okay, stop your posting about how Michelle McCool is a necrophiliac, her husband isn’t actually dead – more of a Deadman. Yes, in 2010, Michelle McCool became Michelle Calaway, as she tied the knot with the man known to millions of Creatures of the Night as The Undertaker. Taker and Michelle now have a child together and are, by all accounts, extremely happy, but there’s one thing I want to know. Do you think when he goes to bed at night, he does his entire entrance, costume and all? If so, then poor Michelle. Must take ages to get to sleep.

5 5. Stacy Keibler

Spouse: Jared Pobre

Dammit, another dream girl gone! Is there no God?

Stacy Keibler is a name that any self-respecting wrestling fan should know. Her blonde bombshell good looks and famously long legs made her somewhat of a phenomenon during her time in WWE between 2001 and 2011. In her time she managed teams like The Dudley Boyz, Rosey and The Hurricane and was in an on-screen relationship with Randy Orton during his early days with the company. A relationship that ended with her getting an RKO. Different times, okay, different times.

Keibler branched out into modelling and acting after wrestling, so it’s perhaps no surprise that she’s had a number of relationship with high-profile non-wrestling stars. She famously dated Hollywood A-lister George Clooney from 2011 to 2013, but her husband at the moment is the CEO of advertising company Future Ads, Jared Pobre. The two tied the knot in 2014 and welcomed a daughter, Ava Grace, into the world later that year. With beauty, charisma and an obviously charming personality, it’s no surprise Stacy married someone like Pobre and I wish them both all the best. I do, honestly. No, you’re jealous!

4 4. Shane McMahon

Spouse: Marissa Mazzola

I guess not all McMahons can marry multi-time world champions.

Shane McMahon continues to be one of the most popular wrestling personalities in the world, even at the age of 47 and after walking out on the WWE for seven years in 2009. When you gotta choose between Shane and Stephanie, you forgive these things. In his time, McMahon won the Hardcore and European titles in WWE and participated in some of the craziest spots in company history, including is famous Leaps of Faith from Titantrons, ambulances and the top of Hell in a Cell. Jeez, who’d want to get married to that guy? Oh, right, yeah.

McMahon married Marissa Mazzola (a wrestling name if ever I heard one) in 1996 and the two have three sons together. Mazzola began her career in entertainment with the WWE, presenting a show called “WWE Livewire”, a phone-in style summary programme that took stock of that week’s big moments in WWE. Mazzola later branched out into movie production, working with stars like Willem Dafoe, The Rock and Steve Austin and is the owner and operator of her own film company, Kamala Films. Yes, because when I think of high-quality, well-produced movies, I also think of former WWE wrestler Kamala. Mazzola has refrained from taking an on-screen role in WWE to this date and I think that’s probably for the best. Whilst I’m sure she’d be fine at it, when you look at the reaction the other big McMahon couple has received from their time on screen, maybe the McMahon-Mazzolas would do well to stay as far away from the cameras as possible.

3 3. Charlotte

(Ex) Spouse: TNA's Bram

I’m kinda cheating on this one here, but let me have one, okay?

Charlotte (who I absolutely refuse to call “Charlotte Flair” – let her be her own person, for God’s sake!) has become the woman in WWE since her main roster debut in 2015. She became the last-ever Divas Champion and first-ever winner of the returning Women's Championship at WrestleMania 32, the latter being a title she has won four times, and, alongside Sasha Banks, she became part of the first ever all-female main event of a WWE pay-per-view. Not too shabby, eh?

Charlotte is only 30 years old, but has already been married twice. Her second marriage lasted just two years and was to Thomas Latimer, best known for portraying Bram in TNA. In a nice little bit of continuity, Bram actually debuted in a segment involving the future Mr. Mickie James, Magnus. Bram and Charlotte’s marriage ended in 2015, so putting it on this list was a little cheeky of me, but, like James and Magnus, it’s strange to see two people strongly associated with two different federations together as a couple. The marriage might have only lasted two years, but in Charlotte time, that’s actually quite a while. She could win, like, 15 Women’s Championships in that time.

2 2. Goldberg

Spouse: Wanda Ferraton

When you talk about funny “how did you meet?” stories, this is pretty much the pinnacle.

The last few months have been some of the weirdest ever in WWE and Goldberg has been thoroughly responsible for that. After his gargantuan run with WCW and lacklustre WWE appearances, Goldberg retired from wrestling in 2004 and we thought, at the time, this was for good. But, oh no. Goldberg returned to the ring at Survivor Series 2016, squashing WWE’s top draw, Brock Lesnar, in 1:26 and making it abundantly clear he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. A few months later and Goldberg won the Universal Championship from Kevin Owens at Fastlane 2017, only to lose it to The Beast at the Showcase of the Immortals.

So, as you may know, Goldberg has turned his hand to acting a few times in his life and one such cinematic masterpiece to feature Big Bill was the 2005 horror-comedy-Christmas movie, Santa’s Slay. If you haven’t seen it, I won’t spoil anything, but I will say this; Goldberg plays an evil Santa Claus who kills people. If that doesn’t make you wanna go and see the movie, I don’t know what will. Anyhow, once such scene in this classic of the screen featured Goldberg’s evil Santa going crazy in a strip club, where he ends up with his head in one of the stripper’s, umm, private regions. The actress who played this stripper is called Wanda Ferraton and, in 2005, she married Goldberg. Yep, this is how they met. With Goldberg’s – who, I must stress, was dressed as evil Santa at the time – face getting right up in her junk. And who ever said romance was dead?

1 1. David Otunga

Spouse: Jennifer Hudson

How? How did this happen? No, seriously, please, tell me. I will pay you to tell me.

David Otunga is, by all accounts, a bit of a rubbish wrestler. Yes, his time in The Nexus was good and yes, he is a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion (including one reign with John Cena, of all people), but his career is not one that really lights up the imagination. Then, he moved to the commentary desk on SmackDown Live, where people seem to like him even less (confession time – I actually don’t think he’s that bad, he’s certainly entertaining). It’s clear, then, that wrestling history will not look back on Otunga’s career with too much fondness, but, if you judge it based on his marriage, he might be the greatest pro wrestler ever to walk the Earth.

You see, David Otunga, somehow, some way, ended up marrying former American Idol contestant and Academy Award-winning actress, Jennifer Hudson. Otunga is married to an Oscar winner. David freakin’ Otunga is married to one of the most critically acclaimed actresses of her time. What?! The two got hitched in 2009 and have a child together and remain happily married to this day, but this whole thing is just so strange to me. I have nothing against Otunga – he seems like a genuinely caring and lovely man – but I just want to know how they met. If you’re reading this, David, just drop me an email and tell me and I will owe you, big time. This has seriously been keeping me up at night