Over the years, we have seen friendships blossom between wrestling superstars. We are aware of the long-time friendship of Edge and Christian, or the unbreakable bond that Triple H has with Shawn Michaels.
We can always guess who we think are friends in the world of wrestling, but some friendships may surprise you. Reading that Vince McMahon is really close to R-Truth may surprise most. Or a certain Samoan being close with the Doctor of Thuganomics before they both made it to the WWE.
The world of wrestling is full of many outlandish and flamboyant characters. However, once the dust settles, they're all just human beings with likes and dislikes, just like the rest of us. They find comfort in those that they not only respect and work well with in front of the camera, either as friends or enemies, but also those they share common interests with.
AJ Styles is quite close to Vince Russo, and their friendship happened because they started going to the same church. Seth Rollins became friends with The New Day because of their love of gaming. Being surrounded by a certain select number of people for so many days out of the year, there's no doubt that friendships begin and bonds are formed.
This list displays 15 pairs of wrestlers only the true, die-hard fans would know are friends in real life. The friendship previously mentioned will not be a part of this list. However, continue reading to enjoy 15 pairs of people the crazy world of professional wrestling brought together.
15 Shinsuke Nakamura and James Ellsworth
Since arriving in the WWE, Shinsuke Nakamura has used his electric personality to make many friends. One in particular that he became close with, was James Ellsworth.
During their time they were both on Smackdown, the two bonded over their love of traveling and finding new activities while in new cities, and surfing. Nakamura loves to shower his Instagram with pictures of all of the adventures he found himself going on while on the road. Ellsworth made many appearances in the pictures while he was still with the company.
Even though they're not working together anymore, they still make time to see each other when they can. Nakamura may have a personality that is magnetic and people gravitate towards him, becoming fast friends, but his bond with Ellsworth is stronger than that.
Being able to not let their busy schedules cause a rift in their friendship, these two make sure that their love of surfing and having outlandish personalities builds a bond that we can only hope lasts many years to come.
14 Finn Balor and Enzo Amore
Going back to their days together in NXT, Finn Balor and Enzo Amore have one of the unexpected friendships in wrestling.
Balor has been heard loving Amore's larger than life personality. Along with Colin Cassidy, better known as Big Cass, the pair went to many promotional events together. Photos have been seen on Amore and Balor's Instagram accounts sightseeing together when on tour in Europe. Amore has become close with Balor's family as well, especially his father, since in together in pictures while the WWE toured Ireland in the spring last year.
It is not known how their friendship has fared since the WWE released Amore. However, with how busy Balor has been lately, it is no surprise that not many pictures have been posted for the public to see. That could also be something the company has asked him not to do, due to what caused Amore to leave the company. Either way, the photos these two have shared put smiles on our faces.
13 John Cena and Samoa Joe
It is crazy to think these two started out together. John Cena and Samoa Joe have had very different rises to fame in the world of professional wrestling, but they got their start in the same place.
In the early 2000's, the WWE had their developmental farm in California at Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW.) Joe and Cena had a feud in the ring during their time there, making their mark on the wrestling world.
Both men held the UPW Heavyweight Championship, Joe being the man to hold it the longest in company history. While Cena moved on to the new developmental farm when the WWE moved it to Ohio Valley Wrestling, Joe was told by Jim Ross that he did not have a future in wrestling, a statement Ross would later regret.
The two have kept in touch the years they were not working for the same company and now that they're both under the helm of the WWE once again, it gives their friendship another chance to blossom how it did back in their UPW days.
12 AJ Styles and Charlotte
Much like he was with her father when they were both working for TNA, AJ Styles has become quite close friends with Charlotte. We have seen on both Styles and Charlotte's social media accounts that the two love to joke around with each other.
Their bond truly formed when Charlotte was still the Smackdown Women's Champion, and the two were participating in media events together, promoting the WWE. Ever since then, the two have been driving to shows together, along with another member of the Four Horsewomen, Becky Lynch.
Even though Charlotte is no longer the champion of the blue brand's women's division, the pair are still seen joking around backstage. The pictures they each took of the other sleeping on planes are the ones that have made the most circulation around the internet. We know that Styles is happily married, but it's nice to see that the women of the WWE have a veteran like him to lean on and have fun with backstage.
11 Kenny Omega & Xavier Woods
This friendship sparked over the love of playing video games and while it may be new, it is proof that there really aren't any enemy lines between wrestling companies, aside from WWE and iMPACT Wrestling, of course. However, this is not about that. This is about he friendship between Kenny Omega and Xavier Woods.
After talking over Twitter, the two met in person for the first time in June 2016 for the CEO gaming to play against each other in a video game in front of a large crowd and streamed live over Twitch. In December of that year, they met up again to review the top games of the year.
Last year, they did both events together once again. With no contracts from their respective wrestling companies involved, they were able to show the world another one of their loves. The worlds of both professional wrestling and gaming love this friendship, even though Woods wrestles for the WWE and Omega is on the other side of the world, wrestling for New Japan.
10 Dana Brooke and Braun Strowman
We know that Triple H is a huge fan of the Arnold Classic, but what many may not know is that is where he found both Braun Strowman and Dana Brooke.
These two have proven time and time again their strength and athleticsm, but having the same background in bodybuilding have given these two a bond that blossomed a great friendship.
Known for being strong, both Brooke and Strowman have a soft side. Strowman, born Adam Scherr, was one of the first people Brooke, born Ashley Mae Sebera, leaned on after the unexpected death of her boyfriend, Dallas McCarver. Being from the bodybuilding circuit, Scherr knew of him and was there to be a shoulder for Sebera to lean on. Sebera has been quoted saying that she has had a great amount of support since McCarver's passing.
Both performing on Raw, Sebera and Scherr have countless hours, days, and months to allow their body to grow.
9 Batista and Titus O'Neil
Though we didn't see them wrestle each other very often while they both worked for the WWE, the friendship between Titus O'Neil and Batista blossomed and remains strong to this day.
Over the last few years, pictures have emerged of the two spending time together. They call each other family, with Batista hanging out with not just O'Neil, but his sons as well. The founder of Titus Worldwide has been seen taking his son to the premiere of Batista's films if he's not scheduled to work.
These two may have both be known best for their time in the ring, but their friendship goes back further than that. The two had been friends for years and were neighbours when Batista suggested that O'Neil try out for the WWE after his career in football had ended. O'Neil shut him down at first, but after driving by the facility where FCW was held, which was the developmental place for WWE at the time, he poked his head around in the building. He was signed to a contract two weeks later, and within a year was on the faux-reality show NXT's second season.
Batista stood up for O'Neil when the WWE suspended him for touching Vince McMahon back in 2016, and was heard several times stating his case on the matter during radio interviews and podcasts.
8 Funaki and Shawn Michaels
The friendship that Shawn Michaels and Funaki have is one worth noting, if you're trying to find friendships you wouldn't know about without really digging.
There's no surprise that Funaki was a fan of the Showstopper before he joined the WWE himself. Before the world was introduced to Funaki, Michaels was having the time of his life at the top of the world of professional wrestling and the top of every fan's favorite wrestler list.
When Funaki and Michaels faced off in the ring for the first time, their friendship quickly took off. They bonded over their love of wrestling. As the years went on, their bond grew to be about so much more than the world that brought them together. Funaki helped Micahels through the transition of becoming a born-again Christian.
More than that, when Michaels retired, Funaki moved to Texas to be closer to him and began training at his wrestling academy to grow their bond over wrestling.
7 Sasha Banks and Kalisto
It's not known exactly when this friendship started, but Sasha Banks and Kalisto have been all over each other's Twitter and Instagram over the last year or so.
Banks' husband, Sarath Ton, better known as Kid Mikaze when he was a wrestler, is also friends with Kalisto. Ton is currently the WWE's costume designer and has designed gear for both Kalisto and Banks. The three of them frequently travel together and visit great places across the globe, making great picture for each of their social media accounts.
The friendship between the high-flyer and the former Raw Women's Champion has been shown on several episodes of the YouTube channel UpUpDownDown, where they have both been guests on several occasions. However, its the pictures and the smiles that the two share that show the true friendship that has forged between these two. They have many memories together, most probably not shared with the public, but that doesn't make this friendship any less amazing to watch grow.
6 Chris Jericho and The Miz
We've seen these two battle it out on many occasions, but the Miz and Chris Jericho used their friendship to give the fans the best matches they could. Rivalries and feuds always play out better when the people a part of them trust each other.
With Jericho competing on the ABC television series Dancing with the Stars in 2011, he spent a lot of time in Los Angeles, where the Miz and his wife live. This allowed the two to spend a lot of time together.
The friendship between the two grew once Jericho was eliminated off of the dancing competition. The two wrestlers spend time together when the can if they're in the same city and with the Miz being a father now, he can get tips from the veteran, who has three children of his own.
The love of the wrestling world and their love of rock music and family brought these two together, and is means to help this friendship last many years.
5 Daniel Bryan and Brian Kendrick
This friendship goes back many years, and is all thanks to another wrestler, Shawn Michaels. Brian Kendrick and Bryan Danielson, better known as Daniel Bryan, met while training to become professional wrestlers at Michaels' wrestling academy.
The two have supported each other throughout their entire careers, the good moments and the bad ones. Though Kendrick had a great run in the WWE while teaming with Paul London, Dainelson was waited for the day that he would come back. It was Danielson that pulled for Kendrick to be chosen for the inaugural Cruiserweight Classic.
On August 26, 2016, when Kendrick was eliminated from the Cruiserweight Classic, Dainelson left his seat at the commentary desk to embrace his longtime friend. It was something that touched everyone who witnessed it.
A friendship that started almost 20 years ago is stronger than ever. Now that Dainelson has been cleared and is wrestling again, it would be amazing to see the two friends team up in front of thousands in a WWE ring.
4 Seth Rollins and Asuka
When she first came to the WWE, Asuka found a friendship in a former NXT champion, Seth Rollins. Despite the language barrier, the first ever winner of the Women's Royal Rumble has become quite close with Rollins.
It's not surprising that Rollins would take kindly to Asuka. He is known for being very welcoming to newcomers to the locker room. Seeing Asuka trying to blend in with North American customs, Rollins took her under his wing and the two became fast friends.
The two share a passion for the wrestling business and being able to give it their all in front of thousands every night. The Empress of Tomorrow may be on Smackdown now, but the bond that she has made with Rollins will be something she carries with her as the one person who made her feel the most welcome in the crazy light, and fast-paced world of the WWE.
3 Vince McMahon and R-Truth
This friendship is one that may shock some, but when digging deeper, it seems as though it makes sense.
When he first came to the WWE, R-Truth, born Ron Killings, was teamed up with "Road Dogg" Jesse James. Killings, at the time, wrestled under the name "K-Kwik," and if he was trusted by the powers that be in the company to wrestled with James, a member of the Armstrong family, it meant something.
Vince McMahon saw something in Killings, but it was mostly based on his talent. He was not expecting to find a great friend as well. McMahon looks to Killings to cheer him up whenever he needs to laugh. He always makes sure that Killings is asked to participate in the annual Tribute to the Troops show that the company puts on every year.
Both men are patriotic and have a sense of humor that can sometimes be seen as childish. Either way, the friendship has benefited everyone. Smiles are put on everyone's faces and laughter can be heard all around.
2 Kofi Kingston and CM Punk
This friendship was one that we knew was possible, but we were never truly sure how deep it meant to both Kofi Kingston and CM Punk.
Together, they held the WWE Tag Team championships once and while they may have went on to carve different paths in the company, they remained friends. Kingston credits Punk for being the first person to welcome him into the locker room when he first arrived in the company.
When Punk had a tour bus during the Summer of Punk, he had asked Kingston to join him on the road. The two share a love of video games and comic books. Having the time on the bus allowed them to enjoy those while relaxing during their time off.
Even though Punk has walked away from the world of wrestling, he still considers Kingston one of his best friends and their bond has never altered, regardless of how Pink walked away from the WWE.
1 Shelton Benjamin and Brock Lesnar
The friendship between Brock Lesnar and Shelton Benjamin goes back to their college days.
While attending the University of Minnesota, both Lesnar and Benjamin were roommates and their friendship only grew from their. The former Golden Gophers both shared a love of wrestling. In fact, Benjamin actually coached his roommate while he was an amateur wrestler.
Starting out as professional wrestlers, Benjamin and Lesnar were tag team partners, and ended up at Ohio Valley Wrestling together. Lesnar may have been picked by Paul Heyman to be called up to the main roster first, Benjamin wasn't far behind.
Outside of wrestling, the former college roommates are tied for life. When Lesnar was trying to find the perfect man suited to guide his children, he looked no further than Benjamin. Before Lesnar found love with former WWE Diva Sable, he had fraternal twins with his former fiancee, Nicole. Benjamin was chosen to the be the godfather of the Beast's first son and daughter.