The best wrestling romances
Relationships can be complicated, but relationships within the wrestling world usually end in disaster. Valentine’s Day is a day to celebrate love with loved ones, but celebrating love in wrestling usually ends with heartbreak or betrayal at the altar.
Here are some memorable wedding-themed moments in the wild world that is professional wrestling.
RANDY SAVAGE & MISS ELIZABETH – AUGUST 26th, 1991 – WWE SUMMERSLAM 1991
The love story between Randy ‘Macho Man’ Savage and Miss Elizabeth captured all wrestling fan’s hearts. At WrestleMania VII on March 24th, 1991, Savage and Elizabeth reunited after Savage ditched his manager Sensational Sherri after losing a retirement match to the Ultimate Warrior. Savage proposed to Elizabeth, and she proclaimed, “Oh yeah!” The wedding was for SummerSlam 1991 at Madison Square Garden. The wedding went on without issue, a rarity in professional wrestling. However, at the reception, there was a disturbance when Jake’ The Snake’ Roberts brought a gift in the form of a snake. Elizabeth was hysterical upon opening the present on her wedding night. Roberts actions led to a heated feud with Savage to end in 1991 and settled in early 1992, with Savage defending his wife and winning each encounter.
STEPHANIE MCMAHON & THE UNDERTAKER – APRIL 26th, 1999 – WWE RAW
This ‘wedding’ was not a marriage based on love but a marriage based on force and power. Undertaker had abducted Stephanie at Backlash 1999 and looked to marry her for ultimate power and control over her father, Vince McMahon. Stephanie was trapped on a crucifix screaming for help as the cult leader Undertaker was near his accomplished goal of power. However, the ceremony was stopped by Vince McMahon’s nemesis Steve Austin. The rare time that Austin showed that he had a heart saving the young Stephanie McMahon. Ironically, Vince McMahon was later revealed in June to have been the man behind the forced wedding in an attempt to play mind games with his rival, Steve Austin.
TRIPLE H & STEPHANIE MCMAHON – NOVEMBER 29th, 1999 – WWE RAW
Initially, Stephanie was supposed to marry her boyfriend Test, but Triple H revealed that Stephanie was already married. That’s right. Triple H had married an unconscious Stephanie at a drive-through chapel in Las Vegas. HHH had been in a feud with Vince McMahon, and the ultimate mind game of marrying his daughter was unthinkable. While viewers were to believe it was a forced marriage, the couple later revealed that Stephanie was in on the whole ceremony and had done this to get back at Vince for his involvement in the nearly forced marriage to the Undertaker months prior. Stephanie and HHH would have a robust 2000 dominating WWE television and having great success.
TRIPLE H & STEPHANIE MCMAHON – FEBRUARY 11TH, 2002 – WWE RAW
While not a wedding but rather a renewal of vows, this ended poorly for Stephanie. Triple H had returned from tearing his quad in May 2001, and there were questions about whether or not Stephanie and Hunter would remain together. Stephanie revealed she was pregnant, and that announcement got HHH on board with the ceremony. However, Stephanie had lied about the pregnancy, and HHH overheard such development. Thus, when it was time for the ceremony, HHH dumped Stephanie in the storyline. Stephanie would align herself with Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho to punish HHH for his actions. Neither one would have lasting success as HHH won the WWE Undisputed Championship at WrestleMania XVIII.
BILLY & CHUCK – SEPTEMBER 12TH, 2002 – WWE SMACKDOWN
For the time, the ceremony between Billy and Chuck was controversial. Two male wrestlers having a commitment ceremony had not been done in wrestling before, and the crowd did not like the duo. Billy had previously been with DX and was known as an ‘Ass Man.’ Billy never clarified his taste for ass, thus making the relationship not so far-fetched. The ceremony was set up by their stylist Rico and was going along well. However, the closer they got to pronouncing their love, there was a noticeable hesitation by the men involved. Finally, Billy and Chuck revealed that the ceremony was a ruse designed for ratings and fame. Billy and Chuck were not lovers. This revelation angered Rico and led to Eric Bischoff showing he was the pastor and his men Jamal and Rosey attacking Billy and Chuck. Interestingly, Billy and Chuck came out of the segment as good guys.
KANE & LITA – AUGUST 23RD, 2004 – WWE RAW
This one is a bit uncomfortable to mention. Lita was desperate to save her boyfriend, Matt Hardy, from the evil Kane from continued beatings. Lita offered her body to Kane, and after doing so, she became pregnant. Kane became obsessed with Lita for carrying his offspring, leading to a wedding between the two after Kane defeated Matt Hardy at SummerSlam 2004, where the winner would marry Lita. Matt Hardy would attack Kane during the ceremony. Matt tried to escape with Lita, but Kane had a fire at the stage to prevent them from escaping. Kane ended up choke slamming Hardy off the stage through tables. Lita unwillingly married Kane.
EDGE & LITA – JUNE 20TH, 2005 – WWE RAW
Lita’s romances were quite the topic in WWE between 2004 and 2005. Lita’s forced marriage with Kane makes her a sympathetic character. However, that sympathy evaporated when Lita had a real-life affair with Edge while Matt Hardy was injured. In early 2005, Lita and Edge became an on-screen couple, and by the summer of 2005, there was a wedding between the two. In a bizarre twist, Kane had become the babyface in trying to keep the woman he had forced to marry the previous year. Matt Hardy’s music played, but he didn’t appear as it was a ploy by Edge. However, Kane did appear and came up from under the ring to ruin the wedding and attack Edge.
KURT ANGLE & KAREN ANGLE – FEBRUARY 14TH, 2008 – TNA IMPACT
WWE is one of many promotions to have failed wedding ceremonies. Impact Wrestling has had a few of its own, and the one between Kurt Angle and his real-life wife, Karen Angle took place on Valentine’s Day in 2008. The Angle’s had been a significant factor on Impact television for over a year, and Kurt was the top guy for the promotion. Unfortunately, Samoa Joe and Kevin Nash (WWE’s Diesel) would ruin their renewal ceremony. After the attack, the pastor accidentally pronounced AJ Styles and Karen Angle as husband and wife. Kurt would end up stripped down to his underwear. AJ ended up kissing Karen after she had been knocked silly from hitting her head. Kurt couldn’t believe it.
EDGE & VICKIE GUERRERO – JUNE 18TH, 2008 – WWE SMACKDOWN
In November 2007, Vickie Guerrero became the Smackdown General Manager and started a romantic relationship with Smackdown superstar Edge. Edge was the top heel of the Smackdown brand and used his newfound relationship to keep control in his favor. While the wedding had taken place off-screen, there was a reception on Smackdown on the July 18th episode of Smackdown. Triple H provided footage of Edge cheating on Vickie with wedding planner Alicia Fox on the show. Vickie got some revenge on Edge by putting Edge in a Hell In A Cell match at SummerSlam 2008. After a brief reunion, Edge revealed on the June 8th, 2009, edition of RAW that he had used Vickie for power, and now that she was out of control, he wanted a divorce.
BULLY RAY & BROOKE HOGAN – JANUARY 17TH, 2013 – IMPACT WRESTLING
In late 2012, Austin Aries revealed a secret relationship between Impact Wrestling’s Bully Ray and Brooke Hogan, and Hulk Hogan, who was running Impact Wrestling, disapproved. Over several weeks, Bully and Brooke’s relationship became more substantial and led to a wedding on the January 17th, 2013, episode of Impact. However, during the ceremony, Taz, one of Bully’s best friends, joined the rival group Aces & Eights. That revelation led to Bully, Sting, and Hulk Hogan being attacked by the masked wrestlers while Brooke was screaming in terror.
Several other wrestling weddings ended in sadness, and there will likely be more to come in the next several years. Hopefully, somebody wrestlers realize that getting married in a wrestling ring never ends with love and romance. Instead, the ceremonies always end in heartache and agony.
