16 Wrestling Pairs We Didn't Know That Are Close Friends Behind The Scenes
The wrestling world often creates unique friendships that one would not necessarily expect. Fans have an idea about wrestlers based on their characters or on-screen presentation. Meanwhile, the wrestlers to have different personalities in real life often leads to a surprise when finding friendships. Quite a few under the radar friendships have formed that aren’t as predictable as Triple H and Shawn Michaels or Steve Austin and Jim Ross.
We will look at some of the current friendships that are fascinating behind the scenes. The bonds were created in their real lives away from the storylines. Some friendships were inspired by working together, but it just came in surprising fashion. Find out which of your favorite wrestlers are friends with each other. The following wrestling pairs are friends that you likely didn’t know about.
16 Randy Orton and Edge
The hatred in the Randy Orton vs Edge rivalry is creating one of the top matches for WrestleMania 36. Orton and Edge are good friends in real life after working together in the Rated RKO tag team. Edge reportedly wanted to work his first singles match out of retirement with Orton due to their chemistry and the safety elements of knowing each other well.
15 Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal
WWE paired Drew McIntyre, Jinder Mahl and Heath Slater together as the 3 Man Band comedic trio. McIntyre and Mahal both got fired at the end of the run together before getting rehired. The two have gone out of their way to praise and appreciate the other for their respective accomplishments in WWE.
14 Akira Tozawa and Apollo Crews
Akira Tozawa and Apollo Crews are both underutilized talents trying to get more television time in WWE. Both wrestlers have been best friends for many years. Crews and Tozawa met in the Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. The friendship also saw Ricochet become close to the as the trio had mutual interests.
13 Liv Morgan and Lana
The storyline of Liv Morgan coming back as the ex-lover of Lana looking for revenge was strange at the time. However, it sparked from a real friendship of the two behind the scenes. WWE was able to use photos from their time hanging out together throughout the years. It provided an easier way to introduce the story without forcing the angle.
12 Goldberg and Paul Heyman
The friendship between Goldberg and Paul Heyman played a huge role in Goldberg’s WWE return finding success. Goldberg had a better run working with Heyman backstage to correct the prior failure. Heyman was selected to induct Goldberg into the Hall of Fame to surprise fans with their friendship. Goldberg reportedly requested Heyman work on Smackdown for his current program with Roman Reigns even though Heyman works for Raw.
11 Batista and Titus O'Neil
Titus O’Neil’s friendship with Batista played a huge role in WWE hiring him. Batista vouched for O’Neil and his athletic background was impressive for any prospect. The two have remained close throughout the years. Batista even publicly stated his anger that Titus should have quit when WWE suspended him for the roughhousing with Vince McMahon.
10 Becky Lynch and Sonya Deville
Becky Lynch and Sonya Deville have started to show signs of their friendship in interviews along with mutual respect. As the top star of the women’s division, Lynch’s word meant a lot when calling Deville a future world champion. Sonya returned the favor by calling Becky a leader of the locker room that helps everyone get better.
9 Aleister Black and Ricochet
The tag team of Aleister Black and Ricochet felt like a strange fit when joining the main roster. Both wrestlers had drastically different styles and personalities, but both worked quite well together. Ricochet and Black formed a close relationship despite the team ending after just a few months in the brand split.
8 Baron Corbin and Tyler Breeze
Baron Corbin has the gimmick of being a loner who often rubs others the wrong way. One friend outside of the ring that does enjoy spending time with him is Tyler Breeze. The two became friends during their time together in NXT. Corbin and Breeze even run their own Twitch stream together playing video games.
7 Sasha Banks and Lacey Evans
The rivalry between Sasha Banks and Lacey Evans on Smackdown saw them getting quite personal with Banks taunting Evans’ young daughter. Both felt comfortable with this idea since they are good friends. Banks has been singing the praises of Evans since the latter started off in NXT and viewed as a future top star.
6 John Cena and Michael Cole
Michael Cole has worked for WWE for over two decades now and has formed a few close friendships. John Cena developed a bond with Cole when working together on both Raw and Smackdown. One smaller moment on WWE television saw Cena hugging Cole as part of a storyline of Cena leaving the company since it played into the reality of who he would embrace.
5 Chris Jericho and David Benoit
Chris Jericho is a friend to many wrestlers and has even started becoming a mentor to relatives of his friends. David Benoit is trying to start his career, but there are obviously issues as the son of Chris Benoit. Jericho stepped in to prevent him taking a booking where the promoter wanted to take advantage of him. Benoit has even attended AEW shows as a guest of Jericho.
4 Daniel Bryan and Sami Zayn
The current heel character of Sami Zayn and the prior heel character of Daniel Bryan share a lot of elements. Both have similar personas and mindsets outside of the ring. Bryan and Zayn have been good friends going back to their days together in Ring of Honor. Total Divas cameras even filmed a moment of Bryan and Zayn sharing laughs when training at the Performance Center.
3 Ember Moon and Alexa Bliss
Alexa Bliss and Ember Moon have become best friends when the two started working together on the main roster. Both ladies realized they had a lot of common interests and enjoyed each other’s company. Bliss and Moon refer to the other as their best friend and shared their friendship on television during an episode of Backstage.
2 Braun Strowman and Drake Maverick
Fans are shocked to learn that Braun Strowman and Drake Maverick are good friends behind the scenes. Strowman, Maverick and EC3 host a show together when they crack jokes and enjoy each other’s company. The friendship of Maverick and Strowman often leads to fun pictures given their overall height difference.
1 Kevin Owens and Finn Balor
Kevin Owens is known for having a close friendship with Sami Zayn and Finn Balor has the same reputation with Karl Anderson. However, Balor and Owens have referred to each other as best friends in interviews. The two grew close when starting together in NXT and loved working together. Owens went out of his way to express love for Balor when winning the Universal Championship after Balor relinquished it due to injury.
Sources: WWE Network, Wrestling Observer
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