5 times WWE Superstars had to work with their real-life partners' exes

Several superstars have competed alongside their real-life partners in WWE in the past few years. Others, however, went through a different experience, sharing the ring with their partners' exes.

The WWE locker room has witnessed many romances over the years. A few WWE Superstars dated more than one of their colleagues. That led to having their new partners and their exes working around each other. Some of them even had to work together in the ring.

Although being around their partners' exes might not have been the most comfortable experience, these WWE Superstars did their jobs professionally. While some had one-off matches, others had historic rivalries with their real-life partners' exes.

Here are five times WWE Superstars had to work with their real-life partners' exes.

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#5. WWE legend John Cena - Dolph Ziggler

Dolph Ziggler was the first WWE Superstar Nikki Bella dated after joining Vince McMahon's company in 2007. Nonetheless, their relationship ended after a few years.

In late 2012, Bella started dating John Cena. Five years later, the 16-time World Champion proposed to the WWE Hall of Famer inside the ring at WrestleMania 33, following their victory over The Miz and Maryse.

Bella and Cena were supposed to tie the knot in May 2018. However, the former Divas Champion ended the engagement and broke up with Cena one month before the wedding.

While he dated Nikki Bella, the Leader of the Cenation had to share the ring with his partner's ex-boyfriend several times. The former WWE Champion and Ziggler faced each other in singles and tag team matches. They also squared off in Battle Royals and even a 6-Pack Challenge. Cena also teamed up with Ziggler in a few tag team bouts too.

In October 2016, Cena teamed up with his then-girlfriend and her ex-boyfriend to defeat Baron Corbin, The Miz, and Carmella in a dark match after SmackDown. It was the only match in which Nikki Bella shared the ring with Cena and Ziggler at the same time.

#4. WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella - Mickie James

Like John Cena had to work with Nikki Bella's ex-boyfriend, the WWE Hall of Famer also shared the ring with Cena's ex-girlfriend.

Before the 16-time World Champion and Bella got together in 2012, Cena had a few romances in the WWE locker room. In 2007, The Leader of the Cenation dated Mickie James. However, their love story ended shortly after.

James left WWE in 2010 and returned six years later. Upon her return, she addressed working around Cena during her appearance on Lilian Garcia's Making Their Way podcast.

""We're all adults, and you know obviously this business is what it is, and we've all had our share of relationships failed. I think that being adults and being professionals... It's such a tight-knit thing... you don't get a chance to... make any type of outside life. We're all grown adults and I would hope that, and I'm pretty sure that it's going to be pretty awesome," James said.

After her WWE return, the six-time Women's Champion did not have to share the ring with her ex-boyfriend. Nonetheless, she had to work with his then-girlfriend Nikki Bella. Bella and James faced each other in three tag team matches in 2017.

The first match came in the preshow of the 2017 Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Bella teamed up with Becky Lynch and Naomi to defeat Alexa Bliss, Natalya, and James.

In March 2017, Bella teamed up with Lynch, Asuka, and Tamina to defeat Bliss, Carmella, Natalya, and James at a live event. The two teams faced each other again the following night at another live event. The bout ended with the same result.

#3. Former WWE Superstar John Morrison - Mike Knox

Former WWE Superstars John Morrison and Melina were among the most famous WWE couples a few years ago. The two wrestlers started dating in the early 2000s and stayed together for nearly 11 years before splitting in 2015.

Before Melina and Morrison got together, the former Women's Champion dated another wrestler, Mike Knox. During her appearance on the Ross Report with Jim Ross in 2015, 42-year-old Melina disclosed that Knox was her second-ever boyfriend. The two former WWE Superstars dated before Melina got into the wrestling business.

While Morrison and Melina were still dating, the former Intercontinental Champion had to share the ring with his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend a few times. Knox and Morrison first teamed up together as part of Team Rated-RKO against Team DX in the 5-on-5 Survivor Series elimination match in 2006. They were also on the same team in two other bouts in 2008.

In 2009, Knox and Morrison faced each other in two singles matches, in which the latter won. Knox was also on the losing side when he teamed up with Dolph Ziggler to face Morrison and Finlay that same year on SmackDown.

Melina, Morrison, and Knox are all now out of WWE. The company released Knox from his contract in April 2010. A year later, both Morrison and Melina left WWE, too. Nonetheless, the former Intercontinental Champion returned to Vince McMahon's company in 2019. However, WWE recently released him due to budget cuts.

#2. WWE Hall of Famer Edge - Matt Hardy

WWE Hall of Famer Edge and Matt Hardy were once best friends. Nonetheless, their friendship collapsed when The Rated R Superstar had an affair with Hardy's real-life girlfriend, Lita.

In April 2005, WWE fired Hardy due to "unprofessional conduct" after learning about his girlfriend's affair with his best friend. Meanwhile, Edge and Lita continued dating.

A few months later, WWE rehired Hardy. Nonetheless, the company turned the real-life issues between Hardy, Edge, and Lita into an on-screen storyline. The three wrestlers had to work together for a couple of months.

The storyline ended in October 2005, when Hardy faced Edge in a Loser Leaves Raw ladder match at WWE Raw Homecoming. The Rated R Superstar defeated the former United States Champion, forcing him to leave for SmackDown.

Later, Lita confessed that the storyline was uncomfortable for her to the extent that she almost quit. In an interview with Peter Rosenberg, Edge also disclosed how he felt during that time.

"You gotta be pros, and also, back to my point of finding positives when it doesn’t seem like there are any on the surface, you gotta dig underneath the surface, this was one of those... hopefully out of this, we can not only be stronger performers, but stronger people too.' And that usually doesn’t happen within the context of a wrestling storyline," he said.

Edge and Lita later split. The Rated R Superstar is currently married to WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix. Meanwhile, Matt Hardy is now an active competitor in AEW. He is married to former IMPACT Wrestling star Reby Sky.

#1. WWE NXT ring announcer Samantha Irvin - Kacy Catanzaro

WWE Superstar Ricochet dated NXT 2.0 star Kacy Catanzaro for several years. Nonetheless, their relationship recently ended.

The former United States Champion recently shared a photo with his new girlfriend, Samantha Irvin, on his Instagram. Irvin is a ring announcer and backstage interviewer on NXT 2.0. Ricochet's ex-girlfriend and current one now share the same locker room. Being on the same brand as her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend means Irvin might sometimes have to work with Catanzaro.

Last July, the two ladies did appear on-screen together as Irvin interviewed Catanzaro and her tag team partner Kayden Carter backstage.

Catanzaro remains a regular competitor on NXT 2.0. She, however, has not competed in the past two weeks. Her last match came on the November 23 episode when she teamed up with Carter to defeat Indi Hartwell and Persia Pirotta. Irvin also continues to perform her duties on WWE's third brand.

Meanwhile, Richochet is currently active on SmackDown. He recently competed in the Black Friday Invitational Battle Royal to determine a new challenger for Roman Reigns' WWE Universal Title. Nevertheless, the 33-year-old came up short as Sami Zayn emerged victorious.