10 on-screen wrestling couples that you forgot existed

There is something special about on-screen romances. The payoff of a romantic storyline can be one of the most satisfying moments to watch when done right, the most recent case in point being the Otis-Mandy Rose angle.

Professional wrestling has witnessed some memorable couples. Randy Savage and Elizabeth will take the top spot on any Top 10 list counting down the greatest on-screen couples. Edge and Lita, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, Eddie Guerrero and Chyna, are some of the couples that come to mind when we talk about the memorable ones.

However, it can all turn into an irreparable mess if creative doesn't give two hoots about cohesive booking or even having some faith in the angle.

There have been various romantic pairings that were given TV time but were broken up due to different reasons.

This slider takes a look at those on-screen couples you didn't even know existed or may have completed forgotten about.

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#10. AJ Styles and Mickie James

AJ Styles and Mickie James in ROH (PC - Diezel)

The fans sometimes fail to realize that Mickie James and AJ Styles have been around in the business for a very long time. They both began wrestling when WWE was wrapping up the Attitude Era and the independent wrestling circuit was starting to blow up.

Ring of Honor began its operations in 2002 and they provided opportunities to a host of promising in-ring workers. Styles and James, who were still rookies back then, featured in ROH shows when the promotion was still trying to find its feet. The company had some incredibly gifted wrestlers, who would go on to become established Superstars in bigger companies in the years to follow.

Styles and James were paired together in Ring of Honor when Mickie went by the ring name Alexis Laree. Styles and Amazing Red would then go on to form a fruitful tag team with Laree acting as the valet.

The alliance was a brief one as they followed different paths, with James having a short stint in TNA before being picked up by WWE in 2003. Styles would become a major name outside the WWE until he finally made his WWE debut in 2016.

James and Styles have come a long way and are currently in their early 40s and still employed by the WWE.

#9. Randy Orton and Stacy Keibler

It's easy to forget that this angle ever happened as this was part of WWE's unsatisfactory face run for Randy Orton. The Apex Predator was destined for unrivaled villainry as a young hotshot but WWE took a risk that didn't yield the desired outcome.

The angle between Stacy Keibler and Orton kicked off in February 2005 and it ended a month later in March after WWE decided to push Orton in a feud against The Undertaker.

WWE used Keibler to turn Orton heel again and it was wonderfully done when you look back at it. Orton's stint as a babyface wasn't going anywhere and WWE needed to get the heat back on the Legend Killer.

It was the episode of RAW on March 21st in which Orton kissed Keibler in the ring before laying her out with the RKO, thus cementing his heel turn.

The relationship between Keibler and Orton was appealing while it lasted but the endgame was always to get Orton back to being a bad guy and that was the right decision to make.

The couple looked pretty good together on TV for as long as they were together and it's a shame that it didn't go on for longer.

#8. Teddy Long and Kristal

Teddy Long is remembered as the General Manager who had a knack of booking Superstars in a one-on-one match against The Undertaker.

The WWE Hall of Famer is one of the most successful GMs of all time and as an authority figure, he was booked in some wacky storylines.

Long had settled into his role as a GM and WWE decided to spice things up in 2007 by booking Kristal to be his on-screen girlfriend. The idea of the storyline was for Kristal to convince Long to hire her friend Vickie Guerrero as his assistant.

The storyline progressed as expected with Long asking Kristal to marry her and a grand wedding ceremony was planned for the SmackDown episode on September 21, 2007.

The ceremony was filled with interruptions as Long suffered a heart attack and he eventually went into a coma just when he was saying the words 'I do'. The storyline was hilarious and engaging for what it was, and it had the potential to be a memorable one in the months to follow.

The plan was for Kristal to usurp power from Long after their marriage and transition to being a heel GM on SmackDown.

However, the angle never saw a definite end as Kristal - the real-lie ex-wife of Bobby Lashley - would be released from the company weeks after the ceremony due to creative differences.

#7. Cody Rhodes and Kaitlyn

WWE booked Cody Rhodes to be everything but a world champion and it presents a pretty perplexing picture when you look back at his WWE career.

This was from the time when Cody formed a heel tag team with Damien Sandow, collectively known as Team Rhodes Scholars. We're talking about moustache Cody here and he was doing a fine job as an uppity, arrogant heel.

The decision was then made to add another layer to Cody's character, which also seemed to be a portended move to facilitate a babyface turn.

Kaitlyn was brought into the equation and she was clearly attracted to Cody. He was into it too and their interactions showcased a lot of promise.

The potential was noticeable in the early stages that Kaitlyn and Cody could be a fruitful long-term pairing. WWE, however, didn't see much in the storyline and they dropped it before it could flourish into being something great.

The Bella Twins (yes, them again) were briefly brought in to pair up with Rhodes Scholars before WWE moved on to a feud between Cody and Sandow after their split.

Cody and Kaityln had chemistry and their angle ended up being a missed opportunity.

#6. The Great Khali and Natalya

The Great Khali went from being a feared giant to the Punjabi Playboy within years of his introduction to the WWE Universe as an unconquerable force of nature.

WWE can't be blamed either as Khali wasn't the most gifted professional wrestler to have graced the squared circle.

Despite having an emotionless face, WWE did find ways to utilize Khali in storylines that would not necessarily suit his skill-set, which included comedic angles and romances.

Khali was, for some reason, pushed to be the love interest of Natalya during the final stages of his WWE stint.

The former WWE Champion was actually not that bad as he was moderately charming as Natalya's on-screen partner. He supported her when she needed him the most and believe it or not, there was actual potential in the alliance to work.

Just like countless romantic storylines in the past, WWE dropped it without providing any explanation. The on-screen couple, though, would reunite backstage when Khali returned in 2017 to help Jinder Mahal in the WWE Championship match at Battleground.

#5. Trish Stratus and Jeff Hardy

The Hardy Boyz were one of the cornerstones of the Tag Team division between 1998 to 2002, and just like every tag team, Jeff and Matt split up to pursue their respective singles careers.

Jeff Hardy's first run as a solo performer was shortlived and it ended on a bad note with his release in 2003. However, before he was released from the company, Hardy was involved in various storylines and one of them was a romantic alliance with Trish Stratus.

Jeff and Trish were previously linked with each other years ago but the angle was discontinued after Stratus suffered an ankle injury in 2001.

Their romance was rekindled in 2003 and they did everything that a normal on-screen couple would do. They saved each other when needed, were involved in intergender matches and had their intimate moments in backstage segments.

The storyline was ended abruptly, however, after Hardy was shown the door by the company as his performance deteriorated due to his struggles with substance abuse.

On the flipside, Stratus was given a healthy push top of the Women's division.

#4. Balls Mahoney and Kelly Kelly

Yeah, this happened and we don't even know why. It doesn't even make sense when you consider their characters. It happened in WWE's rebooted version of ECW, which is why most fans don't even know about it.

ECW Original Balls Mahoney had a short-term angle with Kelly Kelly in 2007, which all began when he lost to The Miz during an episode of ECW. Kelly Kelly was in The Miz's corner but she was concerned about Mahoney.

The story unfolded in the weeks to follow as there was some spark between the two, however, there were constant roadblocks that came in their way.

Kelly did finally ask him out and they had a brief on-screen relationship during which they also teamed up together in a mixed tag team match.

WWE's iteration of ECW was a mismanaged mess and this story was dumped into the bin just like various other angles that were featured on the brand. WWE would not have even bothered to book it had the Superstars been on RAW or SmackDown.

Mahoney would get released in April 2008 while Kelly Kelly received a push on the main roster.

#3. Ted DiBiase Jr. and Maryse

Ted DiBiase Jr. was earmarked as a top prospect in the WWE, at least that was the intention when he was paired up with Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton in The Legacy.

However, the faction disbanded in 2010 and DiBiase adopted the Million Dollar character inspired by his legendary father, Ted DiBiase Sr. He even roped in Virgil as his manager before replacing him with Maryse, his on-screen partner.

Maryse was paired up with DiBiase to reignite his career after the Legacy stable folded. It was sadly one of those angles that just didn't pick up steam. It should have worked as the dynamic between Maryse and DiBiase had promise.

The DiBiase Jr. project never really took off and his relationship with Maryse lasted between 2010 and 2011 before it was nixed for good.

DiBiase would be given another fresh gimmick, which again, failed to get over with the fans. He was released from the WWE in 2013 as he wanted to spend some time with his family.

Maryse has had her fair share of on-screen relationships as well, but that's a topic for another article.

#2. Daniel Bryan and Gail Kim

Long before the Yes Movement came to the fore and the WWE officials realized Daniel Bryan's potential as an underdog character, WWE was hell-bent on pushing him in various romantic storylines.

Bryan's stint with the WWE that kicked off in 2010 started on a bright note as he won the United States title - his first Championship in the company. WWE would then book an angle in which both Brie and Nikki Bella would be attracted to Bryan.

Bryan, though, was pushed as a ladies man, who would end up ignoring the advances of the Bella Twins to secretly date Gail Kim.

The Bella Twins stopped managing Bryan after the revelation and they began to feud with Kim.

Gail Kim and Daniel Bryan's relationship didn't last long as WWE gave up on the angle. Kim would reveal on the 411 Wrestling Interviews Podcast years later that she was ready to quit the WWE before she was offered the angle with Bryan.

Kim would end up walking out of the company months later due to creative differences after she imfamously eliminated herself from the Battle Royal match in August 2011.

As for Bryan, he would be involved in another romantic angle with AJ Lee before he moving on to better things.

#1. Taka Michinoku and Sunny

At her peak, Sunny was the most desirable woman in WWE and the top valet in the business.

The challenging lifestyle of professional wrestling sadly got to her and Sunny was a shell of her former self during her final days in the company.

She had fallen out of favour with the powers that be and was relegated to less prominent roles in the company. One of them was becoming the manager of Taka Michinoku - who had signed with the company in 1997 and was inserted into the Light Heavyweight Championship picture.

The relationship wasn't highlighted all that much on WWE's main programming as it got air-time on the company's Saturday shows. Many of the fans found it comical to believe that Taka Michinoku managed to woo Sunny without even knowing English.

There was no purpose of pushing the pairing as Sunny was on the verge of being kicked out of the company and Michinoku was part of the lower-card.

Sunny would eventually get released in July 1998 owing to many backstage problems, and her angle with Michinoku subsequently came to an end.