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There are a considerable amount of couples in WWE at present, which can only make storyline ideas so much easier for the company's creative team. There was a time when fans could count the number of couples in the company on one hand and now there seem to be power couples on every brand.
Many couples were already together when they both signed for WWE much like Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae or Mia Yim and Keith Lee. There are others who bonded over their new training regime when they were signed to the company's developmental brand.
The following looks at five current couples who met whilst they were both working in NXT.
#5. Peyton Royce and Tye Dillinger
Peyton Royce came through the ranks in NXT alongside her tag team partner Billie Kay, known as The Iconic Duo, Royce and Kay gained themselves quite a reputation in NXT before they were called up to the main roster. The duo was then re-named The IIconics and have continued the same gimmick from their early NXT days and are now former WWE Women's Tag Team Champions.
Tye Dillinger also had some of the best years of his career as "The Perfect 10" before he was called up to the SmackDown brand. Whilst Royce and Dillinger were performing together in NXT, the couple announced that they were dating and were able to make their relationship work while on different brands.
Dillinger was released from WWE back in 2019, but the couple has remained together and even announced that they had married back in the summer of 2019. Royce is currently part of the Monday night RAW roster whilst Dillinger is known under his real name Shawn Spears as part of All Elite Wrestling.
#4. Aleister Black and Zelina Vega
Aleister Black and Zelina Vega are both part of WWE's Monday Night RAW roster at present, with Black currently in a feud with Seth Rollins whilst Vega is the manager of Andrade and Angel Garza.
A few years ago, it was known publicly that Vega and Austin Aries were in a relationship, well before it was confirmed back in 2018 that Black and Vega had married. The duo was so secretive about their relationship throughout their time together that it wasn't until WWE leaked the new that the WWE Universe found out that they were together.
The couple reportedly started dating as part of the feud between Andrade and Aleister Black in NXT and then married a few months later. Since Vega and Black were promoted to WWE's main roster, the company has worked hard to ensure that the married couple is always on the same brand.
Zelina and Black were once very private about their relationship but now the couple openly posts on Instagram and has their own Youtube Channel called A to Z.
#3. Rusev and Lana
Rusev and Lana have been in a relationship throughout their WWE careers, ever since Lana was partnered with Rusev while he was in NXT back in 2013. The chemistry between the couple was undeniable and, despite Lana being put into storylines with Dolph Ziggler, Aiden English and Bobby Lashley over the years, Rusev and Lana have still remained a solid unit outside of the ring.
Lana and Rusev were once part of the cast of Total Divas and their two weddings (one in Miami and one in Bulgaria) were both filmed as part of the show. Their engagement announcement did land the couple in hot water at one point though, since TMZ leaked the news partway through a storyline where Rusev and Lana were "broken up."
Lana is currently part of a storyline with Natalya on Monday Night RAW while her husband Rusev was released from the company, along with a number of other WWE stars back in April. Despite having sat out his 90-day no-compete clause, it's unclear what direction Rusev is going in following his WWE departure.
#2. Ricochet and Kacy Catanzaro
It was well-known that when Ricochet came to WWE he was in a relationship with fellow wrestler Tessa Blanchard. The couple later went their separate ways and it was revealed that Ricochet and American Ninja Warrior legend Kacy Catanzaro were then dating instead.
The couple has had their ups and downs throughout their relationship, but they have obviously bonded over their love of high-flying arial moves in the ring which both have in their arsenal. Ricochet came through the ranks in NXT and was a former North American Champion before he was promoted to Monday Night RAW, while Kacy has already appeared in the Women's Royal Rumble match despite being exclusive to NXT.
Ricochet and his long-time girlfriend may be on separate WWE brands at present, but the couple is still able to post cute Instagram pictures together regularly.
Catanzaro may be much smaller than many of the women on WWE's current roster, but she gives as good as she gets in the ring and could be set to be a star on the main roster one day.
#1. Montez Ford and Bianca Belair
Montez Ford and Bianca Belair are easily Monday Night RAW's coolest couple. The "EST of WWE" was recently able to join her husband on the brand following her promotion at WWE biggest show of the year, WrestleMania, back in April.
Montez Ford and his Street Profits partner Angelo Dawkins came through the ranks in NXT as well and are former Tag Team Champions.
Belair and Ford met during their time in NXT and married back in 2018 when the couple were still together on the developmental brand. As part of a recent appearance on Lilian Garcia's Chasing Glory podcast, Belair noted that the couple met and had an instant connection at WWE's Performance Center.
For me it was... I remember seeing him and just thinking, I have friends here and they can be witnesses, ‘Wow, that’s a beautiful man.’ I had an immediate crush on him. He got hurt for awhile and he disappeared for a little while, for a couple months when I first started. It was kinda just, it was an immediate connection. We’ve kind of been inseparable ever since. We got married, and it’s just crazy, because we come from two completely different sides of the world. He was a marine, he was in the military. I was just living life and going to college and working in Atlanta. If it hadn’t of been for WWE, and coming into wrestling, I found my husband through wrestling, and wrestling has brought me so much joy and my husband and its brought me this career that I can’t imagine myself doing anything else. Man, I’m just blessed.”
Ford and Dawkins are the current Raw Tag Team Champions.
