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Over the past two years, many former and current WWE Superstars have tied the knot and several are currently happily married to much younger spouses. The age difference between The Undertaker and his wife Michelle McCool, for example, is 15 years. Meanwhile, Jerry Lawler is 39 years older than his wife, Lauryn McBride.
A few other WWE Superstars have also recently followed in these wrestlers' footsteps, marrying their much younger partners. The age gap between these newly married couples varies between six and 20 years.
Here are five recently married WWE couples with the biggest age gaps.
#5. Former WWE Superstars Matt Cardona and Chelsea Green (6 years)
Matt Cardona (FKA Zack Ryder) joined WWE in 2005 and spent nearly a decade and a half in the company before leaving in 2020. Chelsea Green also worked in WWE for a few years between 2018 and 2021. However, the couple met outside Vince McMahon's company.
In an interview with Chris Van Vliet in 2020, Cardona disclosed that AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes and his wife Brandi set him up with Green a few years ago.
"You're single. Why don't you guys... I'm like... I don't want to date a wrestler. Been there, done that, doesn't work out. No way. And then they said, 'she likes Disney.' Oh, she likes Disney... ok. So, I did the typical slide into the DMs and I think the first thing was, you like Disney. We went on a date, like two weeks later. She tried avoiding me but I finally got through," he said.
The couple started dating in 2017. At the time, Cardona was still in WWE while Green competed in IMPACT Wrestling. In April 2019, the two former WWE Superstars announced their engagement.
The current Impact Wrestling stars tied the knot on December 31, 2021. Cardona is now 36 years old. He is six years older than Green, who is 30.
#4. Former WWE Superstar Tessa Blanchard - Daga (7 years)
Tessa Blanchard spent only a few months in WWE. The daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Tully Blanchard competed in three matches on NXT in 2016 against Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax, and Carmella. However, she lost them all. The 26-year-old also participated in the 2017 Mae Young Classic tournament.
Tessa also competed for several years on the independent circuit, where she met and started a relationship with Mexican wrestler Daga, who is seven years older than her. In an Instagram post, she disclosed that she fell in love with him at first sight.
"I remember the first time I saw you, how I felt something stirring inside me telling me that you are the person that I will love for the rest of forever," she wrote.
In 2018, the daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Tully Blanchard joined IMPACT Wrestling. Her boyfriend also signed with the company nearly a year later. Meanwhile, they continued to wrestle in other independent promotions.
The couple teamed up in several matches. They also competed against each other a few times. In July and August 2019, they went head-to-head twice in singles bouts. Tessa defeated Daga in both.
In November 2019, the couple announced their engagement. They tied the knot in August 2020.
Tessa and her husband both left IMPACT Wrestling in 2020. The former IMPACT World Champion has not competed for over a year. Nonetheless, she recently signed with Women of Wrestling. Meanwhile, Daga has also not competed since July 2021.
#3. WWE legend John Cena - Shay Shariatzadeh (13 years)
Nearly a year after breaking up with WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella, John Cena started dating Canadian engineer Shay Shariatzadeh in 2019.
Cena was filming his movie Playing with Fire in Canada when he first met Shariatzadeh. He reportedly fell in love with her at first sight.
"What’s truly special about this one [Playing with Fire] is that, no matter what projects I’m involved in in the future, this one will always have a special meaning because I got to film a special project and meet someone special," Cena later told Entertainment Tonight.
After dating for nearly a year, the couple tied the knot in October 2020, in a secret wedding ceremony in Tampa, Florida. They only invited family, friends, and a few WWE talent.
The 16-time world champion is 13 years older than Shariatzadeh. While he is now 44 years old, she is 31.
Cena and his wife are happy together despite the age difference. The couple have been inseparable since they started dating. Shariatzadeh has accompanied Cena to several events, movie sets, and WWE shows in the past few months.
#2. WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page - Payge McMahon (18 years)
WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page has been married three times. His third and current spouse, Payge McMahon, is 18 years younger than him. While Page is now 65 years old, McMahon is 47.
The former WWE European Champion first met McMahon in 2013. They dated for a few months before he decided to end the relationship because of the lengthy age gap.
"He broke up with me in 2013. I think he was intimidated by the 18-year age difference, and I was traveling the world back then. But we had so much common, even broken backs," McMahon explained to I Run Far.
However, they reunited in 2019. Page and McMahon dated for two years before tying the knot last month. The wedding came as a surprise to the bride herself, as the WWE Hall of Famer told her they were going to a "red and white" Christmas party.
Page and his daughter, intuitive designer and luxury event planner Brittany Page, were the ones who organized the wedding. It took place at the Dwell Hotel in Chattanooga, where the couple reunited on December 9th, 2019, six years after their breakup. Several wrestlers attended the ceremony, including Rob Van Dam and his wife Katie Forbes, Marc Mero, Enzo Amore, and William Morrissey (FKA Big Cass).
#1. WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam - Katie Forbes (20 years)
In 1998, WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam married his first wife, Sonia Delbeck. The couple spent 17 years together. Nonetheless, they separated in 2015 before finalizing their divorce three years later.
Nearly a year after his separation from his first wife, the 51-year-old WWE Hall of Famer met and fell in love with Katie Forbes. The two wrestlers' first encounter came at a convention. Despite Van Dam being 20 years older than Forbes, they started dating in 2016. They also appeared on TV together when Forbes became Van Dam's valet in IMPACT Wrestling.
After nearly five years together, Van Dam and Forbes tied the knot last November in a private ceremony in Las Vegas. Several wrestlers attended the wedding, including former WWE Superstars Karrion Kross and Scarlett Bordeaux.
During a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet, the former WWE Champion showered his wife with praise, disclosing that she makes him happy.
"I have definitely [been] showcasing since Katie Forbes, you know, for sure. And she’s a party girl, you know, she’s fun, and she’s awesome," he said.
The former WWE Champion only competed in two matches in 2021. His last bout came in September at the Battleground Championship Wrestling Debut Show. He teamed up with Bully Ray to defeat Marq Quen and Matt Hardy.
Van Dam also entered the WWE Hall of Fame in 2021. He and his now-wife attended the ceremony together.
