Samantha Irvin and Ricochet: All About the WWE Star and Ring Announcer's Relationship

WWE star Ricochet and ring announcer Samantha Irvin went public with their relationship in November 2021

While many WWE relationships are fabricated for entertainment, Ricochet and Samantha Irvin’s relationship is as real as it gets.

Ricochet is known as one of the most high-flying wrestlers in WWE with his aerial acrobatics and for being WWE’s first wrestler to win the company’s three major secondary titles: the United States Championship, the Intercontinental Championship and the NXT North American championship.

Ricochet’s fiancée, WWE ring announcer Samantha Irvin, is known for her booming voice and energetic approach to announcing wrestlers — including Ricochet — as they enter the ring or win their matches.

When Irvin was preparing for her new role as a WWE ring announcer prior to making her debut in April 2021, she was following WWE wrestlers on X (formerly Twitter). After following Ricochet, the two began talking before eventually meeting for their first date in Las Vegas.

“We met on Twitter actually. I was doing my due diligence. It was all professional. I was just following the current wrestlers and just getting in the mix of what was going on and he followed me back,” Irvin told Chris Van Vliet on Insight with Chris Van Vliet. “We just started talking and we’re still talking. That’s [what] I usually tell people. We just never stopped talking.”

The couple often post pictures of their relationship, and WWE promotes it as well, even including their relationship in storylines for Ricochet’s matches and rivalries. In January 2023, the couple announced their engagement.

Here’s everything to know about the relationship between WWE star Ricochet and ring announcer Samantha Irvin.

Their first date was at the Grand Canyon

Irvin and Ricochet began talking on X after Irvin followed him shortly after learning of her upcoming employment with WWE. For their first date, they met in Las Vegas while Irvin was working there and took an impromptu trip to the Grand Canyon.

“I went to see her in Vegas because she used to perform out there. She did Cirque du Soleil and a bunch of cool production shows that year,” Ricochet said on Insight with Chris Van Vliet. “When I landed, we didn’t have anything planned so we were just driving around Vegas… so she says, ‘Do you want to go to the Grand Canyon?’ ”

When Irvin posed the question, Ricochet assumed the Grand Canyon wasn’t a far drive, but was surprised when she told him it was four hours away at 8 p.m. Ricochet commemorated the one-year anniversary of their first date by sharing their first picture together from the Grand Canyon on Instagram.

“It’s been a year [since] we found ourselves at the Grand Canyon! It’s really been the best year I could have asked for. You’ve helped me grow more than anyone, you’ve been there for me more than anyone and you’ve loved me better than anyone. I really got lucky to have someone like you as my life partner! I love you @samanthairvinwwe ♥️🔒,” Ricochet wrote in the caption.

They went public with their relationship in 2021

When Irvin first began fulfilling her dreams as a WWE ring announcer on the company’s NXT brand in April 2021, her relationship with Ricochet wasn’t public yet. That all changed on Nov. 13, 2021, when Ricochet shared a picture on Instagram of a photo Irvin took of the couple in an elevator with an infinity emoji as the caption.

Irvin responded in the comments writing, “I love you 🔐,” and also reshared the photo on X with the lock and key emoji as the caption.

Ricochet is Irvin’s favorite wrestler

While it may seem obvious Irvin’s fiancé would be her favorite wrestler, she has been a wrestling fan for her entire life and has a deep appreciation for his style of wrestling. She has also said her favorite moment from his WWE career is when he won the Intercontinental Championship, partly because she got to announce it.

“Ricochet is my current favorite. He’s amazing… I loved when he won the Intercontinental Championship. That was a great, great, great, great moment and I was so happy I was able to announce that,” Irvin said on Insight with Chris Van Vliet. “You know that every match [he’s in] is going to be incredible. You know that he’s going to do everything in his power to try to win so I love everything that I’ve seen him do. I’ve never seen him have a bad match.”

Ricochet and Irvin got engaged in January 2023

Ricochet was initially planning to propose to Irvin on New Year’s Eve 2022 after attending a Tenacious D concert, but when they got home late he could tell how tired she was and waited. A few days later in early January 2023, Irvin, her daughter Myra and Ricochet were out for Irvin’s birthday to see The Blue Man Group at the Luxor, and after the performance, Ricochet felt the moment was right.

“Me, her and her daughter Myra, we went to go do something, us three, no friends, no people, it was just us three and she absolutely loved it,” Ricochet told WWE on Fox. “I find a couple and I ask them to take a photo of us three and she took a photo of us three with Myra and I [said to Irvin], ‘Hey, would you want to get one with just us [two]?’… As soon as I bent down she instantly started crying.”

Irvin and Ricochet shared a collaborative post on Instagram of the moment with pictures of Ricochet getting down on one knee proposing at the Luxor and of Irvin’s new ring.

“She said YES! 🙌🏽 When you find that one person. The one person that when you close your eyes you could never visualize life without them… you keep them close to your heart. Now we are closer than ever. @samanthairvinwwe I love you so much ♥️♥️,” Ricochet wrote in the caption.

Irvin’s reactions are often a storyline in Ricochet’s matches

Because Irvin sits ringside for every match she announces, WWE’s social media accounts sometimes post split-screen videos of Irvin reacting on one half of the screen and of what Ricochet is doing in the ring on the other half. She can often be seen cringing when Ricochet attempts a high-risk aerial maneuver or excitedly grinning when he is about to win a match before she announces him as the winner.

On the episode of Monday Night Raw after WrestleMania 40 — known as “Raw After Mania” — Ricochet was one of four participants in the main event to determine who would be the No. 1 contender for Damian Priest’s World Heavyweight Championship. While standing atop the ring’s ropes, Ricochet looked at Irvin and mouthed, “I’m sorry,” before hitting a 450 splash — a full mid-air flip — that sent Bronson Reed crashing through the announce table.

They celebrated their third anniversary as a couple in 2024

On March 28, 2024, Ricochet and Irvin celebrated their third anniversary as a couple, which also marked their first since becoming engaged. Ricochet shared some pictures of the couple on Instagram with a caption about how much Irvin means to him.

“Happy 3 years to the person who has taken the time to understand me and gone above and beyond to let me know how much she loves me. To the person that makes me laugh more than anyone I've ever met. Happy 3 years to the person that I love more and more every day. @samanthairvinwwe ♥️,” Ricochet wrote in the caption.

On the same day, Irvin reciprocated the gesture with a sentimental post of her own that also made reference to Ricochet’s “King Ricochet” nickname. She shared a series of pictures on Instagram of Ricochet and her smiling, including some solo shots of Ricochet and even of herself using a filter that made her look like Ricochet.

“3 years with you ♥️ The peanut butter to my jelly, my family, my home, my comfort, my best friend, my supporter, my hype man, my soulmate. I love you 👑 Happy Anniversary, Baby,” Irvin wrote in the caption.

They appeared in the WWE 2K24 video game together

Many wrestling fans can remember playing wrestling video games. Whether early arcade games, Smackdown Vs. Raw games or the newer WWE 2K entries, wrestling video games are an iconic part of wrestling’s legacy.

For some, it is the closest they will ever get to competing in the squared circle, or a way to safely recreate the spectacle. However, for Ricochet and Irvin it was an important box to check off in their wrestling legacy, with the couple both being featured in WWE’s latest video game: WWE 2K24.

"Especially her being someone like us who’s just been watching it and loving wrestling since we can remember,” Ricochet told 2K. “To now be able to be part of something like this and to be in the video game, you know, that was always one of my boxes you want to check off. You want to be in a video game and [for Irvin] as well.”

“I mean I couldn’t be more happy. I couldn’t be more proud because just to see what [Irvin’s] gone through to get here,” Ricochet continued. “To know her journey and how much wrestling has impacted her journey and that’s in singing, acting, all that stuff. Wrestling has been probably the number one factor in her life… so it’s cool for her to finally be a part of it. It’s awesome.”

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