"At the time she had a serious boyfriend" - 5 things you didn't know about WWE NXT Women's Champion Mandy Rose and Tino Sabbatelli's relationship
Despite Mandy Rose and Tino Sabbatelli's fame, the WWE Universe does not know much about their private life.
During an interview with Lillian Garcia in 2018, Rose announced that she and Sabbatelli were in a romantic relationship. God's Greatest Creation also attended the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony with her boyfriend that same year.
Since then, the couple have been very secretive about their relationship. Rose and Sabbatelli also rarely post photos together on social media. Nevertheless, they recently revealed a few details about their romance.
Here are five things you did not know about Mandy Rose and Tino Sabbatelli's relationship.
#5. Mandy Rose and Tino Sabbatelli first met at the WWE Performance Center
Not Me just finding out Mandy & Tino are dating 😠https://t.co/BtqbpnoDRB
In 2015, Mandy Rose participated in the Tough Enough competition. While training at the Performance Center, she met then-NXT star Tino Sabbatelli.
In an interview with Chris Van Vliet, Sabbatelli revealed that he instantly thought Rose was cute when he spotted her at the Performance Center.
"So the first time I met Mandy, I remember when they were filming the show Tough Enough (...) they built out like a little warehouse, right next to the PC in Orlando where they were keeping everybody for the show. (...) I remember seeing them a couple times like walk through the PC and I was like 'wow, that girl is cute.' You know, I was kind of checking out joking around with my buddies, and I've always thought she was beautiful. I really did. And I actually met her for the first time in the PC. And we were just talking briefly and then, you know, I watched her go through the show. She did great and then she got signed," he said. (0:09 - 0:51)
Despite finishing second in Tough Enough, WWE offered Rose a contract alongside a few other contestants. However, Rose and Sonya Deville are the only ones from these former Tough Enough contestants still in Vince McMahon's company.
#4. Mandy Rose was engaged when she met Tino Sabbatelli
When she joined WWE, Mandy Rose was in a long-term relationship with Michael Lubic. He was even the one who encouraged her to participate in Tough Enough and pursue a wrestling career.
In an interview with WWE's After The Bell podcast, God's Greatest Creation disclosed that Lubic was a big wrestling fan.
"My ex at the time was a big wrestling fan and he always kind of pushed me and motivated me to like pursue that but I didn't really know much about wrestling. I didn't really grow up watching it to be honest," she said. (4:17 - 4:27)
When Rose first met her current boyfriend, Tino Sabbatelli, she and Lubic were engaged. Hence, she and the former NXT star remained just friends. Nevertheless, things changed when Rose and Lubic called off their engagement.
In his interview with Chris Van Vliet, Sabbatelli disclosed how his friendship with Rose turned into a romance.
"At the time she had a serious boyfriend. She was engaged. So we were just friends. You know, we were just friends and after she broke up, it kind of escalated from there man," Sabbatelli added. (1:19 - 1:29)
Although Rose has previously appeared with her ex-fiance on Total Divas, she and her current boyfriend never showed up together on any WWE show.
#3. Mandy Rose's personality attracted Tino Sabbatelli
Mandy Rose is one of the most beautiful women in WWE today. However, her beauty was not what attracted Tino Sabbatelli the most.
During the same interview with Chris Van Vliet, Sabbatelli discussed his relationship with the current NXT Women's champion, revealing that her down-to-earth personality was the thing that drew him to her.
"I'll tell you one thing about Mandy. What attracted me the most, beautiful woman, obviously everyone knows she's gorgeous, her personality and her down-to-earth persona just drew me to her. She was such so easy to talk to, like I was like 'wow' like 'such a beautiful woman got everything together and she could have a conversation!' And it sounds funny but like sometimes you see these pretty women they're kind of distant, they're stuck up, but she was just such a genuine person," (0:51 - 1:19)
In a recent interview with Sportskeeda, Sabbatelli also stated that his girlfriend's real-life personality is nothing like her on-screen heel persona.
#2. Mandy Rose makes Tino Sabbatelli better
During his recent interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling's UnSKripted podcast, Tino Sabbatelli spoke about Mandy Rose's impact on his life since they became a couple.
The former NXT star disclosed that Rose makes him better. He also stated that he was grateful to have the current WWE NXT Women's Champion in his life.
“She's amazing. She is one of the most humble, down to earth, caring, good-soul women. She is just an amazing person. She does a great job of playing her character, but that’s not Mandy Rose. That's not who she is as a person. I'm extremely grateful and blessed. She makes me better in every single way. There are not enough good words I can say about her. She is an amazing woman, and I'm grateful," he explained.
While Mandy Rose is currently active on NXT 2.0, her boyfriend is no longer with WWE. In July 2021, WWE released Sabbatelli from his contract. He has not wrestled ever since.
#1. A rumor suggested Mandy Rose and Tino Sabbatelli had split
As Tino Sabbatelli and Mandy Rose kept their relationship private, many fans wondered if the couple were still together. Some rumors suggested that the current NXT Women's Champion and her boyfriend had split.
However, Sabbatelli and Rose killed these rumors by appearing in a few Instagram stories together in late 2021. For the first time in years, the couple also posted a few photos together on social media last February, celebrating Valentine's Day.
Although they never confirmed it, Rose and Sabbatelli are seemingly living together. During his interview with Chris Van Vliet, the former NXT star moved his camera to show the interviewer a wall to his right, which had some of his girlfriend's magazine covers. Sabbatelli then explained to Van Vliet that it was Rose's wall.