Savelina Fanene (born May 29, 1984) is an Australian-born American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

. She is best known for her time in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

, where she performed under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

Nia Jax from 2014 to 2021 and became a one-time

Raw Women's Champion The WWE Raw Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main roster, along ...

and two-time Women's Tag Team Champion (both times with

Shayna Baszler Shayna Andrea Baszler ( ; born August 8, 1980) is an American professional wrestler, kickboxer and former mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand. Baszler is a former two-time and longest ...

Early life

Savelina Fanene was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

on May 29, 1984, and raised in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

. She is of German and Samoan descent, and is a cousin of

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he was integral to the developm ...

as her father Joseph was a first cousin of Johnson's grandfather

Peter Maivia Fanene Leifi Pita Maivia (born Fanene Pita Anderson; April 6, 1937 – June 13, 1982) better known as Peter Maivia was a Samoan-American professional wrestler. Maivia was the maternal grandfather of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and was also part o ...

. She later lived in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, and attended Carlsbad High School. She attended

Palomar College Palomar College is a public community college in San Diego County, California. The main campus is in San Marcos and three centers and four education sites are located elsewhere throughout north San Diego County. The largest of these by student ...

San Marcos, California San Marcos ( ; Spanish for " St. Mark") is a city in the North County region of San Diego County, California. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 94,833. It is the site of California State University San Marcos. The city is borde ...

, where she played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

, and graduated from

Cal State San Marcos California State University San Marcos (CSUSM or Cal State San Marcos) is a public university in San Marcos, California. It was founded in 1989 as the 21st campus in the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. CSUSM offers 43 bachel ...

with a marketing degree in 2005. Prior to professional wrestling, she worked as a

plus-size model A plus-size model is an individual size 12 and above who is engaged primarily in Model (person), modeling plus-size clothing. Plus-size clothing worn by plus-size models is typically catering for and marketed to either Big & Tall or Tall or Overw ...

Professional wrestling career

WWE (2014–2021)

NXT (2014–2016)

Fanene was signed by

in early 2014 and was assigned to their

developmental territory In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...

, based at the

WWE Performance Center The WWE Performance Center is the official professional wrestling school system of the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The promotion currently operates two Performance Center locations, which serve as training facilities for WWE ...

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

. She made her in-ring debut on May 7, 2015, at an NXT house show under the

Zada, teaming with Devin Taylor in a defeat to Bayley and

Carmella Carmella is a female given name. Notable people with the name include: People * Carmella DeCesare Carmella Danielle DeCesare Garcia (born July 1, 1982) is an American model who was ''Playboy'' magazine's Miss April 2003 and Playmate of t ...

in a

tag team match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. In August, her ring name was changed to Nia Jax. After a series of introductory vignettes throughout September, Jax made her debut on October 14 episode of ''

'', defeating

Evie Evie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Evie (given name) * Evie (singer), American contemporary Christian music singer Evelyn Tornquist (born 1957) * Evie (wrestler), ring name of New Zealand female professional wrestler Cheree Crowl ...

in a singles match. Following her debut, she was shown slowly turning villainous while going on a winning streak, defeating various enhancement talents and NXT Diva Carmella. In November, Jax formed an

alliance An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

with

Eva Marie Natalie Eva Marie Nelson (born September 19, 1984) is an American actress, fashion designer, model, and professional wrestler. She is best known for her tenures in WWE, from 2013–2017 and 2020–2021, where she performed under the ring name ...

and started her first feud with Bayley over the

NXT Women's Championship The NXT Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is defended on the NXT brand division, the promotion's developmental territory. Introduced on April 5, 2013, t ...

, cementing Jax's heel persona. Jax earned a title match on December 16 at NXT TakeOver: London, but she was unsuccessful in winning the

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

. On the January 27, 2016 episode of ''NXT'', Jax returned to the ring after a month of inactivity due to a storyline injury with a win over

Liv Morgan Gionna Jene Daddio (born June 8, 1994) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Liv Morgan. She is a former SmackDown Women's Champion. In ...

. On the February 10 episode of ''NXT'', Jax assisted Marie in an attack on Bayley and Carmella after their championship match until

Asuka Asuka may refer to: People * Asuka (name), a list of people * Asuka (wrestler), professional wrestler * Asuka (wrestler, born 1998), professional wrestler also known as Veny outside of Japan Places In Japan * , an area in Yamato Province (now ...

made the save, which led to a tag team match on the February 24 episode of ''NXT'', where Jax and Marie scored the victory. On the May 25 episode of ''NXT'', Jax won a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

over

Alexa Bliss Alexis Cabrera (née Kaufman; born August 9, 1991) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Alexa Bliss. In 2013, Bliss signed a contract with WWE and was a ...

and Carmella to become the number one contender to Asuka's NXT Women's Championship. On June 8, Jax lost her title match at NXT TakeOver: The End. On July 20 episode of ''NXT'', Jax was defeated by Bayley. On December 28 episode of NXT, Jax lost to Asuka for the

in her last match in NXT.

Main roster beginnings (2016–2018)

Shortly after being drafted from

to the

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create ...

as part of the 2016 WWE draft, which took place on July 19, 2016, Jax started a winning streak against various

competitors Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...

. In September, Jax was placed in her first feud with

Alicia Fox Victoria Crawford (born June 30, 1986) is an American retired professional wrestler and former model known for her time with WWE under the ring name Alicia Fox. Crawford debuted on '' SmackDown'' on June 13, 2008, using the Alicia Fox name and ...

, which led to a match between the two on the September 12 episode of ''Raw'' that ended in a

no contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neith ...

after she performed a

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fasten ...

on Fox through the ringside barricade. In a rematch between the two that took place at the

Clash of Champions ''Clash of the Champions'' is an American series of professional wrestling television specials that were produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) in conjunction with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). ...

pre-show on September 25, Jax defeated Fox via

pinfall In wrestling, a pin is achieved by holding an opponent's shoulders to the mat for a three count. Pinfall is the term used in professional wrestling which is a way to win the match for that person or team. Background A pinfall is a victory condi ...

. On November 20 at

Survivor Series Survivor Series is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving, it is the se ...

, Jax was a part of Team Raw in a five-on-five elimination tag team match and was eliminated via

submission Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...

Becky Lynch Rebecca Quin (born 30 January 1987) is an Irish professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE under the ring name Becky Lynch where she performs on the Raw brand. Lynch is one of WWE's most recognizable and highest-paid wrestlers. Twitter name ...

. In December, Jax started a feud with her mentor

Sasha Banks Mercedes Justine Kaestner-Varnado (born January 26, 1992) is an American professional wrestler and actress. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Sasha Banks. Banks previously wrestled o ...

, whom she injured as part of the storyline. This led to two matches between the two, where Jax was first victorious at the

Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and WWE Network events, event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named afte ...

pre-show on January 29, 2017, but lost on March 5 at Fastlane. On April 3 at

WrestleMania 33 WrestleMania 33 was the 33rd annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took place on April 2, 201 ...

, Jax competed in a fatal four-way elimination match against Banks, Bayley and

Charlotte Flair Ashley Elizabeth Fliehr (born April 5, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Charlotte Flair. She is currently inactive. She is a second-genera ...

for the

Raw Women's Championship The WWE Raw Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main roster, along ...

, but she was eliminated first. On the June 26 episode of ''Raw'', Jax competed in a

gauntlet match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

to determine a number one contender for

's Raw Women's Championship, eliminating Bayley, Mickie James,

Dana Brooke Ashley Mae Sebera (born November 29, 1988) is an American professional wrestler, bodybuilder, gymnast, fitness competitor, and model. She is signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Dana Brooke and is a fifteen-ti ...

and Emma consecutively before being defeated by Banks. On September 24 at No Mercy, Jax took part of a

fatal five-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

for the Raw Women's Championship, but she failed to win the title. On November 19 at

, Jax once again was a part of Team Raw in a five-on-five elimination tag team match from which she was eliminated by

countout Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

. Starting from December 4 episode of ''Raw'', Jax was placed in an on-screen relationship with then

WWE Cruiserweight Champion The NXT Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship that was created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. Before its retirement, it was defended across the NXT, NXT UK, and 205 Live brand divisions, which were ...

Enzo Amore Eric Arndt (born December 8, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. In WWE, he came to prominence for his partnership with Big Cass, whom he teamed with from 2013 to 2017. Together, they won the NXT Year-End Award for Tag Team of the Year ...

, which was dropped when Amore was released from the WWE in January 2018. On January 28 at the

, Jax participated in the first women's royal rumble match where she entered at number 22 and eliminated

Jacqueline Jacqueline may refer to: People * Jacqueline (given name), including a list of people with the name * Jacqueline Moore (born 1964), ring name "Jacqueline", American professional wrestler Arts and entertainment * ''Jacqueline'' (1923 film), ...

Kelly Kelly Barbara Blank Coba (born Barbara Jean Blank; January 15, 1987), known professionally as Barbie Blank and by her ring name Kelly Kelly, is an American professional wrestler and model. Blank has a background in gymnastics and cheerleading, a ...

Ruby Riott Dori Elizabeth Prange ( ; born January 9, 1991) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to orld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where she performs under the ring name Ruby Riot. Prange has also worked in World Wonder Ring Stardom (a ...

and

Naomi Naomi or Naomie may refer to: People and biblical figures * Naomi (given name), a female given name and a list of people with the name * Naomi (biblical figure), Ruth's mother-in-law in the Old Testament Book of Ruth * Naomi (Romanian singer) (bor ...

before being eliminated by six women. Throughout January and February, Jax started a feud with the undefeated Asuka, whom she failed to defeat on February 25 at

Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel ...

and a week later on ''Raw''.

Raw Women's Champion and alliance with Tamina (2018–2019)

In March, Jax turned

face The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...

after being insulted and betrayed by former best friend,

Alexa Bliss, who body shamed her and made fun of her personality. This led to a title match between the two on April 8, 2018, at

WrestleMania 34 WrestleMania 34 was the 34th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took place on April 8, 2 ...

, where she won the match to capture the Raw Women's Championship, marking the first title win of her career. In a rematch between the two, that took place a month later at

Backlash Backlash may refer to: Literature * '' Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women'', a 1991 book by Susan Faludi * ''Backlash'' (Star Wars novel), a 2010 novel by Aaron Allston * Backlash (Marc Slayton), comic book character * ''Backla ...

on May 6, Jax went onto defeat Bliss and retain her title. In May, Jax started a feud with

Ronda Rousey Ronda Jean Rousey (; born February 1, 1987) is an American professional wrestler, actress, former judoka and mixed martial artist. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand and is the current SmackDown Women� ...

whom she challenged to a title match at Money in the Bank pay-per-view. During that feud, Jax briefly returned to her villainous theatrics. At Money in the Bank, on June 17, Jax lost her championship back to Bliss, who interfered in her match and attacked both Jax and Rousey, cashing in her

Money in the Bank contract The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...

(which she won earlier that night). A month later, on July 15, Jax invoked her rematch clause at Extreme Rules, but was unsuccessful in regaining the title in an

extreme rules match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. After a short hiatus due to a minor injury, Jax returned on the September 17 episode of ''Raw'' as the mystery tag team partner of

Ember Moon Adrienne Reese (born August 31, 1988) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Athena. She also appears in AEW's sister promotion Ring of Honor (ROH), where she is the current ROH Wo ...

, with the two going on to defeat

and Mickie James. One month later, on October 28, at the

WWE Evolution WWE Evolution was a women's professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, NXT, and NXT UK brand divisions. The event took place on October 28 ...

pay-per-view, Jax eliminated Moon as she won a battle royal to earn a future women's championship match. On the November 5 episode of ''Raw'', shortly after defeating Moon in a singles match, Jax once again turned heel as she aligned herself with Tamina (with whom she had multiple confrontations the past few weeks, forming the Samoan Slaughterhouse) and attacked Moon. On November 18, at

, Jax was the sole survivor for Team Raw against Team SmackDown in an interbrand women's traditional five-on-five tag team elimination match. The following month, on December 16, at the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs event, Jax failed to regain the Raw Women's Championship from Rousey. On January 27, 2019, at the

event, Jax competed in the women's

Royal Rumble match The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic Battle Royal match in which a number of wrestlers (traditionally 30) aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the ...

, entering at number 29 and lasting for over 11 minutes before she herself was eliminated by the eventual winner

. Later that night, Jax made history as she became the first person to ever compete in two Royal Rumble matches on the same night and the fourth woman to ever compete in a men's Royal Rumble match, after she attacked

R-Truth Ronnie Aaron Killings (born January 19, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE, performing on the Raw brand under the ring name R-Truth. Killings worked for World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now ...

and took his number 30 spot. Despite eliminating

Mustafa Ali Adeel Alam (born March 28, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Mustafa Ali. Prior to signing with WWE, Alam worked on the independent circuit afte ...

, Jax was ganged up by

Dolph Ziggler Nicholas Theodore Nemeth (born July 27, 1980) is an American professional wrestler and stand-up comedian. He is currently signed to WWE under the ring name Dolph Ziggler, where he performs on the Raw brand. After a prolific career in amateur ...

Rey Mysterio Óscar Gutiérrez (born December 11, 1974), better known by his ring name Rey Mysterio, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand. Widely regarded as one of the greatest prof ...

and Randy Orton with their finishers, before being eliminated by Mysterio. On February 17, 2019, Jax and Tamina competed in a six-team

match at the

namesake A namesake is a person, geographic location, or other entity bearing the name of another. History The word is first attested around 1635, and probably comes from the phrase "for one's name's sake", which originates in English Bible translations ...

pay-per-view to determine the inaugural holders of the

WWE Women's Tag Team Championship The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is the only women's tag team championship for WWE's main roster, thus is defended across bot ...

, where they eliminated two teams before they themselves were eliminated. In April, at

WrestleMania 35 WrestleMania 35 was the 35th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and 205 Live brand divisions. The event took place ...

, Jax and Tamina took part of a

fatal four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "Glossary of professional wrestling terms#Gimmick, gimmick matches" in the Glossary of professional wrestling terms, jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. So ...

for the Women's Tag Team Championship, however, the match was won by The IIconics (

Billie Kay Jessica McKay (born 23 June 1989) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Billie Kay and for her time in Impact Wrestling, where she competed as Jessie McKay. In J ...

and

Peyton Royce Cassandra McIntosh (born 10 November 1992) is an Australian professional wrestler. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Peyton Royce and for her time in Impact Wrestling where she performed as Cassie L ...

). Shortly after, Jax underwent surgery to repair tears on the

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...

(ACL) in both of her knees, which was expected to sideline her from in-ring competition for at least nine months.

Teaming with Shayna Baszler (2020–2021)

Jax returned from injury on the April 6, 2020 episode of ''Raw'', defeating

Deonna Purrazzo Deonna Purrazzo (born June 10, 1994) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where she is a former two-time Impact Knockouts World Champion and a former Impact Knockouts World Tag Team Champion. She also appe ...

in a

squash match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence ...

. On the May 25 episode of ''Raw'', Jax defeated Charlotte Flair and

Natalya Natalya (russian: Наталья) is the Russian form of the female given name Natalia. The name Natasha (russian: link=no, Наташа), being originally a diminutive form of Natalya, became an independent name outside the Russian-speaking state ...

in a

to challenge Asuka for the Raw Women's Championship at

. At Backlash, Jax and Asuka wrestled to a double

, therefore Asuka retained the title. The next night on ''Raw'', Jax challenged Asuka again for the title. During the match, Jax became upset with the referee and pushed him down. The referee was going to disqualify Jax, however, Asuka rolled up the distracted Jax for a fast count to retain the title. In August, she was paired with

, defeating the

WWE Women's Tag Team Champions The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling women's tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE. It is the only women's tag team championship for WWE's main roster, thus is defended across bot ...

Bayley and Sasha Banks Bayley and Sasha Banks were an American professional wrestling tag team in WWE. They were the inaugural holders of the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, a title they would hold a record-tying two times. Bayley and Banks, who were already known ...

Payback Payback may refer to: * Revenge, a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance Payback may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Payback, a member of the fictional comics superhero team Shadow ...

to win the title. They lost the title at

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

against the team of Asuka and Charlotte Flair. At

on January 31, 2021, Baszler and Jax defeated Asuka and Flair to became record-tying two-time WWE Women's Tag Team Champions. During their second reign as tag team champions, they had simultaneous feuds with the teams of Naomi and

Lana Lana may refer to: *Lana (given name) *Francesco Lana de Terzi (1631–1687), Italian Jesuit priest and scientist *Lana (wrestler), professional wrestler and pro wrestling manager *''Wild Energy. Lana'', a 2006 Ukrainian fantasy novel Sciences *L ...

Mandy Rose Amanda Rose Saccomanno (born July 18, 1990) is an American professional wrestler, television personality, and fitness and figure competitor. She is best known for her time in WWE, where she performed under the ring name Mandy Rose. Rose began ...

and Dana Brooke, and Natalya and Tamina. They defended the title against all of them on different occasions but were victorious in every bout. At

WrestleMania 37 WrestleMania 37 was the 37th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took place as a two-night ...

, Jax and Baszler retained the tag team championship against Natalya and Tamina. On the May 14 episode of ''SmackDown'', they lost the title to Natalya and Tamina, ending their second reign at 103 days. On the September 20 episode of ''Raw'', her alliance with Shayna Baszler ended when she was attacked by Baszler after their match against each other. Baszler destroyed her arm by stomping on it while wedged in the steel steps, leaving Jax shrieking and crying while being attended to. After the team disbanded, she asked WWE for time off to take care of her mental health, but on November 4, Jax was released from her WWE contract.

Professional wrestling style, persona, and reception

Jax was nicknamed "The Irresistible Force" during her time in WWE. She used a

Samoan drop Samoan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Samoan Islands, an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean ** Something of, from, or related to Samoa, a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands ** Something of, from, ...

named the ''Annihilator'' as a finisher. Jax received increasing criticism over the years for reports of her being an "unsafe worker". In November 2018, she accidentally punched

in the face during an episode of ''Raw'' and gave Lynch a broken nose, lacerated face, and concussion. In May 2020,

Kairi Sane is a Japanese professional wrestler and actress currently working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and World Wonder Ring Stardom under the ring name Kairi (stylized in all caps). Housako is also known for her work with WWE as . She is the cur ...

suffered a cut on her head during a match against Jax after Jax threw her onto the ringside steel steps. Wrestling promoter and manager

Jim Cornette James Mark "Jim" Cornette (born September 17, 1961) is an American author and podcaster who has previously worked in the professional wrestling industry as an agent, booker, color commentator, manager, promoter, trainer, and occasional prof ...

attributed incidents involving Jax to her size and suggested that she "can hurt people whether she knows it or not", while fellow professional wrestler

stated that she had "never walked away hurt" after wrestling Jax.

Other media

As Nia Jax, Fanene is a playable character in the WWE video games ''

WWE 2K17 World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

'', ''

WWE 2K18 ''WWE 2K18'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by 2K Sports. It is the nineteenth installment in the WWE game series (fifth under the ''WWE 2K'' banner) and a follow-up to '' WWE 2K17''. It was released wor ...

'', ''

WWE 2K19 ''WWE 2K19'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 9, 2018, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twentieth overall game in the ''WW ...

'', ''

WWE 2K20 ''WWE 2K20'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It was released worldwide on October 22, 2019, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twenty-first installment o ...

'', ''

WWE 2K22 ''WWE 2K22'' is a 2022 professional wrestling sports video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It is the twenty-second overall installment of the video game series based on WWE, the ninth game under the ''WWE 2K'' banne ...

'', and '' WWE 2K Battlegrounds''. In July 2017, Jax joined the cast of the reality television series ''

Total Divas ''Total Divas'' is an American reality television series that aired from July 28, 2013, to December 10, 2019, on E!. The series gave viewers an inside look into the lives of female WWE wrestlers from their work within WWE to their person ...

'' beginning in its seventh season. In August 2017, rapper Magneto Dayo released a song dedicated to her titled "Nia Jax".

Personal life

On August 2, 2014, Fanene and her aunt Ata Maivia-Johnson (the mother of

), were hospitalized after being hit head-on by a drunk driver in

Clermont, Florida Clermont is a city in Lake County in central Florida, United States, about west of Orlando and southeast of Leesburg. The population was 43,021 in 2020. The city is residential in character and its economy is centered in retail trade, lodging, ...

. The driver was subsequently charged with driving under the influence.

Championships and accomplishments

* ''

Pro Wrestling Illustrated ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publish ...

'' ** Rookie of the Year (2016) ** Ranked No. 8 of the top 50 female singles wrestlers in the ''

PWI Female 100 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...

'' in 2018 ** Ranked No. 30 of the top 150 female wrestlers in the ''

PWI Women's 150 ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' (''PWI'') is an American internationally sold professional wrestling magazine that was founded in 1979 by publisher Stanley Weston. ''PWI'' is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and published by Kappa Publis ...

'' in 2021 ** Ranked No. 24 of the top 50 Tag Teams in the '' PWI Tag Team 50'' in 2021- with

* ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'' ** Ranked No. 12 in the top 30 female wrestlers in 2018 * ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' ** Most Overdue Yet-to-Be Title Holder of the Year (2017) *

WWE Raw Women's Championship The WWE Raw Women's Championship is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two women's world titles for WWE's main roster, along ...

( 1 time) **

(

2 times "2 Times" is a song co-written and recorded by British Italian-based singer Ann Lee. It was released in 1999 as the lead single from her debut album, ''Dreams'' (1999). The single entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. Outside ...

) – with

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jax, Nia 1984 births American female models American female professional wrestlers Australian female professional wrestlers American professional wrestlers of Samoan descent Living people Professional wrestlers from Hawaii Sportspeople from Sydney Sportswomen from New South Wales American people of German descent American people of Samoan descent 21st-century American women 21st-century professional wrestlers WWE Raw Women's Champions WWE Women's Tag Team Champions