Seth Rollins Brings up Riddle’s Real-Life Divorce in Heated ‘WWE Raw’ Segment

WWE sprinkled in some real-life drama to blur the line between reality and kayfabe. On-screen, Seth Rollins and Riddle have been feuding for months, with things deteriorating so much that the two can’t be in the same room at the same time. The feud escalated to another level on the Aug. 29 episode of WWE Raw, during which Rollins referenced his opponent’s children and ex-wife. In real-life, Riddle (real name Matt Riddle) and Lisa Riddle officially divorced in March, ending a relationship that spanned more than a decade. The couple shared three children together, though their custody agreement is publicly unknown. Lisa has publicly blasted him for allegedly moving far away from their kids amidst their split.

This very serious family dispute was brought into Riddle’s on-screen wrestling feud with Rollins during an interview segment between the two men, who will wrestle one another at Saturday’s Clash at the Castle event in Cardiff, Wales. Rollins first took a jab at Rollins’ real-life marriage to fellow WWE Superstar Becky Lynch, whose nickname is “The Man.” Riddle said, “Well Seth, I’m gonna prove to you that there’s only one man in your marriage, and that’s Becky, bro.” 

Rollins did not appreciate this reference and fired off a brutal retort that was shown after the Raw commercial break. The former member of The Shield said: “You wanna talk about my family, let’s talk about your family. Oh wait, you ain’t got one because your wife divorced you and took your kids, and they don’t want to see your bitch-ass anymore, huh?”

Riddle was beyond angered, and questioned Rollins, who replied, “You heard me, bitch.” Riddle then went off the rails, saying. “I’m not gonna beat you up, I’m gonna f— you up. Where the f— are you?” (This rare f-bomb on the USA Network broadcast was censored.)

While this insult was obviously scripted before WWE filmed it at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, it’s unclear how Riddle really feels about his messy divorce being put on TV. It’s also unclear how Lisa feels about this real-life drama being aired out on Raw, especially since it involved the pair’s kids. 

The exact details of Riddle and Lisa’s divorce are unclear, though Riddle has previously admitted to cheating on her. This revelation came when independent wrestler Candy Cartwright accused Riddle of sexually assaulting her. While defending himself from the allegations, he claimed he had a consensual extramarital relationship with Cartwright (real name Samantha Tavel), and any sexual contact between them was consensual. He then accused Cartwright of harassment and brought a restraining order against her, but he soon dropped it. Cartwright sued Riddle over the alleged assault, which was said to have occurred in May 2018 and involved Riddle choking her and forcing her to perform oral sex after she turned down his request to have sex. Cartwright eventually dropped the lawsuit, but the reason for that withdrawal is unclear. For a detailed recap of the proceedings, we recommend reading PWInsider’s report on the lawsuit.

Despite all this controversy, WWE has continued to push Riddle, making him a top star on the Raw brand. He and Randy Orton had a huge run as the tag team RK-Bro, and he is now in this high-profile singles program against Rollins while Orton is injured. Riddle will get a chance to fight Rollins and settle their TV beef on Saturday’s Clash at the Castle premium live event, which will stream live on Peacock at 1 p.m. ET.