Bianca Belair Recalls Her First Date With Montez Ford, Mark Henry Getting Her A WWE Tryout
Every Superstar has a unique path to WWE, and Bianca Belair’s path was through sports. She was an athlete growing up who competed in track and field in college before doing CrossFit in her later years. Belair talked more about what she was doing before she got into wrestling when she joined Table Talk w/ DVon.
“I’ve been an athlete my whole life. From the time I was five years old, I was on the track, running, did gymnastics, I played basketball, and was a cheerleader. Then, in college, I actually ran track; I was a hurdler. I was an All-SEC American hurdler in college,” revealed Belair. “After college, I was missing that competitive element of my life, so I found CrossFit.
“I did really well at CrossFit very quickly just because of my background with gymnastics, track, being strong, and fast. I excelled very easily in CrossFit. I stood out a lot because I used to make my own outfits; I sold my own outfits. I wore bows and tutus while everyone else is out there in sports bras and regular shorts. I got a lot of sponsorships and stood out. That’s when Mark Henry actually saw me on a CrossFit video, on YouTube or some sports blog. He reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, have you thought about being a WWE wrestler?’ I thought it was fake because it was on a direct message on Instagram, and my nephew says, ‘Hey, Mark Henry has commented on your photos.’ It ended up being real, and it was crazy because I was talking to my mom trying to figure out what am I going to do next in life.
“I feel like I had so much untapped potential that I didn’t know what to do with it, and I fell into wrestling. I feel like it was either too good to be true or a perfect fit for me. Mark Henry was like, ‘I can get you a tryout, but that’s all I can do. I can’t get you hired and I can’t get you successful in this business.’ I just came in not knowing anything, and it’s crazy because now I’m here and it’s a perfect fit for me. I’m able to use every single aspect of myself from creativity, my athleticism, just everything about me, and it’s completely changed my life.”
Belair has been with WWE for four-and-a-half years now, and it’s where she met her husband Montez Ford. Most of that time had Belair down in NXT where she was able to meet numerous other aspiring wrestlers – some who made it to WWE’s main roster and some who didn’t. Belair was asked who her best friend in the business is outside of Montez Ford.
“I would probably have to say Vanessa Borne. We came in together, we were at the same tryout, we got hired at the same time, and we’ve been through this journey together,” stated Belair. “That’s the person I talk to a lot. Lacey Evans as well, and Mia Yim.”
Belair and Ford were engaged in June 2017 and married one year later. She recalled their first date and how she could tell he was nervous.
“My first date with Montez, he actually took me to go see The Blue Man Group. It was crazy because he didn’t know I had always wanted to go see Blue Man Group ever since I was in elementary school. The teacher used to roll it to the TV and I used to watch a video package of it,” recalled Belair. “So, that was my very first date with him. I remember him reaching to hold my hand and his hand was so sweaty; It was soaking wet. I’m like, ‘Is he nervous?!’ But it was so sweaty, but yeah, that was my very first date with him.
“I remember we went out to eat afterward and we ended up talking in the parking lot for two or three hours, and ever since that day, we spent every single day together since then. So, it was a very successful first date.”
Just like Belair, Ford was a standout track athlete before getting into wrestling. While the couple had that in common, they didn’t know each other before joining WWE, as Belair explained.
“No, I met in him WWE. When I first came, he got injured, so I saw him for a few days and then he disappeared for a couple of months. Billie Kay and I got dinner together where we all just met up afterward. A couple of months later, I remember sitting down at a sushi restaurant and he walked in. Vanessa Borne – she knew I had a crush on him,” stated Belair.
“So they were like, ‘Look who’s here?’ I said, ‘I’m on a mission tonight.’ I kind of initiate everything because if I see something I want, I got to go get it. That’s how it happened. We met each other here, and that’s why I always say it’s crazy how I never thought I would do this and now I’m doing it. I can’t see myself doing anything other than this and how wrestling has completely changed my life. It even brought me a whole husband, so I just love my life and I love wrestling.”
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Table Talk w/DVon with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Mehdy Labriny contributed to this article.