WWE News: Trouble in Paradise for Punk and Phoenix, and WWE's Greatest Splits

The hard-hitting, 24-hour lifestyle of the WWE isn't too forgiving when it comes to long-term relationships.  Any successful romantic endeavor that withstands the test of time has proven to be the exception rather than the rule, and the latest possible instance of this unfortunate reality resides within the confines of a yearlong romance between WWE stars CM Punk and Beth Phoenix. 

According to many who follow Punk's very active Twitter account, CM Punk's girlfriend (for now) Beth Phoenix has recently unfollowed both him and Amy "Lita" Dumas whom Punk used to date. 

To add more kerosene to the bonfire, Lita was reportedly backstage at this past week's RAW visiting friends.

CM Punk recently appeared on Dumas' radio show Punkrockalypse, which couldn't have been too helpful in the brownie points department with Beth.

Whether or not there is any substance to budding rumors of a Punk-Phoenix split, the WWE has had a history of breakups and splits, both real, fake, and sometimes both, that eventually gave way to intriguing angles and storylines. 

10. Virgil Turns on Ted DiBiase After Years as His Bodyguard

If ever there was a template on how to properly build up to a babyface turn, it was inherent in Virgil's inevitable abandonment of Ted DiBiase.

After several weeks of putting up with DiBiase's belittlement, Virgil had finally had enough following a tag-team loss to Dustin and Dusty Rhodes at the 1991 Royal Rumble. 

After verbally abusing his longtime bodyguard, DiBiase demanded that Virgil place the Million Dollar Belt around his waist, only to get a mouthful of the iconic belt for his troubles. 

9. The Paul Bearer Turns on the Undertaker After Years as His Manager

Leading up to the very physical Boiler Room Brawl between the Undertaker and Mankind, there was very little tease of an impending Paul Bearer heel turn. 

In one of the most shocking managerial turns in history, Bearer cost the Undertaker the Boiler Room Brawl match against one of his fiercest rivals, in effect ending one of the most prolific manager-wrestler tandems the WWE had ever seen. 

8. Christian Turns on Edge, Ending a Legendary Tag-Team Run

Back when Edge and Christian were brothers, they were one of the all-time great tag teams in the WWE.  Revolutionizing the tag-team division through innovative ladder matches and eventually TLC matches, the popular tandem achieved numerous tag title reigns and were destined for singles prosperity.

When the time came for each man to go his separate way, the WWE shot a long-term feud between the two after Christian turned on Edge out of pure jealousy for Edge's singles success that saw him capture both the King of the Ring and the Intercontinental title. 

7. Triple H Divorces Stephanie McMahon During RAW Wedding

After lying to Triple H about a pregnancy in an effort to get the Game to reaffirm his love for her, Stephanie McMahon received a not so pleasant surprise during a special episode of RAW built around the power couple renewing their wedding vows.

After finding out about McMahon's big lie, unbeknown to her, Triple H publicly lashed out at the billion dollar princess at the conclusion of the wedding before announcing that the two were through. 

The ranking of this split is somewhat hurt by the fact that the two continue to be happily married with three children in real life. 

6. Randy Savage and Hulk Hogans' Mega Powers Tandem Explodes

The WrestleMania V main event was built around Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan exactly one year after Savage's first WWE Championship victory at WrestleMania IV. 

Savage had grown increasingly jealous of the friendship between Hogan and his wife Miss Elizabeth, and eventually lost control when he assaulted Hogan in a training room.

The high-profile WrestleMania V main event between the WWE's two biggest stars lived past seemingly insurmountable hype as both men once again delivered in a big match situation. 

5. Triple H Turns on Shawn Michaels, DX Splits (for Now)

The excitement of a reunion four years in the making was abruptly cut short in 2002 when Triple H shockingly turned on Shawn Michaels following what appeared to be the return of Degeneration X. 

The incident lead to an emotional match at SummerSlam that marked the return of Shawn Michaels after he was forced into semi-retirement following a back injury. 

4. Matt Hardy and Lita Split in Real Life, Leads to Program with Edge

Lita is no stranger to love triangles (among other shapes) as the legendary WWE Diva was front and center of a bitter rivalry between Edge and former boyfriend Matt Hardy.  

Hardy was fired from the WWE when news broke of Lita's infidelity to her longtime boyfriend by virtue of a steamy affair with Edge.  After being brought back by popular demand, Hardy entered into a feud with Edge that fizzled out quickly as it surprisingly failed to connect with the fans.

Edge would go on to super stardom as one of WWE's top superstars for years, while Hardy would spend the rest of his career mired in WWE's (and eventually TNA's) midcard. 

3. Chyna Turns on Triple H After Triple H Sacrifices a WWE Championship for Her

In one of the more well-done splits in the WWE, Chyna turned her back on Triple H after years with the then-future WWE Champion. 

Following an "I Quit" match against Corporation rival the Rock, where Triple H was forced to quit in order to save Chyna from being assaulted by Kane, Triple H was blindsided by his longtime sidekick.

Chyna would go on to join the Corporation, only to reunite with Triple H just months later at WrestleMania XV.

2. Legion of Doom Brawl Following Another Loss. Talk of Pusherman Ensues

The Legion of Doom spent their twilight days in the WWE putting over Attitude Era megastars the New Age Outlaws. 

Once the job was done, and the Outlaws had been established as legit tag team championship material, the Legion of Doom had nobody to fight but themselves. 

The two brawled following yet another frustrating loss to the upstart tag team, leading to a very personal feud that touched upon real life demons of Michael "Hawk" Hegstrand. 

A particular episode of RAW actually ended with Hawk falling off of the Titantron after having some heated words with both Animal and his replacement Darren Drozdov.

1. Shawn Michaels Superkicks His Way into a Hall-of-Fame Career

Perhaps the most memorable superkick of all time was the one that launched a career that would prove to be incomparable. 

Shawn Michaels' superkick on Marty Jannetty marked the end of the exciting Rockers tag team, and the beginning of an illustrious career for Shawn Michaels that included multiple world championship reigns and countless high-profile matches.

Janetty went on to flounder in the WWE, among other promotions, as he unfortunately became a cautionary tale for what happens to the unenviable "other tag team partner." 

What did Big Nasty think of the Muppets on Raw? Find out on his latest BR Video entry, and follow him on Twitter @ThisIsNasty.