Savelina Fanene whose given name is Nia Jax (formerly Zada) is a female wrestling champion and plus size model. She is signed to the RAW (Women’s Division) platform and becomes the RAW Women’s Champion soon after.
Nia Jax is considered a heel (villain) in the division and has a history of professional feuds. There are so many things you should know about this female wrestler. Continue reading…
Youth and rise to fame
Nia Jax was born as Savelina Fanene on May 29, 1984, in Sydney, Australia. She was, however, raised by her parents – Joseph Fanene and Renate Fanene in Honolulu, Hawaii. Some sources, however, claim that she was born in Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States, because that’s where she grew up.
Nia Jax is of mixed ancestry like her father, Joseph is from Samoan lineage. He belongs to the Anoaʻi family, descended from American Samoa. these guys are known for producing professional fighters and wrestlers. Besides, her mother is of German descent. Nia learned to speak German from her mother.
It should be mentioned here that she is the cousin of retired WWE superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson who inspired her to pursue a career in professional wrestling. Dwayne remains his biggest fan.
On the suggestion that she was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, she is listed among the six superstars whose place of origin could be traced to the Aloha Islands. Hailing from the Anoa’i wrestling family, Nia Jax did not initially show interest in sports, but rather karate, judo, and kickboxing as a child. Her parents, who did not want to force her against her own wishes, encouraged her by enrolling her in karate and judo lessons. She got into trouble, however, and was sent home for molesting another child. Her coaches reported that she was too strong for the class as she enjoyed hitting her classmates.
She turned her attention to the basketball she played at her high school, Carlsbad High School in California, where she was on the school basketball team. After high school, Nia went to Palomar College in San Marcos, California, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and also played college basketball.
Nia Jax is an Australian and American citizen. She is 1.83m tall and weighs 123kg.
Nia Jax’s Modeling and WWE Career
basketball camp
Nia Jax played basketball in high school when she had the height for it. Her performance in sports earned her a college scholarship that enabled her to attend Palomar College where she continued to play basketball. In 2003, his team won the Pacific Coast Conference Championship. Nia was so good that she was going to play in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). But then she opted for a change and pursued a career in professional wrestling.
Professional Wrestling – WWE Career
Even though she had ignored it at first, it was inevitable that Nia Jax would one day embrace the wrestling life after being torn from the Anoa’i family, known for forging professional wrestlers and champions in World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE).
Having had a rather successful stint with basketball (in college) and modeling, she honored her lineage by signing up for wrestling after watching the Wrestlemania match dubbed ‘ Once in a Lifetime Match’ between her cousin , Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and John Cena at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Florida.
The match on April 1, 2012 ended with The Rock winning, but he wasn’t the only winner as WWE also secured the signing of another female wrestling superstar – Nia Jax.
She decided to end her modeling career to become a professional wrestler and The Rock was a big supporter. He took her to the WWE Performance Center in Florida and connected her with the best trainers who could help her achieve the best possible results on the court.
Nia signed her first contract with WWE in 2014 and began competing in the WWE developmental category, NXT. She had her first fight around the ring – an introductory vignette – on May 7, 2015, in a tag team wrestling match. Nia entered the contest with the ring name “Zada” and was tagged with Devin Taylor against Carmella (Leah Van Dale) and Bayley (Pamela Rose Martinez). She lost the match and fought in other vignettes before changing her ring name to ‘Nia Jax’.
October 14, 2015 saw her make her NXT mark, defeating Evie (Cheree Crowley). The win buoyed her up and she went on a winning streak – including beating Carmella in a singles match – before forming a wrestling alliance with Eva Marie, which they dubbed “The Power Alliance”.
Nia Jax continued her impressive NXT Women’s Championship on RAW after being selected for the 2016 WWE Draft on July 19, 2016. This meant she would spend just over a year in NXT, which was a very rare occurrence as female wrestlers. up-and-coming would spend years developing within the NXT ranks given the opportunity on the big stage.
Nia fought (and injured) Britt Baker in her RAW debut on Monday Night Raw in July 2016. In 2018, she challenged Ronda Rousey to a wrestling match that Rousey was forced to.
Her modeling career
The WWE star is also a plus-size model who made a living before the wrestling fortunes started rolling in. Nia was previously ashamed of her body, but saw it was a gift when she was approached at an event she attended in California. It was a modeling event and one of the judges on the show met her and offered her the chance to showcase her body in a plus size women’s modeling project. She agreed and soon had several photoshoots in bikinis and beachwear.
The experience changed her own image and made her believe in herself more. Since then, she’s been an advocate for self-love and body positivity, all while understanding the challenges she faced while growing up with a great body. Nia believes that no matter the body type, there is a benefit to be gained from it. Despite her WWE career, she still does her plus-size role model, using her as a weapon to inspire confidence in other women.
Fatal accident
Nia Jax wrestling career would have been cut She had not survived a fatal accident on August 2, 2014. She had been involved in a head-on collision with another vehicle whose driver was intoxicated. Nia was in the car with Dwayne Johnson’s mother, Ata Maivia-Johnson (his aunt) and luckily no life was lost.
The star suffered few injuries and was released from hospital a few days later as the driver was charged with driving under the influence (DUI).
Her love life, who is Nia’s boyfriend?
Nia Jax is not yet married but she is in a relationship. Her social media accounts show that she is at a romantic stalemate with Josh Woods, who is also a wrestler.
Their relationship appears to be blossoming and the couple appear happy together in the pictures on Instagram. They have been very open about their relationship and their fans wish them well. Perhaps we will soon hear the wedding bells ringing.
