Marina Shafir Bio: WWE, Son, Husband, Net Worth & UFC

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Marina Shafir is a professional wrestler and a former mixed martial artist. She is mainly known for her time in World Wrestling Entertainment(WWE).  

Furthermore, the wrestler also fought in a television program produced by WWE called Raw. Likewise, she also knows Judo and Jiujitsu. 

Moreover, Shafir started Judo training when she was only six years old. Subsequently, after learning Jiujitsu, she was introduced to Mixed Martial Arts

Marina Shafir
Marina Shafir

Immediately, Marina fell in love with the sport. She fought as a professional MMA fighter from 2012 to 2016. Moreover, Marina is happily married to Roderick Strong.

Strong has won the Ring of Honor World Championship. Correspondingly, he is a one-time AWF Heavyweight Champion

Recently, in WWE, Roderick won the NXT North American Championship, Tag Team Championship, and Year-End Awards. 

Before getting into detail about Marina’s life and career, here are some quick facts about her. 

Quick Facts:

Full Name Marina Shafir
Birth Date April 14, 1988
Birth Place
Soroca, Soroca District, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union
Nick Name None 
Religion Orthodox Jewish
Nationality Soviet
Moldovan
Ethnicity Soviet Moldovans
Education None
Horoscope Aries
Father’s Name Not Available
Mother’s Name Bella Shafir
Siblings Two Brothers
Age 36 years old
Height 5 feet 7 inches
Weight 145 lb (66 kg)
Hair Color Blonde
Eye Color Green
Build Athletic
Profession Wrestler, Former MMA fighter
Current Team Glendale Fighting Club
Division Featherweight
Active Years 2012 – Present
Marital Status Married
Husband Roderick Strong
Kids One; Troy Veniamin Lindsey
Net Worth $1 million – $5 million
Social Media Instagram, Twitter
Merch  Trading Card, Signed Judo Black Belt
Last Update October, 2024

Marina Shafir | Early Life, Family, And Education

Marina Shafir was born in Soroca, Soroca District, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union. Her mother is Bella Shafir. However, information regarding her Father’s name is not available. 

Nevertheless, he was a mechanic while her mother was a seamstress. At age five, the wrestler moved to the United States of America with her parents and two older brothers. 

Since they didn’t know proper English, the family hired an English teacher upon arriving in America. Marina was very outdoorsy as a kid.

Likewise, she was also a very athletic and energetic child. Hence, her parents put her in Judo class at six to put that energy to good use. 

Marina Shafir
Marina Shafir family.

Furthermore, Sahfir was hardworking and dedicated. As a result, she was instantly good at judo.

The athlete competed till she was 19 years old. Shortly after that, she suffered a lower back injury that put her in a depressive state.

Moreover, she didn’t want to trouble her parents financially as they were already paying for her travels and competitions. Subsequently, the wrestler took a bartending job on top of working at Starbucks. 

Although the job helped her family financially, she missed training and fighting. After some time, the former MMA fighter resumed her training. 

Education

The professional wrestler graduated high school from a public school in California. However, there are no details about her college education. 

However, many believe she focused on training, Jiujitsu, and MMA rather than earning a degree.

Nevertheless, Shafir went to WWE’s professional wrestling school called the WWE Performance Center to train. 

Likewise, the former MMA fighter also attended Jiujitsu school, where she learned boxing, Muay Thai, grappling, and wrestling. Shortly after that, she came to know about mixed martial arts. 

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How old is Marina Shafir? Age, Height, and Weight

Since the wrestler was born on April 141988, she is 36 years old as of 2024. 

Furthermore, the former MMA fighter is 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 145 lb, i.e., 66 kg. She has an athletic physique and a trained body, thanks to her years of training.  

Besides that, she takes excellent care of her health and diet. As a result, she is very fit and has a muscular physique.

Marina Shafir | MMA and Wrestling Career

MMA Career

Before getting into MMA, Shafir used to do Judo and Jiujitsu. The player learned about MMA and fighting while she was attending Jiujitsu school. 

Besides that, Marina started her amateur MMA career at 24. She was pretty incredible and an unbeatable fighter.

MMA Marina Shafir
Former MMA Fighter Marina Shafir

Likewise, the wrestler won five out of five matches as an amateur player. After that, she became a professional mixed martial artist in 2014. 

However, the athlete couldn’t achieve the same level of success. She fought three matches but managed to win only one. 

The fighter won her first professional match against Chandra Englel through a submission. Furthermore, she lost against Amanda Bell via a Knockout and Amber Leibrock via a Technical Knockout.  

MMA Record

Professional record breakdown  
Three matches 1 win Two losses
By knockout 0 2
By submission 1 0
By decision 0 0

WWE Career

After nearly a two-year break, WWE revealed they signed Marina to training at their performance center. She made her first appearance in the WWE alongside Jessamyn Duke. 

Moreover, the two assisted Shayna Baszler in winning the championship title against Kairi Sane after running interference at the NXT Women’s Championship.

Likewise, they again interfered at NXT TakeOver: WarGames. Furthermore, Duke and Shafir made their debut in the NXT ring against Io Shirai and Dakota Kai.

WWE Wrestler Marina Shafir
WWE Wrestler Marina Shafir With Jessamyn Duke, Shayna Baszler, and Ronda Rousey

However, they lost the match. Nevertheless, at the NXT TakeOver: Phoenix, the pair helped Shayna defend her title against Bianca Belair.

In 2019, they lost against Kai and Tegan Nox to claim the Women’s Tag Team Championship. Hence, it is safe to say the two are better at assisting than winning titles.

Shortly after that, Shafir went silent and did not appear in matches. Finally, on August 17, 2020, the wrestler returned to WWE TV. 

After reuniting with Shayna and Jessamyn, she won a Raw Underground match. Following her WWE release, she went on to wrestle on Independent Circuit. 

Besides that, she recently made her AEW debut in December of 2021, where she went up against Kris Stadtlander. 

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Was Marina Shafir in the Ultimate Fighting Championship?

No, Shafir has not fought in the UFC. Nevertheless, the Invicta Fighting Championships had signed her when she was an MMA fighter.

Marina fought in the featherweight division. Besides that, former UFC Executive Shannon Knapp founded Invicta FC along with Janet Martin. 

Invicta FC is an MMA promotion for female mixed martial artists. Furthermore, Shafir fought her first and only Invicta promotion against Amber Leibrock.

However, Leibrock defeated her in the first round. After that, she officially stopped fighting as an MMA fighter and chose to wrestle. On October 28, 2018, she made her WWE debut with Jessamyn Duke. 

Marina Shafir | Boyfriend, Wedding, And Son

The former MMA fighter is married to Christopher Lindsay. He is best known as Roderick Strong, stage name. 

Likewise, he is also well known as The Jester and Roddy Strong. He has fought in the Ring of HonorWWE, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, etc. 

Vital is a professional wrestler who has won several titles and honors for his exceptional wrestling skills. Correspondingly, the Florida resident won the NWA Florida X Division Championship three times. 

He was twice the FIP Tag Team Championship recipient and the FIP World Heavyweight Championship thrice at the Full Impact Pro.

Marina Shafir with her family
Marina Shafir with her family.

Roddy was also the FEW Heavyweight Championship at the Florida Entertainment Wrestling.

He also won the PWG World Championship at the Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. He won the 2005 Survival of the Fittest with the ROH World Championship title.  

Similarly, in 2005, Wrestling Observer Newsletter named him the Most Improved Wrestler. Furthermore, a section isn’t enough to list Stong’s achievements and highlights. 

Currently, the Jester wrestles in WWE. Besides that, Roderick proposed to Shafir, and the two were engaged in 2015. Before that, they dated for a while. 

Finally, the couple tied the knot on November 7, 2018. Moreover, they welcomed their first child, Troy Veniamin Lindsey, on April 24, 2017.

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Marina Shafir | Net Worth And Salary

The WWE wrestler earned most of her wealth through wrestling and MMA. However, her exact net worth is unknown to the public.

Nevertheless, Shafir’s net worth estimation is between $1 million to $5 million.

Likewise, her annual salary is reportedly over $60 thousand

Besides that, Marina also earns a good amount through endorsements and sponsorships. Furthermore, her husband is a successful and well-known wrestler. 

Although his exact net worth is not available, many sources report he is worth over $13 million. Moreover, he reportedly earns over $1 million per year. 

Also, check out: << Ruby Riott Bio: Early Life, Career, Boyfriend & Tattoos >>

Social Media Presence:

The former MMA fighter is quite active on social media platforms. Hence, she has an Instagram account with 143 thousand followers. 

Likewise, she has over 2100 posts. Most of her post includes her adorable son and stunning husband. 

Moreover, the three and their dog make a beautiful family. From Shafir’s Instagram posts, one can quickly gather that she is fond of being a mother. 

Similarly, she shared pictures with her wonderful parents and often thanked them for their presence.

Furthermore, she has expressed gratitude towards them for never limiting her and allowing her to be herself. 

Besides, she has shared her life as a professional wrestler, mother, wife, and daughter through her Instagram posts.

Correspondingly, the athlete has posted a few pictures of her in the ring. Aside from that, the wrestler has a Twitter account with 59.7 thousand followers.

Marina usually tweets and shares wrestling-related news, events, and highlights through her Twitter handle. 

The mother of one recently shared stunning photoshoots of her with a full face of makeup. Occasionally, she likes to show off her toned and robust physique. 

Aside from that, one can find out more about the wrestler’s life through her interviews on Youtube. 

Some FAQs:

What is Marina Shafir’s fight record?

Marina Shafir has a professional fight record of 1 win, 2 losses, and 0 draws.

What division is Marina Shafir?

Marina Shafir competed in the Featherweight (145 lb)‎ division.

Who is Roderick Strong wife?

The former professional wrestler and mixed martial artist Marina Shafir is the wife of Roderick Strong.

What is Marina Shafir’s entrance theme?

The wrestler’s entrance theme is La Chasseuse by John Kiernan.

Why was Marina Shafir wearing a face mask at the NXT TakeOver: Phoenix?

Marina Shafir was wearing a face mask at the NXT TakeOver: Phoenix because of a broken nose.

Nevertheless, it did not prevent her from assisting Baszler and Duke in winning the title. The trio fought against Bianca Belair to defend the title. 

Are Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke still in WWE?

Marina Shafir returned to WWE TV, reuniting with Baszler and Jessamyn and winning a raw underground match on August 17, 2020. Later, Marina was released from her WWE contract on June 25, 2021.

Urusha Niroula
Urusha Niroulahttps://playersbio.com/
My name is Urusha Niroula. I have been working as a writer at Playersbio.com since September 2020. I have always had a great fondness for English writing, speaking, and reading. Furthermore, my hobbies include going on walks and short rides, watching Netflix, and sometimes sitting idly.

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