John Cena and Nikki Bella: A Timeline of Their Relationship

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John Cena and Nikki Bella: A Timeline of Their Relationship

From their first date to their drawn-out split in 2018, Us Weekly is revisiting John Cena and Nikki Bella’s love story.

After years of friendship, the two wrestlers first sparked a romantic connection in 2012. The pair’s relationship continued to heat up as Cena popped the question in April 2017. However, less than one year later, the pair split over different ideas about the future.

“Overall, we did have such an incredible relationship, it was just two people that wanted two different lives,” Bella said on Maria Menounos’ “Better Together” podcast in May 2020. “We were trying so hard to make it one. Even in the end when he was willing to give me kids, I could just tell, it’s not what he wanted. And that’s really, like, you know, what pushed me in the end.”

She added at the time: “If I’m going to force someone to be a father … what if he looks at you down the road and just regrets everything, and then you have this child and you’ve built this life. Is that what you want? And I remember thinking: It’s not what I want.”

The Total Bellas alum has since moved on with Artem Chigvinstev, whom she competed with on Dancing With the Stars season 25. Bella and the Russia native, who got in engaged in January 2020, went on to welcome son Matteo.

Cena, for his part, moved on with Shay Shariatzadeh, tying the knot in October 2020.

“It’s hard work to balance the time I need to run myself correctly. It’s work to be the best partner and husband I can be to my loving wife,” the Playing With Fire actor — who was previously married to Elizabeth Huberdeau — opened up about his marriage during a January 2022 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show. “It’s hard to keep connections with those in my life that I love. And it’s also hard to put in an honest day’s work.”

While the now-exes have since moved on, the Incomparable author has been candid about dealing with their “traumatizing” split.

“You almost wish it was bad because it’s so much easier to walk away. It’s so much harder to walk away when it’s loving,” Bella told Entertainment Tonight in July 2022. “I think a lot of women get into this situation when it’s like, ‘I love this person, but I don’t know if it’s right for my life,’ and that’s a hard thing. Sometimes we meet amazing people, but we’re just meant to live a different life.”

She added: “I just got this feeling so deep in my gut of, like, ‘I need to walk away.’ And no one thought I would, but it was hitting me so hard. Even though it’s painful and even traumatizing, I just knew it was right.”

Scroll through for a complete timeline of the wrestlers’ relationship:

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First Date

After being friends for years, Cena and Bella went on their first date in 2012. The WWE diva opened up about their first outing during a 2014 interview with WWE. “On my best first date, there was a very big, handsome man with an amazing smile and dimples," she gushed. "He came to my hotel and picked me up as if we were in the same city and took me to a nice steakhouse. We just talked and chatted for hours … That first one went into the second one where we just had an amazing dance in the middle of the restaurant.”

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Moving in Together

The pair seemed to be in a good place as they moved in together in 2013, but it was later revealed during an October 2016 episode of Total Bellas that the champion fighter made Bella sign a 75-page agreement before their move could be official. 

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Commitment Issues

One of the main issues in Cena and Bella’s relationship, which they openly discussed on E!'s Total Divas and Total Bellas, was the diva’s desire to get married and be a mother. While the Trainwreck star could be convinced to tie the knot, he was adamant about not wanting kids. Bella even confessed to Us in 2017 that it took “a lot of therapy” to accept she wasn’t going to be a mom and admitted she prayed he would change his mind.

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Popping the Question

After the duo defeated The Miz and his wife, Maryse, in a wrestling match, Cena got down on one knee at Wrestlemania 33 in April 2017 and proposed to Bella after five years of dating. “I have been waiting so long to ask you this,” he said in front of the crowd of 70,000 fans. “Stephanie Nicole Garcia-Colace, will you marry me?” After she said yes, the audience went wild as the pair embraced for a passionate kiss. 

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Trouble in Paradise

In March 2018, Cena admitted to Us Weekly his relationship with Bella wasn’t perfect and confessed they sometimes go “months” without seeing each other. “Relationships are hard. Don’t ever think that love is easy. Love is beautiful, but we’ve had to come to the realization after being together for five years that love is not easy,” he explained. Less than a week after the duo made a public appearance at Wrestlemania 34, he shared cryptic Instagram messages that also hinted that there were issues between them. “We were together. I forget the rest,” one of the photos he posted in April 2018 read.

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Cold Feet

After six years together, Cena and Bella exclusively revealed in April 2018 in a joint statement to Us Weekly that they had called off their wedding: “While this decision was a difficult one, we continue to have a great deal of love and respect for one another. We ask that you respect our privacy during this time in our lives.”

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Public Declaration

Nearly a month after their split, the Blockers star confessed his love for Bella during a May 2018 appearance on the Today show. “I still love Nicole, I would love to marry Nicole, I still would love to have a family with Nicole. It was an unfortunate set of circumstances where our relationship ended,” he told Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb. “I love her. I want to be with her. I want to make her my wife. I want to be the father of her children. I just want us to work.” Bella, for her part, told Extra that same day that she was “speechless” after watching her ex’s interview.

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Back Together

Us Weekly exclusively confirmed in May 2018 that the pair had reunited. “Nikki called off the wedding earlier this month so she could have more time to make a decision with what she wanted in life,” an insider close to the pair told Us. “Calling off the wedding was the right decision at the moment and their relationship only grew from it. It didn’t mean that any love was lost, or that they lost any feelings for one another, but they both have realized that they love each other and want to be with one another.”

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Motivational Messages

Just days after Us Weekly revealed that they were back together, the couple took to social media to post inspirational messages on June 2. Bella posted a quote that read “Storms don’t last forever,” while her beau wrote, “Being accountable is a great way to face who you are. We often speak of aspiration and quickly point out the faults of others, yet fail to heed our words or be brave enough to be accountable for our own faults.”

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A New Perspective

Cena admitted he had changed his tune regarding having kids, telling TMZ in an interview on June 3 that he “would love to be a dad.” “I realize very much that I have been steadfast in saying that I don’t want children. But I’m a little bit older now, a bit wiser. At age 18, we say things different at age 25, at 35,” he revealed. “I would love it only because I dedicated my life to my work and now I’m realizing that there is life and life exists and it’s beautiful and I think part of that is being a parent, so we’ll see.”

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A Work in Progress

Despite getting back together, the couple need time to rebuild their relationship. “There has been no discussion about a wedding. They’re not officially engaged again. They are working on their relationship day by day," an insider close to the pair told Us Weekly. "There’s nothing going on more than them trying to figure out their situation.”

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Done for Good?

On Tuesday, July 31, Bella told Us Weekly she and Cena had broken up again. “After I called off the engagement, we tried to work on our relationship to get back to where it was in order to move forward with our wedding,” she said in a statement to Us. “After much time and soul-searching alone, and together, we have decided to officially part ways. I had a beautiful and loving six-year relationship with a wonderful man. I have the utmost respect for John, but I know this is what’s best for me.”

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Repurposing Her Wedding Dress

For her 2022 nuptials to Chigvintsev, Bella wore a gown she initially purchased during her engagement to Cena.

 “I went back and forth with that decision,” the TV personality exclusively told Us in January 2023. “For me, it [reflects] how I stand as a strong woman. I was like, ‘Wait, why should I not wear what I love? Because of my past' It just didn’t make sense to me.”

Before donning the old dress, Bella asked Chigvintsev for his opinion and said it “did not bother” him at all.

“He looks at it as just a material thing,” the WWE ambassador told Us. “He probably wanted me to save money but then didn’t realize I bought a few other dresses after.”