What Initally Held Nikki Bella Back From Marrying Artem Chigvintsev

As a WWE champion and reality star, Nikki Bella has lived most of her adult life breaking barriers alongside her twin sister, Brie Bella, who shares the same career. The two starred in E!'s "Total Bellas" from 2016 to 2021, which documented their rise to fame and behind-the-scenes relationships. Although Nikki dated professional wrestler and actor John Cena for five years, the pair called it quits just weeks before they were supposed to tie the knot in 2018, notes People. In her first relationship since she and Cena ended things romantically, the two-time WWE Divas champion moved on the following year with "Dancing With the Stars" pro Artem Chigvintsev, confirming their relationship via Instagram.

Nikki and Chigvintsev have been together ever since, ultimately getting engaged in November 2019, according to Us Weekly. Additionally, the pair welcomed their son, Matteo, to the world in July 2020. E! News reports that the two wanted to get married around Thanksgiving 2021, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, they postponed the ceremony. Now the "Total Bellas" star's giving insight into how her outlook on marriage has changed.

Nikki Bella and fiancé Artem Chigvintsev have been inseparable since they confirmed their relationship in 2019. Although the pair have a wedding in the works, the WWE superstar recently told E!'s Daily Pop that having a child together adjusted her outlook on marriage. Nikki gave birth to the pair's first child together just 18 months ago and notes she's been more cautious about the seriousness of marriage ever since claiming she doesn't want her son Matteo "to go through a divorce." Nikki also shared insight into her past relationship with John Cena, which abruptly ended months before their wedding, adding that, with "everything [she's] been through," she wants to heart to "make sure it's forever."

According to Us Weekly, Nikki and Chigvintsev first met when they were matched as partners on ABC's hit dance competition "Dancing With the Stars" for Season 25, which aired in 2017. The couple reportedly postponed their wedding because Chigvintsev's parents, who hail from Russia, have not been able to "get visas" to enter the United States, so the "Total Bellas" star said the day her soon-to-be in-laws get them, "we will set our date and say, 'I do.'" However, she has voiced that Chigvintsev's parents have told her in the past they want "babies over marriage," per a 2019 interview with Life & Style.