Nikki Bella Stephanie Nicole Garcia - Colace ( November 21 , 1983 ) is an American professional wrestler , actress , and model signed to WWE under the ring name Nikki Bella , performing on the SmackDown brand . In June 2007 , Bella signed with World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) , and was assigned to developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling ( FCW ) alongside her twin sister Brie Bella , forming the duo The Bella Twins . She made her debut on " SmackDown " in November 2008 . Bella is a two - time WWE Divas Champion . Her second reign is recognized as the longest in the title ' s history at 301 days . Bella ranked No . 1 in " Pro Wrestling Illustrated " s Female 50 in November 2015 , and was named Diva of the Year by " Rolling Stone " in December 2015 . She also won the award for Choice Female Athlete alongside her sister at the Teen Choice Awards in 2016 . Early career . Nicole was born in San Diego , California and raised in Scottsdale , Arizona in a family of Mexican and Italian descent . She played soccer up until college , when she started modeling , acting , and doing promotional work . She made their first national TV appearance on the Fox reality show " Meet My Folks " . Following this appearance , Nicole was hired to be the World Cup girl for Budweiser and were photographed holding the World Cup trophy . She then participated in the 2006 " International Body Doubles twins search " . She participated in the 2006 WWE Diva Search but did not make the cut . World Wrestling Entertainment . Debut ; Brand Switches ( 2008 – 2010 ) . In Brie Bella ' s first few matches , beginning with her debut on August 29 , 2008 , she would roll out of the ring and go underneath it , emerging and appearing revived , and then win the match . On the October 31 episode of " SmackDown " , when Brie went under the ring Victoria grabbed her legs , but a second pair of legs kicked her off , implying that a second person was under the ring . The following week on " SmackDown " , Brie picked up a win against Victoria and then ran under the ring to escape Natalya and Victoria , but Victoria and Natalya both reached for Brie under the ring , resulting in both Nicole and Brie being pulled out . The twins then attacked them and celebrated afterward . Nicole was then introduced as Nikki , who officially made her debut . The twins had their first official match as a team on the November 21 episode of " SmackDown " , defeating Victoria and Natalya . They continued competing in tag team matches for the next few months . Starting in November , Nikki and Brie developed an on - screen relationship with The Colóns ( Carlito and Primo ) , appearing in numerous backstage segments with them , and accompanying them to the ring . On the February 13 , 2009 episode of " SmackDown " , John Morrison and The Miz flirted with the Bellas backstage . As Morrison and The Miz were scheduled to have a match against Carlito and Primo that night , a stipulation was added that the winning team would win a date with the Bellas on Valentine ' s Day . During their date , Primo and Carlito were disguised as waiters and tried to sabotage the date , resulting in the Bellas getting angry with the two . The date provoked a rivalry between the teams of The Miz and Morrison and Primo and Carlito , with them competing for the affection of The Bella Twins , who were seemingly unable to choose between them . On the March 17 episode of ECW , Carlito and Primo , accidentally spat apples in the face of Brie , which was originally aimed at Morrison and The Miz . Nikki started to laugh at Brie ' s misfortune , and a fight broke out between the two of them , which led to Nikki leaving with The Miz and Morrison , while Brie stayed with Primo and Carlito . In the process , Nikki turned into a villainess . In their first singles match , on the March 31 episode of ECW , Nikki defeated Brie after Morrison and The Miz caused a distraction . On April 15 , 2009 , The Bella Twins were both drafted to the Raw brand as part of the 2009 Supplemental Draft . On the April 27 episode of Raw , Brie made her Raw in - ring debut in an eight - Diva tag team match , which her team won . Nikki also made an appearance , reuniting with her twin , as she was under the ring to help out Brie during her match . Nikki then made her official in - ring debut on the May 18 episode of Raw in a battle royal but was eliminated by Beth Phoenix . On June 29 , 2009 , they were both traded to the " ECW " brand . They debuted on " ECW " on June 30 , 2009 on The Abraham Washington Show , as the special guests . The following Tuesday on ECW Nikki defeated Katie Lea Burchill , by switching places with Brie behind the referee ' s back . The following week on WWE Superstars Brie also defeated Burchill after a similar switch . The Bella Twins were then featured on September 10 episode of Superstars , when Nikki defeated Burchill . On October 12 , 2009 , the Bellas were sent back to " Raw " as part of a tri - branded divas trade , where they predominately appeared in backstage segments with the weekly guest stars and occasionally competed in matches . On the January 4 , 2010 , episode of Raw , Brie participated in the tournament to determine the new Divas Champion tournament match , but lost to Maryse in the first round . During the match , the twins switched places behind the referee ' s back so it was Nikki who was pinned . In June 2010 , they developed a feud with Jillian Hall , when Brie defeated her after switching with Nikki . The following week , Nikki defeated Hall after switching with Brie . On the July 8 episode of Superstars , the Bellas acted as the special guest referees during a mixed tag team match with Primo and Hall facing Yoshi Tatsu and Gail Kim . During the match , Hall attacked both twins , but lost the match when Kim pinned her and Nikki made a fast count . On the next episode of Superstars , the twins defeated Hall and Maryse in a tag team match . Heel Turn ; Divas Champion and Departure ( 2010 – 2012 ) . On August 31 , The Bella Twins announced they would be part of season three of NXT , mentoring Jamie . Jamie was the first rookie eliminated on the October 5 episode of NXT . On the October 19 episode of NXT , Nikki teased a heel turn after she became upset after Kelly Kelly ' s rookie Naomi kicked Brie in the face during the match . Nikki attacked Naomi and eventually threw Brie ( the legal woman ) out of the ring and pinned Naomi . After the match , Nikki laughed evilly as she celebrated with her sister . A few weeks later , Nikki continued displaying her villainous persona as she faced off against AJ Lee in a losing effort . On the November 22 episode of Raw , Brie ran out to accompany Daniel Bryan to his match against Ted DiBiase who had Maryse in his corner . Following Bryan ' s win , Nikki ran out and the two fought over Bryan ' s affection only to have Bryan break it up and have both of them hug each other . They began to manage Bryan , frequently accompanying him to the ring . On the January 24 episode of Raw , the twins discovered Bryan kissing Gail Kim backstage . After it was explained to them that Gail was Bryan ' s girlfriend , the Bellas assaulted her , turning both heel for the first time in their WWE careers . On January 30 at the Royal Rumble , they once again assaulted Gail Kim , and again the following night on Raw . On the February 7 episode of Raw , they debuted in their first match as heels , teaming with fellow heel Diva Melina in a losing effort to WWE Divas Champion Eve Torres , Tamina , and Gail Kim . The Bella Twins began feuding with Eve Torres after they appeared as Lumberjills during a WWE Divas Championship match between Eve and Natalya on the February 14 episode of Raw . Following the match , they attacked Eve backstage before Gail Kim and Natalya made the save . The following week , The Bella Twins defeated Eve and Gail Kim in a tag team match after using " Twin Magic " . The following week , Nikki won a Divas battle royal to become the number one contender for the WWE Divas Championship after Brie switched with her twin sister . Nikki cashed in this title shot on the March 7 episode of Raw , but failed to win . On the March 17 episode of WWE Superstars , The Bella Twins teamed up with Melina and Alicia Fox in a losing effort against Tamina , Gail Kim , Natalya , Eve Torres . The following week on the March 31 episode of WWE Superstars , The Bellas and Melina , defeated Eve , Gail , and Natayla after Brie pinned Eve following another " Twin Magic " switch . On the April 11 episode of Raw , Brie Bella defeated Eve to win the WWE Divas Championship from her , marking the first time that either twin had held a championship in the WWE . Brie went on to successfully defend the championship against Kelly Kelly at Over the Limit , after switching places with Nikki again . The following night on Raw , they teamed with fellow heels Maryse and Melina against Kelly Kelly , Beth Phoenix , Gail Kim , and Eve Torres . However , the match ended in a no - contest following an interruption from Kharma . On the May 30 episode of Raw , The Bella Twins were defeated by Kelly Kelly and Eve . Later that night , they interrupted and mocked Kharma when she revealed that she was pregnant and that she was taking a year ' s leave of absence from the WWE . On the June 6 episode of Raw , The Bella Twins were defeated in a divas tag team match by Kelly Kelly and Beth Phoenix after Brie was pinned by Phoenix . Their losing streak continued on the June 13 episode of Raw , when they lost a 7 on 7 divas tag team match teaming with Melina , Rosa Mendes , Alicia Fox , Maryse , and Tamina in a losing effort to Kelly Kelly , Beth Phoenix , Gail Kim , Eve Torres , Natalya , AJ , and Kaitlyn . On the June 20 episode of Raw , a special " Power to the People " episode , where Brie would defend her title against either Eve , Kelly Kelly , or Beth Phoenix , Kelly was selected by the WWE Universe as her opponent , who defeated Brie and won the Divas Championship . The following week on Raw , Nikki faced Kelly in a Raw Roulette match . A submission match was picked and Nikki lost after tapping out to a Boston crab . After the match , both of the Bellas attacked Kelly until Eve Torres came to the rescue , throwing both Bellas out of the ring . It was later announced that Brie ' s rematch for the WWE Divas Championship would take place at the Money In The Bank pay - per - view . On the August 1 episode of Raw , Brie and Nikki both took part in a battle royal to face Kelly Kelly for the Divas Championship at SummerSlam . They both failed to win but were eliminated last simultaneously at the hands of the victorious Beth Phoenix . On the August 29 episode of Raw , The Bellas ' losing streak finally ended when Brie Bella defeated Kelly Kelly after switching places with her sister Nikki . On the September 29 episode of WWE Superstars , The Bella Twins defeated Chickbusters ( A . J . and Kaitlyn ) . On the October 27 episode of WWE Superstars Eve and Kelly Kelly defeated The Bella Twins , when Kelly pinned Brie . On the November 29 episode of SmackDown , Brie Bella won a Divas " Mistletoe on a Pole " match . At the 2011 annual Tribute to the Troops , The Bella Twins teamed up with Beth Phoenix and Natalya in a losing effort to Kelly Kelly , Alicia Fox , Eve & Maria Menounos . They would then enter into a storyline where they pursued Alberto Del Rio . On the January 2 episode of Raw , The Bellas defeated Kelly Kelly and Eve Torres in a tag team match . On January 16 episode of Raw , they were defeated by Kelly Kelly and Alicia Fox , since Raw ' s special guest , Perez Hilton thwarted their attempt at Twin Magic . After the match , Nikki and Brie would go and try to attack Perez but Kelly Kelly and Alicia Fox would come to the aid of Perez . The Bella ' s began to show friction for the second time since joining WWE after both twins had lost to AJ in singles competition . After Brie ' s match with AJ , Nikki revealed that Brie was rooting for Team Johnny in the 12 - man tag team match at WrestleMania XXVIII , whilst Nikki was rooting for Team Teddy . In the process , Nikki developed a babyface persona , while Brie remained a heel . At WrestleMania XXVIII , Nikki was in the corner of Team Teddy , who lost to Team Johnny , thus furthering the twins ' dissension . On the April 6 episode of SmackDown , Nikki Bella ( without the assistance of her twin sister Brie ) , took on the Divas Champion Beth Phoenix . Before the match started , Kelly Kelly came out to distract Phoenix , which then allowed Nikki pick up the win . On the April 23 episode of Raw , Nikki defeated Beth Phoenix in a Lumberjill match for the WWE Divas Championship , ending Phoenix ' s reign as champion at 204 days . Brie lost Nikki ' s championship to Layla at Extreme Rules , after attempting Twin Magic . The following night on Raw , they competed in their last match with the WWE , failing to win back the Divas Championship from Layla in a triple threat match . Later that night , WWE announced on their website that the twins had been fired by Executive Administrator Eve Torres . This storyline was reportedly used to facilitate the expiration of their contracts , which the twins had decided not to renew . Independent circuit ( 2012 – 2013 ) . On May 1 , 2012 , Nikki and Brie , formerly known as The Bella Twins , appeared at their first independent wrestling show in Newburgh , New York at Northeast Wrestling . Appearing as special guests , Nikki and Brie argued over who was the better man , Luke Robinson or Jerry Lawler , resulting a match between the two . During the match , Luke kissed Brie only to get slapped from both twins , leaving Lawler to roll up for the win . After the match , both Brie and Nikki left the arena with Jerry Lawler . Nicole and Brianna made their debut for CTWE Pro Wrestling ] at their Season Beatings pay - per - view on December 15 , where Nicole accompanied " Platinum Playboy " J - Busta where he defeated Anthony Greene who was accompanied Brianna . After the match , Brie Bella turned on Anthony Greene and slapped him across the face , followed by a post - match Super Kick from J - Busta . Return to WWE . Total Divas Storylines and Face Turn ( 2013 - 2014 ) . The Bella Twins returned to WWE on the March 11 , 2013 episode of Raw , in a backstage segment with Cody Rhodes , Damien Sandow also confronting Divas Champion Kaitlyn , beginning to associate themselves with the Rhodes Scholars . On the March 15 episode of SmackDown , The Bella Twins attacked The Funkadactyls ( Cameron and Naomi ) in a backstage segment . On the March 22 episode of SmackDown , The Bella Twins interfered in Rhodes and Sandow ' s match against Brodus Clay and Tensai , but they were attacked by Cameron and Naomi . The Bella Twins made their in ring return on the March 27 episode of Main Event facing the Funkadactyls following interference from Rhodes and defeating them on Raw . The Bella Twins were scheduled to participate in an eight person tag team match with Team Rhodes Scholars against Tons of Funk ( Brodus and Tensai ) and the Funkadactyls at WrestleMania 29 , but the match was cancelled due to time restraints . The match instead took place the following night on Raw , with Tons of Funk and the Funkadactyls emerging victorious . They continued to feud with the Funkadactyls , defeating them in standard and six - diva tag team matches . In June 2013 , Nikki suffered a fractured tibia . Upon the debut of Total Divas in July 2013 , The Bellas began feuding with their co - star on the show , Natalya . Brie and Natalya went on to trade victories in singles competition on Raw and at SummerSlam . The cast of Total Divas then transition into a feud with Divas Champion AJ Lee , who mocked the show and cast . At Night of Champions , Brie unsuccessfully faced Lee for the Divas title in a four - way match including Natalya and Naomi . Following Brie ' s real - life engagement to Daniel Bryan , their relationship began to be acknowledged on WWE television , which turned both Bellas face in the process . Nikki returned to in - ring action on the October 25 episode of SmackDown , losing to AJ . At Survivor Series the following month , Nikki was part of the victorious Team Total Divas . The twins failed to win the Divas Championship again at WrestleMania XXX on April 6 in the Divas Invitational match , which was won by AJ . Singles Competition and Heel Turn ( 2014 - 2015 ) . After Brie quit WWE and slapped Stephanie McMahon at Payback , Nikki would be forced by Stephanie to compete in various handicap matches for several weeks , while also being set up in various other situations that resulted in Nikki being beaten down by heel Divas doing Stephanie ' s bidding . After Brie returned and challenged Stephanie to a match at SummerSlam , both she and Nikki were attacked by Stephanie at a contract signing on the August 4 edition of Raw . At SummerSlam on August 17 , Nikki turned villainous and attacked Brie during her match against Stephanie ; allowing her to defeat Brie with the Pedigree . Nikki explained her actions the next night on " Raw " by saying that she and Brie were supposed to be a team but it never turned out that way , and also accused Brie of betraying her . After being confronted by Brie , the evil Nikki slapped Brie and shouted that she would never forgive her . Nikki competed in her first match since her villainous turn on the August 19 edition of " Main Event " ; defeating Emma in singles action . On the August 25 edition of Raw , Jerry Lawler attempted to get the Bellas back together , but Nikki continued to deliver verbal and physical attacks toward Brie . On the following week , Nikki was awarded a match for the Divas Championship by Stephanie McMahon and demanded to Brie that she quit for her forgiveness , only to be shoved by Brie . On the September 15 edition of Raw , Nikki teamed with Paige in defeating Brie and AJ Lee , and then delivered the Rack Attack on Brie after the match ended . At Night of Champions , Nikki was defeated by AJ Lee in a Triple Threat Match for the Divas Championship when Lee made Paige submit to the " Black Widow . " At Hell In A Cell , Nikki defeated Brie in a singles match , forcing Brie to become Nikki ' s personal assistant for the next month . Nikki won a # 1 Contender ' s Battle Royal on the October 31 edition of " SmackDown " . She received her title opportunity at Survivor Series , and defeated AJ Lee to win her second Divas Championship . The win came seconds after Brie kissed AJ to provide a distraction . In the process , Brie turned heel and the twins reconciled . Nikki defeated AJ in a rematch at TLC after spraying a substance in AJ ' s eyes . Nikki and Brie entered in a feud with Natalya and Paige , with Nikki losing non - title singles matches to both women . After a successful defense against Paige at WWE Fastlane , Nikki & Brie continued to torment The Diva of Tomorrow , with Brie helping Nikki cling to her championship in a rematch with Paige on the March 2 Raw by getting the titleholder disqualified . When The Bella Twins double - teamed the unorthodox Diva after the bell , AJ Lee returned to help her longtime nemesis even the odds . At WrestleMania 31 , Nikki and Brie were defeated by Paige and AJ . Team Bella ( 2015 ) . Both Nikki and Brie turned face heading into Extreme Rules due to Naomi ' s heel turn on the April 13 episode of " Raw . " After defeating Nikki twice in tag team matches , Naomi earned a title shot at the PPV , with Nikki retaining . On the following day , the Bellas were attacked by Naomi and the returning Tamina Snuka , leading to a tag team match at Payback , which the twins lost when Nikki was pinned by Naomi . Two weeks later , at Elimination Chamber , Nikki retained her championship against Naomi and Paige in a triple – threat match , with Brie banned from ringside . Nikki turned villainous once again , as did Brie , by employing Twin Magic , which helped Nikki retain the championship against Paige on the June 1 episode of " Raw " and at Money in the Bank . During the feud with Paige , Alicia Fox aligned with The Bella Twins to form Team Bella . At the The Beast in the East pay – per – view event on July 4 , Nikki retained the championship against Paige and Tamina . After weeks of Team Bella outnumbering Paige , Naomi , and Tamina , Stephanie McMahon called for a " revolution " in the WWE Divas division and introduced the debuting Charlotte and Becky Lynch as Paige ' s allies . NXT Women ' s Champion Sasha Banks would debut as an ally to Naomi and Tamina , which led to a brawl between the three teams . Nikki would then lose by submission to Charlotte in a tag team match on the August 3 episode of " Raw " and to Sasha Banks on the August 17 episode of " Raw " in a non – title match . The three teams would ultimately face off on August 23 at SummerSlam in a three team elimination match , in which Team Bella first eliminated Team B . A . D . when Brie pinned Tamina , before Team PCB ' s Becky Lynch pinned Brie to win the match for her team . On the September 14 episode of Raw , Nikki defended the Divas Championship against Charlotte , who pinned Brie after the twins had switched places to win the match , however , since the title cannot change hands by disqualification , Nikki retained the championship , becoming the new longest reigning Divas Champion in history , surpassing AJ Lee ' s previous record of 295 days . Charlotte received a rematch on September 20 , at Night of Champions , where she defeated Nikki to win the championship , ending her reign at 301 days . In a rematch between the two , Nikki failed to regain the championship from Charlotte on October 25 at Hell in a Cell . Shortly after , Nikki went on a hiatus from television due to a neck injury which would require surgery , but returned for one night on December 21 , to accept the Slammy Award for Diva of the Year . Nikki made a brief cameo appearance at the WrestleMania 32 event in April 3 , 2016 , celebrating with Brie after winning a 10 - Diva tag team match . In June , Nikki confirmed that she would no longer use her " Rack Attack " maneuver and began training with her sister ' s husband Daniel Bryan , with whom she announced was learning a new finishing move . On July 21 , she was revealed to be cleared for in - ring competition and continued her training at the WWE Performance Center . SmackDown ( 2016 – present ) . After ten months of inactivity , Nikki made an unannounced return at the SummerSlam on August 21 , when she was the last – minute replacement of Eva Marie , who was removed from the event after her suspension , becoming the tag team partner of Natalya and Alexa Bliss , with the trio defeating Becky Lynch , Naomi , and Carmella . Two days later on the August 23 episode of " SmackDown " , after being established as part of the brand , Nikki began a feud with Carmella and would be attacked by her , while re – establishing herself as a face in the process . At Backlash , on September 11 , Nikki competed in a six – pack elimination challenge to determine the inaugural WWE SmackDown Women ' s Champion , where she would eliminate Natalya before being eliminated by Carmella . After months of being attacked by Carmella , and competing against her in multiple tag team matches , Nikki defeated Carmella at the No Mercy . Later that month on the October 25 episode of " SmackDown " , Nikki competed against Natalya to become the team captain of the SmackDown women ' s team at the Survivor Series , which Nikki was successful in defeating Natalya . At the Survivor Series , Nikki was mysteriously attacked backstage , causing Natalya to become her replacement for the match , in which the SmackDown women ' s team was unsuccessful in winning the match . In an attempt to finally end her feud with Carmella , Nikki competed in a no - disqualification match against Carmella at the , which Nikki was victorious , and would afterwards be revealed by Carmella that her attacker at Survivor Series was not her , but her fellow " Total Divas " co - star Natalya . On the December 20 episode of " SmackDown " , after Carmella again revealed more secrets about Natalya to Nikki , Natalya would attack Carmella then admit to attacking Nikki at Survivor Series , revealing her pent - up jealousy of her success for years . The two then spent the next few weeks exchanging offenses and attacking each other in several different locations . They would compete in a match on the January 10 episode of " SmackDown " , but the match would not officially start when the two would brawl it out , with referees coming to break them up . At the Royal Rumble , Nikki competed in a six - woman tag team match alongside Naomi and Lynch against Natalya , Bliss , and Mickie James , with her team coming out victorious after Naomi pinned Bliss . On the January 31 episode of " SmackDown " , the SmackDown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan announced that Nikki will face Natalya in singles competition at the Elimination Chamber , which would end in a double count - out at the event . To end the feud between the two , Daniel Bryan announced that Nikki Bella will face Natalya in a Falls Count Anywhere match , which Natalya would win on the February 21 episode of " SmackDown " after Maryse interfered attacking Nikki . On the February 28 episode of " SmackDown " , Nikki joined her real life boyfriend , John Cena ' s side after Maryse slapped Cena on " MizTV " and escaped the ring with The Miz , leading to Daniel Bryan making a mixed tag team match between Nikki and John Cena against The Miz and Maryse at WrestleMania 33 . Cena and Nikki went on to win the match ; Cena then proposed marriage to Nikki in which Nikki would accept the proposal . Personal life . Nicole is dating fellow professional wrestler John Cena . In May 2014 , Nicole revealed on " Total Divas " that she had married her high school sweetheart at the age of 20 ; the marriage was annulled three years later . Nicole announced on " Total Divas " in 2014 that she is a qualified real - estate agent .