Nikki Garcia, aka former WWE wrestler Nikki Bella, is still dealing with the fallout from the incident with her ex-husband Artem Chigvintsev, who was arrested for domestic battery in late August. Artem called paramedics to request medical assistance for the alleged victim but then canceled it.
The cops showed up, where they noticed obvious injuries on the victim’s body, and they arrested Artem. However, the charges were dropped in September.
Garcia and Chigvintsev agreed to a divorce settlement last month. Nikki discussed the divorce for the first time in public on the Nikki & Brie Show.
“First, I want to thank everyone—listeners, you, family, friends, co-workers, people I haven’t talked to in a long time. Just for all of the love and support, for the respect of privacy and space. I needed to disconnect because first things first, I’m a mom and my son’s protection and privacy is the most important. So, I was going to do whatever it took for that, most importantly, and then just needing space for healing, for facing trauma head on. All of that. It’s been really tough. I’ve been heartbroken, [and] sad. You dream of having this family, and you have this incredible love, and it just goes the other way. And you go from having a great love story to having a terrible one. I never saw any of it coming as far as what the ending would be. It’s been a struggle. I know being a public figure, I have to say a little bit about this. And after this, I don’t want to ever talk about it again because I truly do want privacy for Matteo. That has been the most important part. But obviously, I’ve had a public relationship. I’m a public figure, so I have to talk about what’s gone on a little bit. I do want to continue to protect Matteo in that way.”
Nikki said that she played it up in the public eye that her relationship with Chigvintsev was stronger than it was. She said she wants Artem to be the best version of himself because their son deserves it, and she doesn’t want to drag him down for the sake of Matteo. Nikki stated that she was trying to show her fans that she had the perfect relationship.
“I didn’t want to have another failed public relationship. And more than any of that, I wanted it for Matteo. It always comes back to him. You fight for your kids. You want to stick together because that’s what the kids want. And I tried really hard.”
Nikki talked about crying every time Matteo leaves her, and while it’s been hard, she feels they’re doing a great job co-parenting while staying focused on Matteo.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Nikki & Brie Show with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
