John Cena and Nikki Bella End Engagement, 6-Year Relationship
WWE superstar John Cena and former Divas champion Nikki Bella have called it quits, ending their six-year relationship and marriage engagement.
“While this decision was a difficult one, we continue to have a great deal of love and respect for one another,” the couple told Us Weekly in a statement. “We ask that you respect our privacy during this time in our lives.”
Cena, 40, proposed to Bella a year ago at WrestleMania 33 and the couple has been dating since 2012. At the event, the two stars teamed up to defeat Maryse and The Miz, who questions Cena's commitment to Bella.
In January, Bella dropped hints towards a potential fallout with Cena in a trailer for the reality show Total Bellas, saying "So we really want to call this off?"
On an interview with NBC's Today show, Cena said that the two were "gonna move forward and try to work through it" after experiencing uncertainty surrounding their relationship.
But while promoting his movie Blockers, Cena told PEOPLE about how he already felt married to the 34-year-old Total Bellas reality star.
“People come up to me and say, ‘I love watching your wife on television.’ And I love that, so that happens to me 10 times before it would be a, ‘Yo man I love your work.’ It’s always, ‘I love watching your wife on television,'” he said, adding that he wished the two had tied the knot “yesterday.”
“I’m already ready to go there and it sounds nice hearing it,” he said of fans calling Bella his wife. “I know that we will have a wonderful future together because I love the way that sounds.”