Nikki Garcia Was Never The Same After Defeating Charlotte Flair

The Bella Twins, Nikki and Brie, are two of the most influential women who helped lead the WWE from the "Divas Era" into the "Give Divas a Chance" movement that sparked better things for the women of the company today. Now going by their real maiden name, the Garcia Twins, Nikki in particular has dominated Hollywood headlines, from most recently, her divorce after alleged domestic violence, to other high-profile breakups, to her success on the E! network with various reality shows. There was one moment in her WWE career in particular that set her up for the massive success she has seen across all aspects of her life, from in-ring competition, to being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, to even her entrepreneurial efforts: becoming the longest-reigning WWE Divas Champion of all time, which she solidified when she defeated Charlotte Flair.

Garcia was set to achieve the accomplishment of longest-reigning champion, but needed to defeat Flair during an episode of "WWE Raw" in September 2015 to get there. With her twin, as well as Alicia Fox, by her side, Garcia challenged Flair, who had Paige and Becky Lynch in her corner. At one point, Nikki and Brie used a bit of "Twin Magic," switching places in the ring, to bring in a fresher Brie to take on Flair. Flair, unaware of the change, rolled up Brie, thinking she scored the victory.

Even though celebrations for "The Queen" had already started in the ring, Stephanie McMahon interrupted to tell Flair that she couldn't win the title by pinning the wrong twin. Flair was declared the winner, but Garcia held the champion's advantage and retained the Diva's Championship, cementing her spot in company history. The accomplishment skyrocketed Garcia's status within the company, and her star would only rise from there.

With the victory, Garcia surpassed AJ Lee's previous record of 295 days as champion, but she didn't hold on to it for long after her historic victory. She dropped the championship days later against Flair at Night of Champions, ending her reign at a total of 301 days. It was the last time Garcia held a championship in WWE, but her star as a celebrity in Hollywood was only just taking off. Her rise in WWE, however, was put on an almost year-long hold, due to a neck injury that required surgery. She was out of the ring for 10 months before she returned at SummerSlam in August 2016, teaming with Natalya and Alexa Bliss against Lynch, Naomi, and Carmella. Garcia got the victory, and started her comeback story in the company.

One of the highlights of Garcia's comeback following her neck injury was her storyline with then-real-life boyfriend John Cena ahead of WrestleMania 33; Garcia and Cena feuded with The Miz and Maryse. The women were the ones to begin the feud, with Maryse attacking Garcia after the latter accidentally tripped her backstage during a falls count anywhere match against Natalya. After weeks of the "It Couple" taunting Garcia and Cena's lifestyle, which had been the highlight of "Total Divas" and "Total Bellas" on E!, they were set to have a mixed-tag team match on "The Grandest Stage of Them All."

Garcia and Cena were victorious over Miz and Maryse on night two of the event. After the match, Cena got down on one knee and legitimately proposed to Garcia in front of the live audience and everyone watching at home. Following the happy moment and victory, Garcia took some time off from the company, though did compete alongside her twin in the inaugural women's Royal Rumble match in 2018.

Though "Total Divas" was already airing during the time Garcia defeated Flair and became the longest reigning Divas Champion, the success Garcia was having in the ring, as well as her journey battling back from injury, were both extremely successful storylines on the show. "Total Divas" aired from July 2013 to December 2019, and featured an inside look into not just the Garcia Twins' lives, but others such as Naomi, Natalya, Summer Rae, Alexa Bliss, Carmella, Ronda Rousey, and more as the series went on.

In the midst of "Total Divas" airing on the network and its popularity amongst female fans from the wrestling sphere and beyond, E! gave the green light to a spinoff series called "Total Bellas," involving just the Garcia twins, their significant others, including Cena, and their family members. The show debuted in October 2016, and the first season primarily revolved around Garcia's recovery from neck surgery, with Brie and her husband, Bryan Danielson (then known at the time in WWE as Daniel Bryan) moving in her with and Cena to help out. The show ran for six more seasons, the last of which debuted in November 2020.

The success of both shows launched the Garcia twins as household names, as many who didn't even watch the WWE were hooked. Around the time "Total Bellas" premiered on E!, the twins also debuted their new YouTube channel, "The Bella Twins." They focused on travel, fitness, health, beauty, family, and daily vlogs. In 2018, the twins received the YouTube Gold Creator Award after reaching one million subscribers.

The mainstream fame from Garcia's exposure on the E! network led to the former champion getting bigger roles outside of the ring. Garcia competed on the 25th season of "Dancing with the Stars" on ABC, paired with the man she would later date after breaking off her engagement to Cena, Artem Chigvintsev. The show premiered on September 18, 2017. Garcia and Chigvintsev were eliminated sixth, on the episode airing October 30. Following Cena and Garcia's breakup on April 15, when they called off their upcoming wedding, Garcia began dating Chigvintsev in January 2019, and their initial meetup was captured on an episode of "Total Bellas." The couple got engaged in January 2020, and Garcia gave birth to their son that July. The couple were married in Paris on August 26, 2022.

Garcia had other television appearances in addition to "Dancing with the Stars," including "Celebrity Ninja Warrior," "Drop the Mic," and she also appeared alongside former in-ring rivals Miz and Maryse on an episode of their reality show, "Miz & Mrs."

While still with WWE, the Garcia twins started their journey into becoming entrepreneurs. They launched "Birdiebee," a clothing brand, in 2017 and "Nicole + Brizee," a body and beauty line, in 2019. In addition to their YouTube channel, Nikki and Brie launched their own podcast with the Endeavor Audio Network in 2019, called "The Bellas Podcast." They also released their memoir, titled "Incomparable," which became a "New York Times" best seller.

Despite the success in the Bella Twins' entrepreneurial efforts in their time away, they both returned to the ring full-time on an episode of "Raw" in September 2018. The twins teamed alongside UFC-turned-WWE star Ronda Rousey to take on the Riott Squad's Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, and Sarah Logan, before Garcia turned heel on Rousey following a six-woman tag team match at Super Show-Down. It was the twins' first time playing the bad guys since 2015. Garcia's final singles match in the company would come that October at WWE's first all women's premium live event, Evolution. Garcia faced Rousey for the Raw Women's Championship in the main event of the PLE, but she failed to win the title despite her sister interfering multiple times.

On June 20, 2019, Garcia ended her in-ring career after a cyst was discovered on her brain when the star was just 35 years old. In an interview on "The Tonight Show," Garcia revealed she wanted to challenge for the Women's Tag Team Championships alongside her sister, but after recovering from neck surgery, wanted to get checked up before getting back in the ring. Garcia revealed that when test results came back, she had a herniated disc around where she had neck surgery, as well as a cyst on her brain. She said her doctors told her she couldn't wrestle, and she didn't have a choice in the matter. She later confirmed the cyst was benign.

The Bella Twins were named for the WWE Hall of Fame on a February 2020 episode of "WWE SmackDown," but weren't inducted until April 2021, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Garcia did get to return to the WWE one last time, participating in the 2022 Women's Royal Rumble, where she finished 10th overall.

The Garcia Twins announced in March 2023 that their WWE contracts had expired and they were no longer with the company, in an apparent mutual move, as the sisters wanted to start a new chapter in their lives with their various brands. They also became known strictly as the "Garcia Twins," as they said they were "no longer energetically aligned" with the company and their old stage names. The "Bella" name was also dropped from their various brands, with their podcast now known as "The Nikki & Brie Show," which airs on SiriusXM.

While not on television in a wrestling capacity, Garcia is still keeping busy. She is currently a host of Blake Shelton's game show "Barmageddon," which was renewed for a second season. Garcia and her sister also hosted a dating game show on Amazon called "Twin Love" in November 2023. She was also a judge on Netflix's hot dog eating contest "Unfinished Beef," just days after the domestic violence incident with her now-estranged husband. Garcia was also named as a competitor on the upcoming season of "The Traitors," on Peacock, in which she will compete against reality stars from other shows.

Wrestling could still be in Garcia's future, however, but with a different company. Brie's husband, Danielson, is currently the AEW World Champion. Garcia previously made it known she was interested in the company's "forbidden door" policy, which lets wrestlers work all over the world. She said she was so inspired by Mercedes Mone (the former Sasha Banks) joining the company, that she almost called AEW's president and owner, Tony Khan.