The Bella Twins Explain Why They Don’t Use Their Husbands’ Last Names

Nikki Bella and Brie Bella have left a lasting impact on women’s wrestling and continue to inspire young women and girls to pursue their dreams in the industry. Their contributions to the sport have been significant, and their legacy continues to be felt by fans around the world. Since retiring from wrestling, the Bella Twins have diversified their careers by branching out into other ventures, such as hosting TV shows and launching podcasts. They are both married to their respective husbands but don’t use their husbands’ last names. It seems there is a very good reason for that.

On Tuesday, Nikki and Brie Bella announced that they would be leaving WWE and retiring their “Bella” identity, opting instead to use their legal names, Nikki and Brie Garcia. The decision was prompted by the fact that the Bella name was closely associated with WWE properties and was trademarked by the organization.

Prior to their official announcement, fans had speculated about the possibility of the twins leaving WWE after they removed the Bella name from their social media accounts. The news of their departure was met with support from fellow wrestlers, including AEW star Saraya, who expressed her full support for the Bellas’ decision.

While speaking during an episode of the Nikki & Brie Show, Nikki and Brie discussed the reasoning behind their name change and why they opted not to use their husbands’ last names (Chigvintsev for Nikki and Danielson for Brie) after removing “Bella” from their names.

Nikki explained that they love their husbands and will continue to use their last names on legal documents, but they decided to return to their roots and honor their Mexican culture by using the Garcia name. The decision was also a tribute to their father, with whom they have recently reconnected and who was thrilled with their choice.

“There’s a reason why we didn’t want to move in our next chapter with our married names,” Nikki explained. “We love our husbands and they will always have that, especially on our driver’s licenses and everything legal. But we sat and had this conversation and a lot of people were like, ‘You know, I still don’t think you say Artem’s last name right!’ That’s a real tough one!

Our dad, right now, is doing back flips. He’s super happy. Why not go back to our roots? We love our Mexican culture, so let’s go back to Garcia and how everyone knew us.

The Bella twins also want to be unfiltered and uncensored following their WWE exit. It remains to be seen what’s next for the Bella Twins, as WWE owns that name. Regardless, it is certain that the Garcia twins have a lot of things to do with their newfound freedom.

Do you believe Nikki and Brie Garcia did the right move? What do you think they can do now that they are out of WWE? Sound off in the comments!