Nikki Bella explained why her rivalry with Paige has started including references to both of their personal lives. According to her, the shift came from the crowd’s reaction during WWE‘s tour of Canada.
During Nikki’s attack on Paige, taped in Ottawa, part of the crowd started chanting the name of John Cena, Bella’s ex-fiancé. Nikki heard the chants and even responded to the crowd during the segment.
Talking about the decision to bring that kind of shot into the storyline, Nikki said she likes using personal elements when they help get a reaction from the crowd:
“I’m all for what entertains a crowd, what helps make a crowd react, and I’ve always loved bringing something personal into it. It all came up from what they were chanting in Canada. If they never chanted that, none of the stuff in the promo would have ever happened.”
The fallout didn’t take long to show up, landing on the September 4 episode of SmackDown. During a backstage confrontation, Paige needled Nikki by saying she built her career on “hustle, loyalty, and respect,” a nod to Cena’s famous catchphrase.
Nikki and Paige have been trading shots since SummerSlam, when the Bella Twins turned on Paige after the loss to Fatal Influence. In the weeks since, the rivalry has heated up with insults on social media and in segments taped for SmackDown.
WWE has confirmed that Nikki Bella and Paige will finally face off this Friday, September 11, on SmackDown from Arena CDMX in Mexico City.