The latest rumor about the WWE Hall of Fame would see the Bella Twins inducted into the 2020 Hall of Fame during WrestleMania weekend. Both Brie and Nikki created legacies during their time in WWE. Fans didn’t take them seriously at first with their lackluster matches, but both twins worked hard to improve. The success of the Total Divas reality series marketed around them saw their fame grow.
We will look at the best in-ring moments to come from Nikki and Brie each. Both ladies had a handful of high-profile matches and won the Divas Championship. Their different personality traits in real life showing on the reality series allowed them to add elements of that to the wrestling characters. Find out which bouts made them stars. These are the five best matches of Nikki Bella and the five best matches of Brie Bella.
10 Nikki: Nikki Bella and John Cena vs The Miz and Maryse (WrestleMania 33)
The relationship between Nikki Bella and John Cena became part of WWE television when everyone realized they were together. Fans had mixed feelings heading into WrestleMania 33 when a major star like Cena was in a lower card match teaming with Nikki against The Miz and Maryse.
All four wrestlers did a great job setting up the match with weeks of fascinating segments. The whole thing was fun with the memorable aftermath of Cena proposing to Nikki. Unfortunately, it was called off a few months later and they have since broken up.
9 Brie: Brie Bella vs Charlotte Flair (Fastlane 2016)
The Divas Championship reign of Charlotte Flair from 2015 to early 2016 featured her finding her footing when turning heel. Brie Bella stepped up as a face challenger in her final months with WWE before taking time off to start a family.
Charlotte defended against Brie at Fastlane 2016 in a fun match. The best thing about it was that fans genuinely bought into Brie having a chance. This was probably the best stretch of Brie’s singles career with fans aware that she was taking time off shortly after.
8 Nikki: Nikki Bella vs Charlotte Flair (Night of Champions 2015)
Charlotte Flair started her Divas Championship against Nikki Bella in 2015. WWE called up Charlotte along with Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch to lead drastic changes to women’s wrestling on the main roster and expectations of stronger match quality.
Charlotte and Nikki had a big match at Night of Champions 2015 a few days after Nikki broke the record to become the longest-reigning Divas Champion. Nikki did a great job selling for Charlotte and trying to make the title change a big moment.
7 Brie: Brie Bella vs Natalya (SummerSlam 2013)
SummerSlam 2013 was one of the better shows in SummerSlam history with main events of Daniel Bryan vs John Cena and Brock Lesnar vs CM Punk. The match between Natalya and Brie Bella was the sole women’s bout on the card.
Brie had one of her better performances keeping with Natalya. Both ladies worked hard along with the others at ringside to create a solid match. It was good enough to add to the flow of the show without feeling like it was wasting time, especially impressive without a title on the line.
6 Nikki: Nikki Bella vs Natalya (Smackdown: February 21, 2017)
Nikki Bella had an even better match with Natalya than her sister did thanks to a good storyline. Someone attacked Nikki at the prior Survivor Series event with Natalya replacing her in the Raw vs Smackdown women’s elimination match.
The feud lasted a few months with Natalya lashing out against her former friend for stealing the spotlight. Natalya and Nikki had their best match on the February 21, 2017 episode of Smackdown in an exciting and violent Falls Count Anywhere match.
5 Brie: Brie Bella and Daniel Bryan vs Maryse and The Miz (Hell in a Cell 2018)
The final run of Brie Bella in WWE saw her wanting to team with her husband Daniel Bryan. Brie appeared at Bryan’s side after Maryse interfered in a few matches on behalf of The Miz. It culminated in a mixed tag match at the Hell in a Cell 2018 event.
The match came at a great time since the feud between Bryan and Miz was the best thing on Smackdown. Brie and Maryse getting added just provided a new dynamic that was valuable. Miz and Maryse stole the win, but Brie and Bryan did a good job working together.
4 Nikki: Nikki Bella vs Ronda Rousey (Evolution 2018)
WWE elaborately waited until the Evolution event in 2018 to book Ronda Rousey against Nikki Bella. There was a polarizing reaction to the match announcement, but a strong contingent of fans has strong desires for it.
The match surprised the detractors as Nikki realized it could be her last performance. Nikki’s heel work with Brie in her corner saw her posing a threat to Rousey which felt ridiculous on paper. Rousey won the match, but Nikki held her own with a great performance in the main event of a historic show.
3 Brie: Brie Bella vs Stephanie McMahon (SummerSlam 2014)
Brie Bella received the biggest opportunity of her career when feuding with Stephanie McMahon. Daniel Bryan was off television due to an injury, but the Stephanie vs Brie feud allowed them to continue the storyline of The Authority trying to hold him down.
Fans rallied behind Brie as the one to stand up to Stephanie in a successful storyline. WWE closed multiple Raw episodes with their segments. Stephanie wrestled for the first time in over a decade with both ladies doing their best. Nikki turning on Brie ended it on a shocking note for the Stephanie win.
2 Nikki: Nikki Bella vs Carmella (TLC 2016)
The rivalry between Nikki Bella and Carmella played a role in Smackdown having a deeper women’s division than Raw following the brand split. Nikki was a face after returning from an injury, but Carmella attacked her to turn heel after her own face run struggled.
The new role for Carmella helped her find bigger success finally connecting with the audience. Nikki and Carmella saw their feud culminate with a highly entertaining No DQ match at the TLC 2016 event. The win for Nikki left the audience happy as this was her peak run as a face character.
1 Brie: Brie Bella, Paige, Alicia Fox, Natalya and Eva Marie vs Lana, Emma, Summer Rae, Naomi and Tamina (WrestleMania 32)
The end of Brie Bella’s run in WWE in 2016 saw her get a great farewell at WrestleMania 32. Most of the relevant names on the women’s roster outside of the title picture took part in this ten-women tag team match on the pre-show.
This event set the new WWE attendance record of over 100,000 people to make it even more special. The match was fun with everyone getting some time in the ring. Brie winning for her team was a great moment that connected with the audience. The visual of Nikki coming out to celebrate with everyone raising Brie in the air was a priceless moment.