Who Is John Cena's Girlfriend? The Cryptic Instagram Photo That Suggests He May Be Engaged To Shay Shariatzadeh
There are rumors he's engaged to girlfriend Shay Shariatzadeh.
getty When a couple breaks up, it's downright tragic. The same kind of dynamic is at play when it comes to why we follow celebrity romances with this eagerness.
When John Cena and Nikki Bella first got together, it seemed like a match made in heaven. But then things soured, and the couple hit the rocks. Then, Bella happily moved on to someone new, and it appeared that Cena was right behind her.
The two have been dating since March 2019, but now, there's speculation that Cena may be engaged to Shay Shariatzadeh.
Who is John Cena's girlfriend, Shay Shariatzadeh? Here's everything we know about Shariatzadeh, her relationship with Cena, and whether or not the two are actually engaged.
1. Cena and Shariatzedah were first seen together in March 2019.
It's strange to think the news about John Cena had all been coming from the Great White North! That's right, in 2019, Cena had crossed the border and was spending most of his time in Canada — in Vancouver to be precise.
What was he doing there? Collecting that coin, girl. Cena was shooting the TV show Playing With Fire, and for him, that name might say it all.
See, when Cena broke up with his last girlfriend — well, his fiancé, Nikki Bella — she said it would "kill her" if she ever had to see him with another woman. Sadly for Bella, for the first time since the couple went their separate ways, Cena had been seen out and about with a mystery brunette.
In March 2019, eyewitness Nina Safai, a blogger from Canada, reported, “John and his new girlfriend have been out in the public multiple times. I’ve seen them together four times now. It started on March 3, and I’ve been running into them once or twice a week since then. I first saw them at Thierry dessert shop — it seemed like their first or second date. I saw them another time walking on Georgia and Granville. So, yeah, they’ve been pretty much walking around, eating, shopping and working out together.”
2. Although they were spotted together, Cena didn't confirm the relationship right away.
Though Cena didn't immediately come out and publicly admit that he was in a relationship (something you do in the new days of a relationship, particularly if you're a celebrity who the whole world is watching), there was more evidence to support the idea that the woman he had been spotted with might actually be more than a casual fling.
“John’s been out a lot in Vancouver,” a second eyewitness, Joe D’Aquisto, revealed, also throwing just for good luck that he too happened to spot Cena out with the gorgeous brunette who has everyone talking.
“They were holding hands when I saw them walk by. As soon as I walked out of Starbucks they were crossing the crosswalk at a crowded intersection and I kinda hurried to catch them. Once I was almost to them they stopped and she was kissing him so I kind of hung back until that was over and then asked for a photo,” he said.
3. Who is Nikki Bella dating?
She said she wouldn't handle Cena dating other people super well, but does that still apply if she's already moved on? Bella, who is 36, confirmed her relationship with her former Dancing with the Stars partner, Artem Chigvintsev, last year.
And now, the couple are currently engaged and expecting their first child.
4. Cena and Bella almost got married.
Bella and Cena are almost hard to imagine together today, but it wasn't so long ago that they were a totally serious couple with plans to tie the knot. They were exclusive for five long years, getting engaged in April 2017.
Sadly, as is often the way of things, the couple didn't last. They broke up and called their engagement off just weeks before they were set to walk down the aisle. The couple may have called it quits, but that didn't mean they didn't briefly reunite in the hopes of making things work. It didn't work the way they hoped.
5. Why did they break up?
Cena and Bella's breakup came as a shock to many, so, of course, fans wanted to know what caused the split. Most of the speculation seemed to surround the fact that Cena didn't want to have a family.
In a 2016 interview, the wrestler admitted that he had no desire to have children. He said, “I know I cannot handle raising a child. It’s like with the dog. My biggest thing to Nicole about the dog was: Love dogs, but I can’t contribute to taking care of one. I don’t have the time. And just because everyone else is happy with children doesn’t mean that’s how I have to live. I’ve been upfront about this. I just have things I need to get done. It’s not negotiable. We’ve been to therapy over it. I don’t think it will ever be over with. I’m stubborn as f*k and extremely selfish as well. I don’t want kids, I don’t want marriage. That’s me just saying, ‘Hey, this is my life and this is how I’m going to live.'”
After their breakup, Bella eventually opened up a little about the split. She revealed, “It wasn’t John’s fault. John, from day one, was so honest with me. And he was very busy in his career, but for a while in our relationship, John and I traveled together. That started to stop, so I wasn’t seeing my fiance all the time. Deep down, John, I truly feel he wanted to have a kid with me and then your mind starts to play tricks on you and I’m like, ‘Is he just doing it for me? Does he want to be a dad?’ And I started to question that.”
She continued, saying, “Instead of going to John and saying, ‘These things are bothering me. Or do you think these things are going to change?’ Instead, I just became more and more unhappy and then I made a decision to leave without even giving him a try or saying, ‘Look, I don’t like these things. This is the kind of wife and husband I want to be and if you can’t give me that, then I want to walk.’ Instead, I just left.”
Bella also said that she would never stop "loving and supporting" Cena.
6. Who is John Cena's girlfriend, Shay Shariatzadeh?
Cena's lady is from Vancouver. She's a 29-year-old engineer, who graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2013 with a degree in Electronic Engineering. The couple made their official red carpet debut at the Playing with Fire premiere, after meeting on the set of the film.
7. Are Cena and Shariatzedah engaged?
This has been the question on the minds of many as of late. The wrestler has been raising eyebrows recently on social media with messages that seem to imply that he and Shariatzedah may be ready to take their relationship to the next level.
In January 2020, Cena tweeted the following: “How many people have you totally let into your life? For many out there the number is 0. We have all been betrayed, it hurts, but if you’re brave enough to continue to try and let people in, when someone does connect with you. They will know and love you for who you really are.”
Then, on Valentine's Day, he posted a photo of a man holding a heart that said, "Say yes." The next day, Cena posted a photo of a bride and groom, which you can see below. And just a few days later, Cena tweeted a quote about marriage: “A happy marriage is a long conversation that always seems too short – Andre Maurois” read the tweet.
In addition, Shariatzedah has been seen out recently sporting a ring on her finger. One eyewitness who saw the couple revealed, "John Cena [was] spotted today at a carnival in Mission Beach, San Diego with Shay Shariatzadeh right behind him with [a] huge engagement ring on her finger....They were very affectionate. She was grabbing onto his arm the whole time and the ring was def on her left hand."
Then, a photo popped up on social media that showed the ring in question, sparking the rumors further. Although all signs strongly point to an engagement, neither Cena nor Shariatzadeh have confirmed anything. At least not yet.
Rebecca Jane Stokes is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York with her cats, Batman and Margot. Her work focuses on relationships, pop culture and news. For more of her work, check out her Tumblr.