Nikki Garcia returned to the public scene days after her husband Artem Chigvintsev was arrested for domestic violence.
Garcia, 40, co-hosted Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef, a Netflix live event — her first public appearance since Chigvintsev’s arrest last week.
Garcia and comedian Rob Riggle hosted a hot dog eating contest between Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi at the Luxor in Las Vegas on Monday.
The WWE pro looked elated as she took to the stage with a huge smile on her face, dressed in a bright red sleeveless bodysuit and with her jet-black hair cascading down in loose waves.
“My fabulous co-host today is an accomplished athlete, WWE Hall of Famer, Nikki Garcia, y’all!” Riggle announced.
Nikki Garcia is back in the spotlight after her husband Artem Chigvintsev was arrested for domestic violence
Nikki and co-host Rob Riggle (right) were photographed with winner Joey Chestnut after he emerged victorious.
During her performance, Garcia responded to a sweet greeting from an audience member.
“Thank you, Rob! Thank you, everyone, I’m so happy to be here! And in about 40 minutes, oh, I love you too, these two undisputed heavyweights of competitive eating will be standing on this stage, devouring hot dogs at unimaginable speeds, and you know what? Everyone will have to see it to believe it,” Nikki said.
The appearance comes just days after Garcia’s husband, Chigvintsev, 42, was arrested.
The Dancing With The Stars pro was arrested Thursday in Napa, California, on suspicion of felony domestic violence, and was released from jail later that afternoon after being set on $25,000 bail.
The Russian-born dancer was arrested after police detected “traumatic” physical injuries on one victim. Garcia was also in Napa at the time of the alleged altercation, but details about the alleged victim are not yet known.
According to a radio dispatch obtained by TMZ On Friday, Artem made a 911 call for medical assistance, but also claimed that Nikki threw shoes at him during the alleged incident.
“He initially came to seek medical attention, but now he says he had an argument with his wife and that his wife threw shoes at RP (the complaining party),” the operator said on the call, according to the outlet.
The dispatcher also said, “There’s a child on scene. There’s a medic on the way. There’s an active 415 (disorderly conduct) on the responsible party.”
On Monday, Garcia, 40, co-hosted Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef, a Netflix live event, her first public appearance since Chigvintsev’s arrest last week.
Garcia and comedian Rob Riggle are in Las Vegas hosting a hot dog eating contest between Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi.
“My fabulous co-host today is an accomplished athlete, WWE Hall of Famer, Nikki Garcia, y’all!” Riggle announced.
Nikki beamed as she held up the comical hot dog-shaped trophy alongside winner Joey Chestnut.
Artem reportedly called 911 after an alleged domestic violence incident on Thursday, but retracted his statement just minutes later. TMZ It was also reported on Friday.
The dispatcher then also radioed in: ‘RP is indicating that no medical attention is needed at this time.’
Sources told the outlet that the alleged victim did not make the 911 call, but Chigvintsev did so around 8:30 a.m. due to the victim’s alleged injuries.
However, police were on the way when the professional dancer called 911 once again, only to retract what he had said earlier.
It is protocol for police to continue their response, but the fire department and paramedics were called away after being dispatched.
When police arrived at the scene at 9:30 a.m., an hour after the first call was made, Artem was arrested.
Nikki Garcia’s rep also told TMZ on Friday when the former WWE wrestler broke her silence on the alleged incident: “This is a private matter and Nikki asks for privacy for herself and her family at this time.”
Napa County Sheriff’s Office officials confirmed the arrest to DailyMail.com, noting that officers witnessed clear physical evidence of domestic violence.
“When it comes to serious domestic violence, it’s not just hearsay,” Napa County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Henry Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday. “The officers saw something that is obvious.”
The WWE pro looked jubilant in a bright red sleeveless bodysuit with her jet-black hair cascading in loose waves.
Chigvintsev was arrested Thursday in Napa, California, on suspicion of felony domestic violence and was released from jail later that afternoon after being set on $25,000 bail.
Wofford explained: “I’m not telling you that this is what happened in this particular case, but sometimes there was evidence of blood, sometimes scratches, sometimes bruises.”
“It’s something visible where the officers said, ‘Okay, we’re going to make this arrest.'”
Officers spoke to Chigvintsev and arrested him on a felony domestic violence charge, Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday, adding that the dance professional was “cooperative” and “did not fight with our officers or anything of that nature.”
Wofford told Dailymail.com that Chigvintsev was booked into the Napa County Department of Corrections at 10:40 a.m., with bail set at $25,000.
Chigvintsev posted bail around 2:15 p.m. and was no longer in custody as of Thursday night, Wofford said.
Wofford told Dailymail.com that there was only one other person connected to the incident, but declined to identify the victim or provide details upon request.
Wofford said that as of Thursday night, he was not aware of any protective orders filed by the victim or on her behalf by authorities.
“We will take our time as we do in every domestic violence case,” Wofford said. “No one will receive preferential treatment and no one will be left out in the cold.”
‘When it comes to victims of domestic violence, it’s common for both male and female victims to not be fully prepared to tell the whole story shortly after the incident, so we’re not going to rush into it… and we’re also being patient.’
Wofford told Dailymail.com that the department was focused on providing “a support system for the victim.”
Wofford said an investigation was underway to determine whether Chigvintsev had violated any laws with his conduct prior to his arrest Thursday.
Amid Artem’s arrest, a source told Page Six on Thursday that he will not be returning as a professional dancer on the upcoming 33rd season of Dancing With The Stars.
“Thank you, Rob! Thank you all! I’m so happy to be here! And in about 40 minutes… Oh, I love you too!” he said during his introductions.
Kobayashi (left), one of the most successful competitive eaters of all time, was eventually defeated by Chestnut.
“There were no plans for Artem to be a part of Season 3,” the source revealed to the outlet.
His arrest took place just three days after he and Garcia celebrated their second wedding anniversary.
The two first met in 2017 when they were paired together on season 25 of Dancing With The Stars, but were eliminated during the sixth week.
In July 2020, Nikki and Artem welcomed their four-year-old son Matteo. And two years later, the couple tied the knot in August 2022 during a romantic ceremony in Paris after multiple wedding postponements.
