WNBA star Brittney Griner has said in a tearful interview that her marriage to Glory Johnson was a ‘huge mistake’.
The 24-year-old filed for an annulment with Glory Johnson-Griner last Friday, just a day after Johnson-Griner announced she’s pregnant and only a month after the two players wed.
Just days after filing the paperwork, Griner spoke candidly to ESPN about her decision.
‘Prior to us getting married, I knew I didn’t want to… I shouldn’t have went through with it,’ she said. ‘I talked to Gloria about it but, you know, sometimes you feel pressured into things, and I went along with it. And I know I shouldn’t have. It was a huge mistake. I just knew it was a mistake.’
The 6-foot-8 Phoenix Mercury star married Johnson just three weeks after they were both arrested on domestic violence charges for a fight at their home in suburban Phoenix.
Both players were suspended seven games after their arrests and Griner agreed to undergo 26 weeks of domestic violence counseling as part of a plea agreement.
In the aftermath of the fight, both players apologized and said they worked out their differences – but Griner said she should have given herself more time before they walked down the aisle.
‘With everything going on and counseling and classes, it just wasn’t the right way to start off a marriage,’ she told ESPN. ‘It wasn’t the right way to start off a unity like that. I wanted to take time to get myself right and – shouldn’t have done it.’
She said they agreed to go their separate ways.
On Thursday, Johnson announced that she was pregnant by posting a picture of a ‘bun in the oven’ cake on Instagram. She used a sperm donor to conceive for the couple, TMZ reported.
Johnson, a two-time All-Star with the Tulsa Shock, will now be taking off the season.
Griner told ESPN that she was shocked by the timing of the announcement.
‘It’s very early,’ she said. ‘It’s too early to post or say anything about it. I was surprised.’
Towards the end of the interview, Griner said the last 10 months have been ’emotional’ and bent over and shook as she struggled to control her tears.
After composing herself, she smiled and said she now plans to ‘submerge’ herself in the game, adding: ‘I’m just counting down these next six games until I get back on the court.’
The honest interview came just days after Griner announced in a statement through ESPN that she and her wife would be parting ways.
‘Last Wednesday, Glory and I agreed to either legally separate, get divorced, or annul our marriage, she said.
‘I can confirm that today I filed for an annulment. In the week prior to the wedding, I attempted to postpone the wedding several times until I completed counseling, but I still went through with it. I now realize that was a mistake.’
Johnson’s sports marketing agent, D.J. Fisher, said in a statement that his client was unaware that Griner was filing and was ‘extremely hurt and blindsided’.
‘She loves Brittney and made a huge sacrifice to carry a child, put her career on hold, invest in their relationship and their future,’ Fisher said.
‘She knows how important marriage is, and made a lifetime commitment and decision to spend the rest of her life with Brittney.’
