Nikki Bella wants to keep her son with her ... asking for legal and physical custody of her son Matteo in her divorce from Artem Chigvintsev.
The former WWE star cites irreconcilable differences in the dissolution docs ... citing August 29 as the date of separation, the day Artem was arrested for felony corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant.
Bella checked the box to block the court's ability to award spousal support to either of them.