"I didn't feel comfortable" - Rhea Ripley reveals issues with WWE career
Rhea Ripley has just opened up on her WWE career and shared interesting comments on issues she had within the company.
The WWE Women's World Champion signed in 2017 for the inaugural Mae Young Classic but was eliminated in the second round. She then went to NXT but eventually sported a new look and attitude ahead of the 2018 MYC. Ripley lost in the semi-finals, which led to her joining NXT UK and becoming the brand's inaugural women's champion. The rest was history as she returned to NXT and the main roster in February 2021.
The Eradicator recently spoke with The West Sport to promote the upcoming Elimination Chamber PLE in her native Australia. She opened up on evolving into Judgment Day's Mami and talked about what went wrong during the early days of her WWE career.
"When I first came in for the first Mae Young Classic, I had the long blonde hair. I smiled way too much. Way too bubbly. It wasn’t me. The person you see today is the person I was back then. But I was trying so hard to be someone else because of who I watched growing up. I thought that’s what they wanted, I didn’t feel comfortable," she said. [H/T to WrestleZone]
The 27-year-old discussed how her career improved once she made significant changes to her presentation. Ripley's character is now more genuine, and she believes that is why fans gravitate towards her.
"So, once I decided not to care what people thought about me... Cut my hair short… And once I did that and started wearing the long pants with the chains and the studs… Changed my persona, came out and I was just mean mugging everyone, beating everyone up. ‘This is my brutality,’ it’s not even a joke. It’s what I did.
Ripley continued:
"That’s when my career really started rocking and rolling. And the Rhea Ripley evolution that you have seen into the Rhea Ripley that you see today is just me growing as a person outside of WWE and I’m just letting it shine through within the WWE sort of thing. So, it’s me. And I think that’s what fans see and that’s what gravitates them towards Rhea Ripley," she said.
Rhea Ripley receives major award outside of WWE
2023 was a major year for Rhea Ripley as she remained at the top of the WWE women's division while dominating the company with The Judgment Day.
Ripley kicked off the year by winning the Women's Royal Rumble and used that win to defeat Charlotte Flair for championship gold at WrestleMania 39. The Eradicator was honored for a strong 2023 as ESPN named her the Female Wrestler of the Year.
ESPN uses a 17-person panel of voters to decide the winners of their annual pro wrestling awards. There was a tie between WWE Women's Champion IYO SKY and NJPW Strong Women's Champion Giulia for the Female Wrestler of the Year runner-up.
Ripley last defended the Women's World Championship over Zoey Stark at Survivor Series last month. She won a non-title match over Maxxine Dupri on RAW two weeks ago and will now defend against Ivy Nile on January 1st during the Day 1 RAW special.
What did you think of Ripley's early work? Do you like that Rhea Ripley better or the current version? Sound off in the comments below!