10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Rhea Ripley
Mami Knows Best NOW, but 'The Nightmare' didn't exactly have a dream run before becoming a megastar
The road to pro wrestling megastardom is rarely a smooth one, but as a wrestler that featured prominently during the last days of Vince McMahon's creative regime, Rhea Ripley is a remarkable present-day success story.
Having debuted in 2013, Ripley's put in more than a decade to reach this current pinnacle, but at just 27-years-old, she's also still a prodigy yet to hit her prime. And yet - such was life in the market leader for so long - it looked as though she'd be yet another NXT standout with promise left unfulfilled on stages built to harness and promote her obvious aura.
The transatlantic successes in the company's own developmental system now look like foundational chapter points in her amazing career, but they almost reflected the peak of her achievements. One of the biggest and most bankable stars in women's wrestling by 2024, she was troublingly close to being yet another doomed prospect as recently as 2022. This was just the way not that long ago, even for somebody with Ripley's obvious gifts.
Joining The Judgment Day wasn't just some overdue plain sailing away from the stormy waters of the WWE undercard. It was a life raft...
10. The 2017 Mae Young Classic
Every wrestler has to start somewhere, and though Rhea Ripley didn't get going from scratch in WWE, at just 20 years old, she may well have done.
Ultimately, the tournament wasn't going to be her time to shine - she lost to Dakota Kai in the round of 16 - but she got enough profile along the way to be given promo time talking about a version of herself that doesn't exactly mesh well with the performer she ultimately became.
Again, this is no slight on Ripley. She was a pro wrestler finding her way, and one day the stark contrast is going to be part of the fun when the company puts together a long-form documentary on her amazing rise through the ranks. Right now is simply not that time. Judgment Day leader Rhea needs this footage out there like Stone Cold Steve Austin needed Ringmaster retrospectives, or Becky Lynch needed reminders of her comedic "Irish Dancing" NXT debut.