10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Rhea Ripley

1. Using A Slur On A Livestream

Rhea Ripley The Miz
X (@RheaRipley_WWE)

Demi Bennett was quick to post a public and detailed apology for the use of a slur on a live stream in 2019, and it's absolutely worth highlighting that just as much as the incident itself. 

Her thoughtless and deeply insensitive indiscretion was an unfortunate moment of madness in the nascent career of Rhea Ripley, and the understandable backlash she received from LGBTQIA+ fans as well as the disappointed wrestling fanbase at large called for her to share not just said apology but also an understanding of why in particular the utterance had been so hurtful. 

Ripley wasn't the first and sadly won't be the last from pro wrestling in such a situation, but did at least move to own all of it and attempt to heal wounds in the aftermath. Her addressing it head-on seemed to result in hostilities dying down, and at a bare minimum made clear how committed she was to understanding where and why she'd gone wrong. 

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett