Aussie WWE champion Rhea Ripley forced to vacate Women’s World Championship title after shoulder injury

Ben McClellan and David Johns
The Nightly
An emotional Rhea Ripley posted a photograph on X after the announcement pledging to return.
An emotional Rhea Ripley posted a photograph on X after the announcement pledging to return. Credit: X, formerly Twitter

Australian wrestling superstar Rhea Ripley has vacated her WWE crown due to injury.

A frustrated Ripley told her fans, just weeks after fighting at WrestleMania 40, that she had to give up her title because she was hurt.

“I’m stuck on the bench for quite a few months,” she said.

Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.

Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.

Email Us
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.

“I’ve also been informed, I’ve also been told, informed, whatever, I don’t care. I’m flustered OK. I’m angry right now. I’m pissed off right now. You know why?

“Because I have been told that I need to vacate the one thing that means the most to me, my Women’s World Championship.”

The Adelaide-born star, who many believe to be Australia’s biggest WWE export, injured her shoulder during a seemingly innocuous backstage fight with Liv Morgan when she was thrown into a wall.

Ripley had only recently defended her title at Wrestlemania 40 against Becky Lynch.

The win followed an epic hometown triumph at Optus Stadium back in February over Nia Jax.

Earlier in the month she spoke to STM magazine about how she always loved sport as a kid.

“I was a very sporty kid,” she told Simon Collins.

“I hated school. All I wanted to do was play sport. I played absolutely every sport so that I could get out of class.”

She also revealed that the worst injuries she’d seen in wrestling stemmed from the independent circuit.

She said inexperienced wrestlers would often attempt dangerous stunts in the hopes of catching the attention of promoters.

“We take real falls and I think people forget that sometimes.”

Comments

Latest Edition

The Nightly cover for 13-12-2024

Latest Edition

Edition Edition 13 December 202413 December 2024

The political battle for Australia’s future energy network has just gone nuclear.