4 better opponents for Rhea Ripley's first Women's World Title defense than Nia Jax

Rhea Ripley will have her first title defense as the new Women's World Champion at the upcoming edition of WWE Saturday Night's Main Event against Nia Jax. However, fans have mixed reactions to having The Irresistible Force as The Eradicator's first challenger.

On RAW's Netflix premiere, Rhea Ripley defeated Liv Morgan for the Women's World Championship. A week later, Nia Jax had a tense confrontation with the champion. This week, The Irresistible Force attacked The Eradicator backstage, which led to a brawl later in the episode resulting in a title match at the upcoming Saturday Night's Main Event. However, fans aren't the happiest with this decision.

For this list, we will look at four better opponents for Rhea Ripley's first Women's World Championship instead of Nia Jax:

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#4. Fans want to see Rhea Ripley go against IYO SKY

During Liv Morgan's title reign, she mainly feuded with Rhea but had a brief feud with IYO SKY. During this period, the Damage CTRL member and The Eradicator teased a face-off. Many fans have also expressed their desire to see this bout.

Both women haven't faced each other on the main roster, and in their past NXT matches, Ripley hasn't defeated the Japanese star. However, a lot has changed since then. A feud between them would certainly be interesting, especially given their different in-ring styles.

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#3. Rhea Ripley should have feuded with another SmackDown transfer

Rhea vs. Bayley was a feud that almost happened en route to WrestleMania XL. However, The Role Model chose to face IYO SKY instead at the premium live event while Ripley went on to feud with Becky Lynch. This time around, this feud can happen.

Like Jax, The Role Model appeared last week on the Monday show and has officially transferred to the brand. Bayley can also demand to get a fresh start and might go after the World Title. Also, The Role Model and The Nightmare haven't had a proper feud on the main roster yet. Their latest singles match occurred in 2023 with the champion winning.

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#2. Rhea Ripley could welcome back an absent WWE star

Ahead of WWE RAW's Netflix debut, Becky Lynch was featured in the commercial, which shocked many as she has been on a hiatus since June last year. Many thought she would appear during Rhea and Morgan's title match, but she is yet to be seen. From the looks of it, she could have been a good candidate to be Rhea's first challenger.

Although Liv was Becky's last opponent in the company, with the former claiming she retired Lynch in the past year, Ripley and The Man also have a history. Both women had a WrestleMania XL match which saw The Eradicator win. Although they had good in-ring chemistry, the build-up was a bit lackluster.

Rhea and Lynch could have had a second chance in their feud and have a better build-up this time around, especially since they put on a good match the last time.

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#1. Dakota Kai vs. Rhea Ripley would be an interesting feud

Dakota Kai was set to be booked prominently on WWE RAW when she managed to reach the finals to crown the inaugural Women's Intercontinental Championship, but she was defeated by Lyra Valkyria. However, her loss could've led to something else.

During the tournament, fans who wanted to see Kai finally become champion multiplied, and having her lose might have derailed the momentum she got going. Instead, Dakota should have been put against Ripley to build up her character as a singles star.

Asuka and IYO are already former Women's Champions, while Kairi Sane has already held the NXT Women's Title. Dakota is the only person in Damage CTRL who has yet to hold a singles title.