In 2017, Rhea Ripley officially signed with WWE. She spent nearly four years competing on NXT UK and NXT before making her main roster debut in March 2021 on Monday Night RAW.
The Eradicator has become one of the top superstars on the roster and is currently the SmackDown Women's Champion. However, the company almost fired her a few years ago during her time in developmental.
In an interview with talkSPORT's Alex McCarthy in November 2021, Ripley disclosed that she was on the list to get fired a year after joining the Stamford-based company.
"There was a time at the Performance Center where my name was on the list to get fired. And I'd only been there for a year. I don't know why my name was on the list to get fired. I guess people just didn't like me. Yeah, I was on the chopping block and I had a PC live match in front of all our peers and it was against Tegan [Nox]," she said.
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The SmackDown Women's Champion added:
"And one of the guys found out that I was on that list and he told her. He didn't tell me because he knew that I was going to freak out but he told her. He's like, 'look, you gotta make Rhea look good because this might be her last match here.' And that's exactly what she did. She went out there and, we even though it was in fron of our peers and that's the most terrifying time to have a match, she made me look like an absolute star. She took everything of mine and just like made me look so incredible that it it got my name taken off of the list." [1:36 - 2:33]
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Rhea Ripley defended her title against Zelina Vega at WWE Backlash
In January, Rhea Ripley won the 2023 Women's Royal Rumble match from the number one spot after outlasting 29 other women. The Judgment Day member later defeated Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 39 to capture the SmackDown Women's Champion for the first time.
Earlier this month, Ripley defended her title against Zelina Vega at Backlash in Puerto Rico. Despite Vega's impressive performance, she failed to defeat The Eradicator, who successfully defended her championship.
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