Rhea Ripley has emerged as one of the most-talked-about WWE stars in recent memory. At just 26 years of age, the Nightmare has taken on some of the best on the WWE roster. Her matches against the likes of Charlotte Flair and Asuka have received praise from fans and peers alike.
Rhea Ripley will undoubtedly be a major player in WWE for years to come. She’s already cemented her status in the company with some noteworthy feuds, which happens to be the very subject of this piece.
Having said that, let’s take a look at Rhea Ripley’s five best WWE feuds.
Asuka
Ever since coming to America from the land of the rising sun, Asuka has done nothing but dominate the WWE women’s division. The Empress of Tomorrow enjoyed a historic NXT Women’s Championship reign before running roughshod on the main roster, where she first became one of Rhea Ripley’s earliest opponents.
Asuka gave a major rub to Ripley by dropping the RAW Women’s Championship to her at WrestleMania 37. The two would face each other multiple times in the future, with their WrestleMania Backlash match (also involving Charlotte Flair) considered one of the best WWE women’s matches.
Io Shirai and Rhea Ripley have been rivals and allies
Io Shirai’s reputation as one of the best female wrestlers on the planet preceded her arrival in WWE. The Genius of the Sky handed Rhea Ripley a stunning loss in the semi-finals of the 2018 Mae Young Classic. This was just the beginning of their storied rivalry.
After facing each other as enemies in the first-ever Women’s WarGames match, and then as partners in the second iteration of the match in 2020, Ripley and Shirai entered into a full-blown feud over the NXT Women’s Championship.
Shirai won her first NXT Women’s Championship at the expense of Ripley and Charlotte Flair at NXT TakeOver: In Your House 2020. She also retained her title over the Nightmare in their all-time classic on the November 18, 2020, episode of NXT.
Ripley and Shirai formed a brief alliance when they teamed up as part of Team Damage CTRL against Team Belair (Bianca Belair, Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Mia Yim, and Becky Lynch) in the Women’s WarGames Match at Survivor Series: WarGames 2022.
Shayna Baszler
Shayna Baszler was dismantling opponents left and right until she met Rhea Ripley. The Queen of Spades was the reigning NXT Women’s Champion when she came face-to-face with the former NXT UK Women’s Champion for the first time on the August 28, 2019, episode of NXT.
The duo immediately entered into a title program. At the first-ever NXT Women’s WarGames match, Ripley pinned Baszler with a brutal Riptide on the steel chairs. She went on to end the submission specialist’s historic 416-day title reign in a great match on the December 18, 2019 episode of the black and gold brand.
Raquel Rodriguez
Raquel Rodriguez and Rhea Ripley may be best friends in real life, by they are bitter rivals on screen. It is hard to argue that their storyline hatred for each other has helped them bring out the best in each other on numerous occasions.
Rodriguez and Ripley had a critically acclaimed rivalry in NXT. Their matches at Halloween Havoc 2020 and New Year’s Evil 2021 are considered two of the best matches in their careers. The New Year’s Evil bout in particular, which had the Last Woman Standing stipulation attached to it, was Ripley’s last on the NXT brand until she returned to face Lyra Valkyria in July 2023.
Raquel Rodriguez and Rhea Ripley would reignite their rivalry on the main roster after Big Mami Cool told Mami she wasn’t intimated by her. The confrontation led to an injury angle wherein Ripley targeted her former best friend’s leg.
At Payback 2023, Rodriguez lost to Ripley following an interference from Dominik Mysterio. She failed to win the title after Nia Jax interfered in their Women’s World Championship rematch on the September 11, 2023, episode of WWE RAW.
Charlotte Flair has always brought out the best in Rhea Ripley
Charlotte Flair’s 14 world title wins are a testament to her reputation as one of the very best. The Queen has a reputation for bringing out the best in her opponents. This is something which she did during her high-profile feud with Rhea Ripley.
The feud first began in the build to WrestleMania 36 when Ripley asked Charlotte to utilize her Royal Rumble 2020 win for an NXT Women’s Championship match against the Nightmare at WrestleMania 36.
Ripley would go on to lose her title during the pandemic-stricken era of WrestleMania. The duo would have classics against each other. Their Money in the Bank 2021 is considered the best in their storied feud at the time.
The feud reached its pinnacle at WrestleMania 39, where Ripley and Charlotte created an all-time classic. The Eradicator finally gained retribution over her long-time rival by defeating her for the SmackDown Women’s Championship on the grandest stage of them all.
Also read: Charlotte Flair Names Mercedes Moné Among Potential WrestleMania 40 Opponents
