How Demi Bennett Came Up With Rhea Ripley As Her Wrestling Name

Highlights

• Rhea Ripley started her wrestling career in 2017 with WWE and competed in the Mae Young Classic tournament. She later became the NXT UK Women's Champion and then the NXT Women's Champion.
• Ripley won her first main roster title at WrestleMania 37 by defeating Asuka for the Raw Women's Championship. However, her title reign was considered a flop and she lost the title to Charlotte Flair.
• Ripley's ring name was created by combining the name of a Greek goddess called Rhea and the character Ellen Ripley from the Alien movie. She is known as one of the most badass female wrestlers in WWE.

Up until a few years ago, Rhea Ripley was just another talented wrestler who came from NXT to the main roster, and WWE botched her booking. She became another fodder wrestler to Charlotte Flair when she took a beating at her hands at WrestleMania 36 for the NXT Women’s Title.

Look at Rhea Ripley now; she’s the Women’s World Champion in WWE. Her alignment with Judgment Day has made her one of the top wrestlers in all of wrestling, and her on-screen relationship with Dominik Mysterio is one of the best things about WWE right now, hough they never really talked much before they were paired on television. Today, everyone knows about the name “Rhea Ripley,” but has anyone wondered how Demi Bennett even came up with her ring name?

RELATED: Rhea Ripley: Age, Height, Relationship Status And Other Things To Know About Her

Rhea Ripley Started With WWE In 2017

Started In WWE NXT UK

Before talking more about the origins of her ring name, let’s take a look at Rhea Ripley’s overall career so far. It’s been a decade since she first stepped inside a wrestling ring for the first time. Hailing from Adelaide, Australia, Ripley first got her start in wrestling with the help of a local promotion called Riot City Wrestling. Over the next few years, Ripley would capture championship belts in many different promotions, and it wasn’t long before she got a gig to work for WWE.

Ripley signed with the Stamford-based promotion in 2017 and did the Mae Young Classic. Nothing interesting happened at that time for Ripley, but things took a turn when WWE announced the inception of NXT UK. Rhea ended up winning the inaugural NXT UK Women’s Championship and also created the record of being the first-ever Australian-based female wrestler to win a championship belt in the company. She later joined the NXT brand and had a successful run there, although most fans didn’t like how she lost the NXT Women’s Title to Charlotte Flair of all people at WrestleMania 36.

Rhea Ripley Won Her First Championship On The Main Roster At WrestleMania 37

Defeated Asuka For The Raw Women's Championship

Fast forward a year later, and Ripley finally captured her first main roster title when she defeated Asuka at WrestleMania 37. Unfortunately, this was one of those times where Ripley should’ve lost. The match felt odd at times, and it seemed more fans wanted Asuka to have her WrestleMania moment than see Ripley win. And they weren’t wrong; it had only been a while since Rhea was on the main roster and she wasn’t even originally supposed to face The Empress of Tomorrow.

A few months later, she lost the title to Charlotte in one of the most fiery matches in recent history, and not a lot of fans were surprised to see her lose. WWE had botched her main roster run, and it was clear that her title reign had been nothing but a flop. At that time, the name Rhea Ripley held some stock, but it was mostly due to her run in NXT. The next few storylines were mostly filler; they didn’t really do much to elevate Ripley until she turned heel against Liv Morgan. Rumors said she was going to join Edge’s new faction, and that became a reality when she helped The Rated R Superstar at WrestleMania Backlash last year. A lot of things have happened since – her winning the 2023 Women’s Royal Rumble Match, winning the SmackDown Women’s Championship from Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 39, and taking more of a leadership role in the Judgment Day are just to name a few. Today, it truly feels that Rhea Ripley has become a prominent name in wrestling; everyone keeps talking about her online, and she’s an integral part of WWE's weekly programming.

How Rhea Ripley Came Up With Her Ring Name

Googled "Badass Female Names"

This brings us back to the question, how did she even come up with her ring name? Well, Ripley herself answered the question some time back on Allan & Carly when the interviewer asked if the Ripley part in her name came from the fact that she was so ripped. Rhea laughed, and said that wasn’t the case. She explained her first name is the name of a Greek goddess called Rhea, who’s also called the mother of gods. The Ripley part came from the Alien movie’s character Ellen Ripley. Rhea was actually looking for some “badass female names,” and just combined these two names, and it turned out to be perfect. She is indeed one of the most badass female wrestlers in WWE right now.

While Ripley is currently enjoying a lot of success right now as the Women’s World Champion, there are several issues with her title reign that may or may not be a huge concern for WWE right now. Nevertheless, she’s the highlight of Judgment Day. Her relationship with Dominik Mysterio is another interesting aspect of her career, but in recent weeks, she’s indicated that she wants more than just Dominik. Everything is looking to work out perfectly for “Mami,” and it doesn’t look like her momentum will take a hit anytime soon.

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