Australia’s ‘punk goth’ WWE champ taking America by storm

Rhea Ripley, whose real name is Demi Bennett, hails from Adelaide and is now in her second reign as the WWE Women’s World Champion.

Shoulder injuries ruled her out of much of 2024 but she reclaimed her belt by defeating rival Liv Morgan at WWE Raw’s debut on Netflix at the start of this year.

Ripley, who nicknames herself Mami, told news.com.au she was “excited to see how many days I can hold this bad boy (the belt) for again.”

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“It feels absolutely amazing,” Ripley said.

“I say ‘Mami’s on top’ for a reason. Without a championship, it’s hard to get people to believe that.

“I missed my women’s world championship dearly. I didn’t want to vacate it to begin with. I hurt my shoulder so I had to, I was going to be out for a few months, which sucks.

“To go through Elimination Chamber, WrestleMania 40, stay strong, keep the championship and then have something backstage hurt you to the point where you have to vacate it, it sucks.

“To be able to conquer everything that Liv Morgan threw at me, whether it was Dominik Mysterio or Racquel Rodriguez, and come out victorious with my women’s world championship. It feels absolutely amazing.”

Ripley making ‘goth, punk’ look her own

Along with Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns, Ripley has emerged as a bona fide star of WWE thanks to her undeniable athleticism and her eye-catching persona.

Ripley wo...
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