Rhea Ripley recalls almost getting a WWE tryout at 17 years old.
Ripley began her journey with WWE in 2017, signing with the company and competing in inaugural Mae Young Classic tournament. As it turns out, Ripley nearly had a chance to sign with the company before she was even 18 years old.
On the latest episode of Stephanie's Places, Ripley recalled nearly getting a tryout when she was only 17 years old.
“They also held tryouts. I think they might have asked some people that they knew in Australia who they should look at and my name somehow got thrown in there by one of them. So I got a tryout at 17 and then they were like, ‘Oh, we didn’t realize that you were 17 years old, we might have to come back and give you a tryout when you’re 21.’ I was like, I’m gonna try to bet on myself in every aspect. I went to Japan when I was 17 years old for three months.”
A few years later, things worked out for 'The Eradicator', as she signed with WWE when she was 20.
“When I was 20, WWE actually came back to Australia and they hit me up like, ‘We want to give you a tryout, we know that we said 21 but we’re coming back now so we’d love for you to be a part of it.’ They reached out to me and I remember calling my mom and she was so excited, she was like, ‘Everything that you’ve worked so hard for is finally coming together. All this time I spent waiting for you in the car park is finally coming to something.’ [laughs]”
Ripley and Bianca Belair are set to challenge IYO SKY for the Women's World Championship at WrestleMania 41. To learn how the match was made official, click here.
All episdoes of Stephanie's Places can be streamed on ESPN+, Disney+, and Hulu.
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