WWE Superstar Rhea Ripley recently sat down with Chris Van Vliet to discuss her transformative journey on the main roster, including the pivotal role that her alliance with Dominik Mysterio and Judgment Day played in reshaping her character and career trajectory.
“Honestly, I think that was another turning point in my career,” Ripley admitted, referring to joining Judgment Day and working closely with Dominik. “It made me open up as a performer. I was doing nine segments in a 16-segment show—sometimes more. I was running around helping Finn [Bálor], Damian [Priest], Dom, doing promos, making business deals, wrestling, and women’s storylines. I had no time to think—I just had to go. It was like, ‘Going live in 3, 2, 1—do what you got to do.’”
Ripley credited the Judgment Day environment with allowing her to evolve. “Being partnered with Dom helped my character transform into something different,” she explained. “I feel like in NXT, I was doing the same thing across brands—first as the force from the second Mae Young Classic in NXT UK, then in a babyface role on NXT.”
She also reflected on the confusion surrounding her character during her early days on WWE’s main roster, which coincided with the pandemic era. “When I came to the main roster, it was during COVID. Vince [McMahon] didn’t know what to do with me. He didn’t know if I was face or heel. He said, ‘Well, she looks like a heel,’ and everyone else was like, ‘You don’t understand—she’s a babyface.’ But there was no crowd to help prove that.”
After navigating that uncertainty and experimenting with tag teams, Ripley found her true voice alongside Mysterio. “I feel like when I got partnered with Dom, I could actually blossom into something different,” she said. “Instead of being the hard ass all the time—I was Mami.”
Ripley continues to be one of the standout performers in WWE, and her run with Judgment Day remains a key highlight of her evolution from a powerhouse talent to one of the most multidimensional characters on the roster.
