Rhea Ripley Explains Why She's Rarely Wrestled Since Her WWE Return

Rhea Ripley has sparsely performed in a WWE ring as of late, and according to the former "NXT" Women's Champion, it's been due to the side effects of her tricky injury. In June, Ripley was sidelined with a brain and teeth injury, keeping her out of action during an important time in her career. Returning just last month, Ripley teamed with her Judgment Day partner Damien Priest at a WWE live event, losing to Nikki ASH and Dolph Ziggler. After that match, Ripley also wrestled on "WWE NXT" against Roxanne Perez, until returning to televised main roster action this past Monday on "WWE Raw," defeating Asuka to gain an advantage in the women's Survivor Series WarGames match.

Throughout her absence, Ripley continued to appear alongside The Judgment Day, and she's now explained in detail why she hadn't wrestled during those four months. "A lot of it was the injury," Ripley said during an interview with the "New York Post." "I hadn't been cleared for the longest time. I think I got cleared properly and fully the week before my "NXT" match. Apart from that, I pretty much wasn't cleared that whole time. After that there pretty much hasn't been an opportunity for me to wrestle because I have been there with The Judgement Day and sort of their muscle. I help them out if they need me."

The former WWE Women's Champion has her sights set on testing that injury this coming Saturday inside WarGames, when she teams with Damage CTRL and Nikki Cross to take on "Raw" Women's Champion Bianca Belair, Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Mia Yim, and a partner to be named later (rumored to be a returning Becky Lynch). As far as what we can expect from Ripley that night, the "Raw" star stated that she's "just starting up" her wrestling career again following the injury.