“Not Necessarily Bad”: Rhea Ripley’s Injury Deemed Catalyst for New Character Turn Despite ‘Mami’ Success

Monday’s weekly edition of RAW kicked off in the worst possible way. ‘Mami’ appeared to open the show of the red brand stating that she had suffered an injury and therefore had to vacate the WWE Women’s World Championship.

After her incredible defense against Becky Lynch at WrestleMania 40, Rhea Ripley underestimated another threat, Liv Morgan. Morgan injured the Women’s World Champion’s shoulder last week on RAW in a backstage sneak attack. And according to reports, it may take months before The Eradicator can make her return. Then what? What might be the WWE’s plans for Ripley? Well, according to WWE legend Bully Ray, WWE has a golden opportunity on its hands.

Bully Ray suggests that Rhea Ripley could turn face

In a recent appearance on the Busted Open Podcast, Bully Ray discussed Rhea Ripley’s time off and injury. While many may find it to be a really unfortunate situation for Ripley, Bully Ray thinks it will be an opportunity for the WWE to turn the star into a babyface. He said, “Listen I know on the surface it sounds bad. It’s not necessarily bad. It’s not like she got hurt before WrestleMania. She got through WrestleMania okay. She got injured, now she’s going to go away for a little while… When you go away for a little while it makes the fans yearn for you to come back and get excited for you when you come back… When they they hit her music on her return, WWE will have a monster woman baby face on their hands.”

He further added, “Rhea Ripley has been positioned as a heel it’s the fans who are into her. She’s got a great engine she’s got a phenomenal look, she gets the job done in the ring. Covid WrestleMania I thought her and Charlotte stole the show. This time away is going to be good for Rhea. Recharge your battery. Heal your injury.

A face turn after playing the heel for so long will be fun for Mami and a breath of fresh air for the fans. And it can also be an opportunity for Liv Morgan to establish herself as a heel. And playing a super babyface like John Cena can allow the former Royal Rumble winner to showcase her full arsenal. She could take a page out from the books of The Champ to fully don her role as a face. Nevertheless, that’s not the only trait that both Ripley and Cena share with one another as a bizarre coincidence has intertwined the two.

The statistic that binds The Eradicator and John Cena

Mami surely ruled the women’s roster with a title reign that lasted over a year. Nobody could stop the freak of nature that was Ripley as she stood tall above the rest. Just like John Cena, who was often dubbed as Super Cena, she has defeated every opponent that has come her way. But there is something else in common between the two as well.

Through social media, fans have pointed out that Rhea Ripley shares a strange coincidence with John Cena: both vacated the title due to injury after a 380-day reign. In October 2007, the leader of the C-Nation relinquished the WWE Championship because of a right pectoral tendon injury. And while speculation suggested that he would stay away from the ring for a long time, he surprisingly recovered in a few months. This led to an iconic moment in the history of sports entertainment as he made his return in the 2008 Royal Rumble and won the whole thing.

Now fans would be hoping that even Rhea Ripley does the same by making an iconic return and taking back the title that was rightfully her’s. What do you think? Will Ripley be able to take back her title? What do you make of Bully Ray’s assessment? Let us know in the comments.