Rhea Ripley Has Her Own Confusion About Relationship With Dominik Mysterio
One of the recent more pleasant surprises on WWE programming has been the reinvention of Dominick Mysterio as a heel since joining Judgement Day, particularly the peculiar chemistry he shares with on-screen love interest Rhea Ripley. The 26-year-olds have become a routine highlight of "WWE Raw," something that couldn't realistically have been expected when Mysterio was treading water as a babyface. And on Monday's edition of USA Today's "Under the Ring" podcast, the WWE Women's World Champion talked about her pairing with Mysterio and why it works.
"Honestly, I'm not sure," she responded when asked why the act is so effective. "Dominik and I, we barely talked before this whole Judgement Day thing. Like we said 'Hi, how are you?' and that was about it. So watching our chemistry blossom and grow week by week, we're getting more comfortable with each other, which is fantastic. It's been really fun. Also watching him grow as a performer and blossom and get more confident week-in and week-out, it's been very rewarding, as well."
She added that since they're about the same age, she thinks their mindsets are very similar as far as being chaotic, having fun, and playing off of each other goes. Furthermore, the audience has resonated with their characters as a result.
"It makes it easy for [fans] to follow and it makes it easy for them to understand what's going on and it's fun for people to see how much we've grown together, having the time of our lives," she added before the topic pivoted to Mysterio's potential.
Ripley: 'The sky is the limit for Dom'
According to Rhea Ripley, there are no limits on how far Dominik Mysterio can go in WWE. "I know a lot of fans don't agree, and they don't see much in him, which aggravates them, but they're very, very wrong. For Dom, just seeing how much he's grown over the last few months is so insane. His confidence levels have just skyrocketed. He knows exactly what he's doing going out there. Even when he's not sure, he's still going out there and he absolutely kills it."
She noted that it was a particularly radical transition for Mysterio to go from playing second-fiddle to his legendary father, Rey Mysterio, in a babyface tag team to becoming one of the top heels in WWE at the moment. The Women's World Champion commented on the heat he's been receiving from the fans, noting that the crowd reacts to her storyline love interest's presence.
"Being out there while he gets booed? It's quite deafening," Ripley continued. It's really cool to hear. I can't even hear what he's saying most of the time, and he's talking next to me on a microphone. That's how loud the crowd can be, and I've never heard someone get such a reaction so quickly, as well, like Dom does."
"It makes me very proud knowing how much he's grown," she concluded. "I get emotional every now and then because he's come so far, and it's very cool to be a part of."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Under the Ring" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.