Eric Bischoff Assesses Rhea Ripley, Whom He Didn't Think Would Be A Star In WWE

As the current WWE Women's World Champion, Rhea Ripley is considered to be one of the biggest names on the roster, and has quite a fan following to boot. Eric Bischoff recently commented on Ripley's star power during "83 Weeks," and how he originally didn't think she was a main event prospect. According to Bischoff, Ripley has managed to get very over despite what he originally thought of her character. "Oh my gosh, she is getting so over! I'm gonna be honest, when I first was introduced to Rhea, it's not that I said to myself that I don't think this woman was ever going to be a star, but I didn't think she would be either ... I didn't see the character."

However, today Bischoff describes Ripley's character as "subtly powerful." Additionally, he pointed to the moment the Australian crowd welcomed Ripley home at Elimination Chamber, and how deeply it touched him. "You have a young woman who says she wants to break into the professional wrestling business, leaves Australia, comes to the United States — that in of itself is a life-changing move. But to see her get the kind of reaction that she got in Australia? How do you not just feel that?"

Additionally, Bischoff praised Nia Jax for her performance, saying she played a large role in making Ripley look good in their match. "Rhea looked as good as she did in large part or at least half of it because of what Nia did for her and with her. I thought Nia looked sharp, she looked like she absolutely belonged in the main event."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "83 Weeks" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.