Among the many ladies of WWE, Rhea Ripley stands out. "The Nightmare" has had a wild style since joining the company in 2018, notable for her short hair, leather outfits, piercings and wild attitude. It's led to huge success as the inaugural NXT UK Women's Champion and since adding titles for NXT, RAW and Women's Tag Team titles. Recently joining the Judgment Day, Ripley remains on the rise in the company with a style few can touch.
That includes her tattoos, as Ripley has had an intriguing battle with the company over her ink. The woman has some unique tattoos, but WWE's rules prevent her from getting more and even make her cover them up. There's also the reasoning behind some tattoos and some unique ideas she had for one. Here are some intriguing trivia facts about Rhea Ripley's tattoos that make her unique appearance stand out more in WWE.
9 Some New "Ink" Is Actually Fake
When Ripley showed up on RAW with some new arm ink, it appeared that WWE had dropped their ban on any new tattoos. However, it's become clear not all of this supposed new ink is actually real.
While Ripley can stick to some fancier fake tats for a time, her Instagram feed shows how so many of them are just painted as she'll shift to each arm and in different styles. It's a fun way for Ripley to circumvent WWE's ban on ink and perhaps "test" some new styles for the future.
8 She Wanted Them As A Kid
While some people have unique dreams when they're kids, Ripley's was striking. On Lillian Garcia's podcast, Ripley related that tattoos were always something she wanted but knew it would be tricky to get a job for WWE with them.
"I wanted tattoos since I was a kid and I never got them because they didn't really sign girls that had tattoos back in the day. So, I was like, 'I need to get my dream job first and then I can get them.'" While she was able to add some ink, WWE has been limiting her dreams to be "the most tattooed wrestler around."
7 She Has Matching Tattoos With A Frenemy
One of Ripley's first major rivalries in WWE was with Toni Storm. Ripley defeated the New Zealand worker in a tournament to become the inaugural NXT UK Women's Champion. Storm ended Ripley's reign months later and the pair carried the fight to NXT.
In reality, the pair are good friends and proved it with matching tattoos. They're Roman numerals for the date of 2018's Evolution PPV where Storm won the Mae Young Classic. While Storm is gone from WWE now, she and Ripley still have a permanent bond.
6 A Dagger Shows Trust Issues
Another fancy Ripley tattoo is her right calm with a venom sword with snakes rolling all over it. The picture also shows a devil hand with a nail about to stab someone, and right underneath, two hands are making a pinky promise, with one hand being of the devil.
Ripley has hinted in interviews she's had "trust issues" with someone in the past and this showcases that. The "pinky with the devil" shows the broken promise, while the snake and swords show more of Ripley's wild side that make her such a stand-out in WWE.
5 The Wolf Rose Is Personal
Ripley can be a bit tight-lipped as to the meaning of some tattoos. That includes a calf one that has a wolf's head over a woman with a single tear from an eye over a rose. Ripley won't discuss it, although the meaning seems to be a breakup that left her shaken and thus showing her growth.
Her dog tattoo on her other calf does seem to show her love for the animals, as she's often photographed with her pet dog, Berry. For a woman outgoing in a lot of things, Ripley can be very private when it comes to her ink, understandably so.
4 Leg Tattoos Show Her Heavy Metal Love
Some of Ripley's tattoos do make WWE a bit nervous with what could be seen as satanic symbols. That includes several leg tattoos boasting strange markings as well as a loud demonic face in flames. However, this could be less any religious meaning and more Ripley's love for heavy metal bands.
She's a fan of the bands Suicide Silence and New Year's Day and carries that appreciation in her ring persona. Thus, these tattoos play more into Ripley's love for heavy metal music than the darker aspects some might believe.
3 They're The Reason She Wears Long Pants
Ripley is notable for her ring gear of tight leather pants. As it happens, this isn't just her personal fashion statement but an edict by WWE. The company has been cutting down on tattoos, especially for the women and banned Ripley from getting more on her upper torso.
Thus, she's been getting more on her legs and so wears the pants to hide them on TV. While there's nothing wrong with showing them off on her social media, the ink is the reason Ripley will never be shown wearing shorts on TV in the future.
2 She Has A Wendigo On Her Leg
In 2020, Ripley unveiled one of her biggest tattoos yet. The Wendigo is a mythical creature, usually presented as a Yeti-like creature but also resembling a tree. This massive tattoo covered most of Ripley's left leg from the hip to the ankle, dominating her leg.
It's another huge tattoo that WWE won't let her show, but Ripley enjoys flaunting it on her social media. It is intriguing that an Australian goes for a creature that became a legend in Canada, but Ripley seems to enjoy the fierce creature, which matches her own persona.
1 She Wanted One During A Match
Ripley is known for some wild stuff in the ring, but this could have been one of the wildest. In a podcast, she confirmed that for the 2019 War Games match, she actually wanted Bianca Belair to beat her down and then give her a tattoo right in the ring.
"I wanted to get a battery-powered tattoo gun and I wanted Bianca to rip the fishnet in my pants and I wanted Bianca to tattoo lips on my leg while everyone held me down. I wanted it so bad." Not surprisingly, WWE vetoed that idea which would have made the War Games even crazier.