00:00Rhea Ripley, you are one of the most dominant superstars in WWE.
00:04You have redefined what the modern superstar looks like,
00:08and you are moments away from stepping into your seventh WrestleMania title match.
00:13Impressive, considering you are only 29 years old.
00:16This time, you stand across the ring from WWE Women's Champion Jade Cargill.
00:22From your perspective, what is different about this year?
00:26What is different about this year?
00:30There's a feeling in the air.
00:33You know, I feel it, the people feel it, Jade probably feels it.
00:41And I think it comes down to respect more than anything.
00:47Every single year that I've walked into WrestleMania,
00:50I've been walking in against someone at a higher caliber than myself.
00:58And I've walked in respecting that person, and they've walked in respecting me.
01:05We might have not got along, but we definitely respect each other
01:08and what we do within that squared circle and what we've done for this business.
01:12Where this year kind of feels like, if I had to pinpoint it, there's a lack of respect from both
01:23sides.
01:31Do you think that lack of respect stems from where you both started?
01:37You two had very different paths in coming to WWE.
01:42Take me back, what was your first impression of Jade when she started here?
01:46Honestly, when Jade first came to the WWE, just like everyone else, I was excited.
01:52I was excited because it meant that there was more women that have this aura about them.
02:00They come in here and they captivate the crowd and people can't look away.
02:04She looks the part.
02:06She acts the part.
02:08But the more I see of how she presents herself backstage with everyone
02:17and how she presents herself while she goes out there
02:20and just straight up thinks that she's better than everyone
02:23and she deserves everything.
02:28That's what I don't respect.
02:31That's what I don't like.
02:33And we've had very different upbringings.
02:35I get that.
02:37I've had to start in Australia at 16 years old.
02:40I had to bust my ass every single day just to make it to America,
02:47just to make it to be part of WWE, and that was just the start of the grind.
02:51Then I had to bust my ass in NXT UK, then NXT,
02:54and then the main roster to get to where I am today.
02:57I'm not saying that she didn't do any of that
03:00and she didn't work hard for her spot because I don't know what her journey is like.
03:04I didn't live her journey, but for her to act the way she does
03:08and pretty much diminish my journey, that's what I don't appreciate.
03:13And she does it with everyone here.
03:16That's why she's got nothing.
03:17She can say that she's got everything, but she's literally got nothing.
03:23Jade has made it very clear that she has no intentions of being a role model here in WWE,
03:29that she didn't come here to make friends.
03:32Those are things that you've embraced throughout your career.
03:35Why is that important to you?
03:37The lives that we change within this business
03:42is one of the absolute peaks of our career.
03:48Honestly, the lives that we've changed,
03:50the people that are still literally alive because of what we do
03:55and how we inspire them to be able to follow their dreams
03:59and accomplish whatever they want.
04:03I love the fact that I can help empower women.
04:08If you don't want to do that within this business, get the hell out.
04:12You're not made for this business.
04:15If you don't want to inspire people, elevate the division
04:19and make us undeniable and unforgettable, we don't want you here.
04:24If you're in it all for yourself, you're not going to last long.
04:29Because at the end of the day, the women's division here is the best it has ever been.
04:36And we are taking it to higher heights
04:38and unlocking goals that we didn't think were possible.
04:41We're making history.
04:43And we weren't able to do that on our own.
04:46We had to do it with each other.
04:49So if she thinks that she can continue this journey being a smug little b***h like she is,
04:58then it's not going to last very long.
05:00I hate to tell her that.
05:02But it's not.
05:04So at the end of the day, she's going to pack up her stuff out of her little locker room
05:08and she's going to get the hell out of this business.
05:10Because we're here to grow and leave this women's division at a higher height than it's ever been.
05:18So it's setting up the future of the women here.
05:21So we can go out there and say that we were able to accomplish things
05:25and steal the crowd and steal the best matches
05:29and do all of this stuff and accomplish all these things.
05:33If you're not a team player here, you're not made for this place.
05:38You said you came to SmackDown to pursue solo championship gold.
05:42Since then, Jade Cargill has unexpectedly aligned herself with Meachin and B-Fab.
05:48How has your strategy changed going into this match?
05:52First of all, I thought that there would be no one crazy enough to join Jade.
05:59Especially Meachin and B-Fab.
06:01After everything that she put them through.
06:03And I understand I wasn't the nicest to Meachin two, maybe three years ago.
06:08But I think I've done a lot of growing since then and Jade hasn't.
06:12So I'm very surprised that they've aligned with her.
06:16But I think the thing that people keep forgetting is I also have friends.
06:22One of them being the best wrestler we have within this company, Eoskye.
06:30And she's my ride or die.
06:32Like, she really is.
06:33So, like, I'm going to be there to help her if she needs me.
06:37And she's going to be here to help me if I need her.
06:40And I don't think they really thought that in depth about the relationships that I have.
06:47The relationships that I've built.
06:49They haven't thought about that.
06:52So, thank God I have Eoskye.
06:57Because I've done this whole thing before where I've been one on two, one on three, hell, even one on
07:05four.
07:06I've been through this.
07:08But leading up to WrestleMania, I want to be the best that I can be when I step into that
07:13ring against Jade.
07:15And she's going to try and make me not 100% by having her little goonies.
07:21So, thank God Eoskye is here.
07:23And she can just make it a little bit more even.
07:25If not, put it back on our side.
07:28You have had quite an ambitious 2026 thus far.
07:33Do you think that stepping into this championship match at WrestleMania is going to be your toughest challenge to date?
07:43My toughest challenge to date?
07:46The funny thing is, yes, Jade is big.
07:52Jade is strong.
07:53Jade is dominant.
07:54But I'm not going to sit here and diminish everyone else that I've stepped into that ring with.
08:01I've stepped in the ring with Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, Eoskye, Asuka, Liv Morgan.
08:11The list goes on and on and on.
08:13So, I'm not going to sit here and say that she's going to be the hardest challenge to date.
08:18Not when I've gone to war with these women.
08:21Especially someone like Charlotte Flair.
08:24She was my first ever WrestleMania match.
08:26And then at WrestleMania 39, I finally got to finish my own story and beat her in front of my
08:32family, in front of a crowd.
08:34You know how hard it is to beat Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania?
08:39So, stepping in to WrestleMania 42 against Jade Cargill, yes, she's a threat.
08:46Yes, she's strong.
08:48She's got all these accolades.
08:50She's dominant.
08:51She's good at what she does.
08:52But so am I.
08:54So, I'm not scared.
08:56She can have her goonies there if she wants them.
09:00I'm Rhea Bloody Ripley for a reason.
09:02And WrestleMania is my stage.
09:05That's where I get my big wins.
09:07That's where I get my big opportunities.
09:09And there's not a damn thing that she can do to take that away from me.
09:12And there's not a damn thing that she can do to take that away from me.
09:12And there's not a damn thing that she can do to take that away from me.
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