Rhea Ripley On What No One Warns You About the Elimination Chamber

WWE Superstar Rhea Ripley joined ESPN SportsCenter this week to discuss WWE Elimination Chamber 2026 and competing in the women’s Chamber match at the premium live event. Below are some highlights:

Rhea Ripley on Headlining WWE Elimination Chamber in Australia in 2024:

“It was absolutely wild just going back to Australia and having WWE go there. It was just such a wild experience. And being able to be on the show and just like see my family in the front row and be the main event of Elimination Chamber. It was just it was a dream come true. It really was. I don’t even know how to really put it into words because it was just such a special night for me. And it was wild cuz like, normally I’m so in the zone. I’m so like Rhea Ripley, you know, in that moment, but like I remember doing my entrance and seeing my mom and my dad and my sister and my best friend and like all the family and friends in the front row, and I instantly got emotional and just like overwhelmed. But like I just felt so happy to be there, surrounded by like my Australian group.”

On What No One Warns You About the Elimination Chamber

“Just how much your anxiety spikes being stuck in one of those pods. That’s the main one because you go into the match and you know it’s going to be brutal. You know it’s going to be painful, and it still is not going to feel good on your body. You know all these things just by like looking at the Elimination Chamber. But what you don’t take into consideration is if you’re not the first two, you don’t know how long you’re going to be standing in that pod for. So, like you have so much time to think and like rev yourself up and then doubt yourself and talk yourself out of it and then rev yourself back up, and it’s just it’s craziness just standing there. But that’s all part of the game, you know, that’s all part of the fun. Um, I love Elimination Chamber. I’ve only been in one, and I had the time of my life because even though yes, it is a little bit claustrophobic in those pods, as soon as you get let out, it’s time to wreak havoc.”

On How Her Routine Has Changed Getting Ready for Matches

“I feel like when I first started, I made time for myself before matches. I would listen to music. I would get in the zone. Um, I would have to like pump myself up because I would be so nervous. Now, I still get nervous, probably to the same extent, to be completely honest, but I don’t really have time to rev up. I’m normally running around like a chicken without a head here in WWE. So, by the time that my music hits, it’s kind of just like I’m Rhea Ripley. It’s time to kill. It’s time to go out there and bring the brutality and win the match.”

Rhea Ripley competes in the women’s Elimination Chamber match later this weekend. She will face Alexa Bliss, Tiffany Stratton, Asuka, Kiana James, and Raquel Rodriguez. The winner will go on to challenge Jade Cargill for the WWE Title at WrestleMania 42 in April.

WWE Elimination Chamber 2026 takes place on February 28 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. The premium live event will air live on the ESPN App in the U.S. and on Netflix internationally.

If using any of the above quotes, please credit ESPN, with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.