Some of the most high profile wrestlers on planet earth are down under this week for the biggest show that’s ever been brought to the country.
And it’s no coincidence; Australia’s rise in the wrestling scene has led to this very occasion.
Australia’s breakout moment in wrestling
If you turn the TV onto one of wrestling’s top promotions these days, there’s a very strong chance an Australian will be central to one of the show’s leading storylines.
The WWE, undoubtedly the most recognisable promotion on the globe, has turned Rhea Ripley into one of its brightest stars. The Adelaide product is the centrepiece of the women’s division and her reign as Women’s World Champion has now stretched close to 12 months, since WrestleMania in April 2023 — the most watched wrestling event each and every year.
Ripley headlines a growing contingent of Aussies in world wrestling’s top promotion, which also includes Grayson Waller, Bronson Reid and Indi Hartwell. There are also plenty of talents on rival promotions in the thick of the limelight — take Toni Storm, for example, who’s the AEW Women’s World Champion. So on the two biggest wrestling promotions in the world, Aussie women reign supreme right now.
Waller, in particular, has been flying the flag at WWE, after enjoying a breakout 2023 on the promotion and cementing himself as a central character on Smackdown, its Friday night brand.
And speaking exclusively to Only Sports, he’s got some bold thoughts on Australia’s emergence in America’s wrestling scene.
“The talent’s always been there in Australia,” he said.
“I think it’s now a situation where the world is finding out and I think it’s going to continue to happen, because right now in Australia, there are still so many guys and girls who are world class and just haven’t had the eyes on them yet.”
“They’re world class.
“Rhea Ripley is pretty much the biggest star in the company right now.”
Waller developed his craft down under, crediting Madison Eagles and Robbie Eagles as some of the best wrestling trainers anywhere in the world. Both are highly regarded internationally; Robbie is currently with New Japan Pro-Wrestling and the 33-year-old is a very highly respected in-ring performer.
“Myself personally, being trained by Madison Eagles, who in my opinion is still the greatest Women’s wrestler of all time, by Robbie Eagles, who’s still doing great things right now.
“The day I got to the Performance Centre in NXT (the WWE’s developmental), I felt completely comfortable training because I’d already trained in the ring with the best in the world.
“I’ve always seen how good Australian wrestling is. The world is now seeing that.”
Waller has excelled in the WWE world, leaning into an antagonising role that generates friction between himself and some of the biggest names in the game.
His in-ring segment, The Grayson Waller Effect, helps the show cut great promos for upcoming matches, primarily, which is in full ‘effect’ at Elimination Chamber in Perth, the prelude to WrestleMania.
The names don’t get much bigger right now than ‘American Nightmare’ Cody Rhodes and Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins, his guests for the seg down under, ahead of the pair’s respective title matches at the showpiece event in Philadelphia in early April.
“So now it’s a situation where they’re like, ‘wow, Grayson did really well in getting through NXT, maybe we need to bring in more Australians and have a look at them’, because they’ve shown that when they get here, they can perform and perform quite quickly.
“So I think the doors have been opened and now it’s just a case of the right people getting the right eyes on them.
“This Elimination Chamber show is going to further show that and allow some of these guys and girls to break out and the Australians can just take over the world.
“It’s going to be a wild experience.”
Ripley defends her crown in Perth against Sydney-born American star Nia Jax, who also happens to be Dwayne Johnson’s second cousin.
Why are the Aussies ‘villains’?
Ripley and Waller are well-liked personalities, despite the pair respectively having rebellious personas at WWE. It’s a trend that seemingly works hand-in-hand with their Aussie roots; Bronson Reid is also an angry-faced, jumbo-sized wrecker and the likes of Toni Storm at AEW does her best work getting the crowd offside as well.
“To an American audience, yeah maybe we’re villains. But, realistically, I don’t consider myself a villain.
“As Australians, we’re honest.
“I just tell everyone exactly what I’m thinking, and I think as Australians, too, we always say horrible things about our friends to their face and nice things behind their back. Americans do the complete opposite.
“So I’d rather be a real villain than a fake nice guy.”
The wrestlers that best engage with fans tend to be the ones being themselves, in how they’re presented to the cameras.
They’re the most relatable; the best storytellers.
And it’s a match made in heaven for wrestling and Australians, like Ripley and Waller.
“They’re (the WWE) just letting us be who we are as people. This is me.
“I’m not playing a character, this is what I do.”
