Rhea Ripley was only 20 when she signed her WWE contract in 2017. Later that year, she took part in the inaugural Mae Young Classic, a tournament that featured 32 female wrestlers. While the young Aussie didn’t win, her future star power was already apparent.
Ripley, who has just won the WWE Women's Championship for a second time after defeating Liv Morgan in Raw's debut episode on Netflix, is almost unrecognisable compared to how she first looked during her WWE debut. Then she appeared fresh-faced with long, blonde hair – something she links to how she felt about things at the time.
“I moved to America when I was 20, I was very shy and very scared,” she tells The National. "And I just wanted to do a good job. I was scared of getting fired and I just wanted to, like, please everyone.
“I had the long, blonde hair and I think I used that as a hiding mechanism sort of thing. When I got shy or I didn't feel comfortable, I would hide behind my hair.”
She says that between the first Mae Young Classic and the second one in 2018, she went through a lot of things in her personal and professional life.
“I got picked on, I got bullied, I didn't feel like I was worth anything. And I was just sick of everything. I was so homesick and I didn't want to be in America anymore. I was just done with everything,” she says.
Even though she felt like giving up on her dream of being a professional wrestler, she decided to try and change her outlook.
“I sat down with myself one day and I was like, ‘toughen up, you've been through so much and you've come so far don't throw it all away now. You can you can keep going. I know you can'. I just had to sort of believe in myself, in a way.”
One day, someone in the locker room suggested that shorter hair look would suit her and she decided to cut it. The haircut wasn't only a physical change – it was also a much-needed boost of confidence.
“I've always been scared of cutting my hair but that's a little bit of confidence that I need, so I just went and cut it,” she says. “I got new gear I didn't tell anyone and I walked up the second Mae Young for the photos in my new stuff. And everyone's like, 'what is this?' I'm like, ‘the new me, get used to it right now.'”
Her new look included more black, more studs and wearing darker make-up. It's been a definite change from the basic ring gear she once wore. After NXT UK was created in October 2018, she would become the first NXT UK Women’s Champion – a role that proved she was more than enough.
Soon, the short, blonde hair would get darker and Ripley added more tattoos to her arms and legs, matching the darker tone of her new wrestling persona, “The Nightmare”.
She credited the American heavy metal band Motionless in White for inspiring her, especially their song Untouchable.
“I love being creepy and being dark and I love Motionless in White. So I was like, ‘Nightmare is perfect’. I love supernatural stuff. That's me as a human outside of work. That’s just stuff that I like. So why don't I bring it into work as well?”
Ripley says this is a truer representation of herself, despite her former looks.
She also credits WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix as an inspiration. Watching Phoenix in the ring helped her realise that not every female wrestler needs to be slender and petite but that beauty has many shapes and sizes.
This is a message she also wants to spread to any other aspiring wrestlers. She wants them to know that while people may doubt them like they once did her, they can persevere.
“Don't stop, because there's going to be people that doubt you. There's going to be people that say that you can't do it and you're never going make it. But they did that to me, too, and look at me now.
“So just stay determined and stay on track and do whatever you want. Whether that's wrestling, whether that's soccer, football, basketball, anything, any sport, even outside of sports, anything else you like, you can do it. Just stay determined.”
A version of this story first appeared in The National in September 2022
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
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Saturday's results
West Ham 2-3 Tottenham
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton
Bournemouth 1-2 Wolves
Brighton 0-2 Leicester City
Crystal Palace 1-2 Liverpool
Everton 0-2 Norwich City
Watford 0-3 Burnley
Manchester City v Chelsea, 9.30pm
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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