Rhea Ripley undergoes successful surgery to repair meniscus injury

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WWE Women's Champion Rhea Ripley looks on during SmackDown at Unipol Arena on June 5, 2026 in Bologna, Italy. | Photo by Andrew Timms/WWE via Getty Images When WWE created an interim Women’s title, some questioned why. Lineal champ Rhea Ripley’s been out since June with what she revealed last month was a “slight tear” of her meniscus. Minor meniscus tears that heal with rest or require minimal surgery often heal within a month or two, which was what brought the questions about why WWE was bothering to crown Chelsea Green interim champ at SummerSlam if Ripley was due back soon. But at the same time, Rhea told us that “slight tear” of her knee cartilage was in “a really weird spot” which put her recovery timeline “a little bit up in the air”. And today (Aug. 6), the champ shared that she recently had surgery to repair her meniscus. Life update. After just under 14 year in wrestling and doing sports my entire life… It’s caught up to me. Surgery was never a first option for me, but it got to the point that it was needed… First one down… Hopefully no more… I’ve survived, now it’s time to start thriving again so I can get back to what I love to do! See you all down the road. 🤘🏼 View this post on Instagram How far down the road? Likely far enough that the unification bout might not even be with Green, because it’s difficult to see WWE keeping SmackDown’s top Women’s prize on a comedy wrestler (even a multi-faceted powerhouse of one like our girl Chels) for more than a couple months. And after knee surgery, it figures to be several more months before we hear “This is my brutality!” again. Share your thoughts on how WWE’s handled the Women’s title since Rhea Ripley was injured on their June tour of Europe in the comments below… or just send your well-wishes to the champ.