WWE and AEW have drawn talents from all around the world because of their ability to sell out huge arenas across the world. Australia is a sports-crazed country and betting on all sports, including wrestling, is incredibly popular at the best Australian online sports betting sites.  Australia has enjoyed much international success in sports such as cricket and rugby but how good is Australia at wrestling?  In this article, we will take a look at some of the best Australian wrestlers of all time.

Rhea Ripley

There are few more popular, or successful, Australian wrestlers in modern history than Rhea Ripley. The star was born in Adelaide, before moving to the United Kingdom to compete on the NXT UK platform. During her time with the promotion, she became the first-ever NXT UK Women’s Champion and later won the NXT Women’s Championship when moving up to the North American brand.

However, she has continued to showcase her skills on the main roster since being called up to the WWE, becoming the Raw Women’s champion in her first 12 months. She later completed the set at WrestleMania, as she became the SmackDown Women’s champion, becoming the first superstar to ever win all five titles during her career. Ripley also became the first Australian world champion in WWE history, and she also set the women’s record for the longest time spent in the Royal Rumble when winning the famous match in 2023.

The IIconics

Women’s wrestling has always flourished in Australia, and there was further evidence of that based on the success that The IIconics achieved throughout their run in WWE. The team consisted of best friends Peyton Royce and Billie Kay, who came through the independent circles together, before working their way up to the NXT roster in 2015. Despite working as jobbers, and failing to pick up a win in their first 12 months in NXT, they quickly transformed their characters to become one of the most formidable teams on the show. That was highlighted by their successful chase for the NXT Women’s Tag Team Championships. After dropping the gold, the team moved up to the main roster and won the Women’s Tag Team titles at WrestleMania 35.

In the process, they became the first all-Australian team to hold tag team titles in WWE history, and they also became the first Australians to win a major title at the flagship show. The team would later break up in August 2020, before being released by the WWE in April 2021.

Buddy Murphy

Buddy Murphy has competed in some of the biggest wrestling promotions throughout his career and is currently competing in All Elite Wrestling. Murphy wasted no time in making his mark at the company, as he captured the AEW World Trios Championship alongside Malakai Black and Brody King.

However, He is best known for his time in the WWE. Born in Melbourne, he signed with NXT in 2013. He quickly enjoyed success in North America on the developmental brand, as he won the NXT Tag Team Championships alongside Wesley Blake. That was a historic moment for Australian wrestling, as he became the first-ever Australian to win a title in WWE. At the start of 2018, he was moved to the main roster, first competing on 205 Live, before being assigned to the SmackDown brand in 2019.

However, later in the same year, he switched to Raw, and aligned himself with Seth Rollins, leading to the pair winning the Raw Tag Team Championships. But, Murphy was released from WWE in June 2021, before he then went to compete in New Japan Pro Wrestling, before signing with AEW in February 2022.

Final Thoughts

The future of Australian wrestling looks brighter than ever, with some of the biggest stars on the major brands representing the nation. Not only are they holding their own with other big stars from across the globe, but they are landing major world titles. That success only looks set to continue for generations to come, as stars such as Ripley and Murphy have highlighted that there is a clear path to the top of the sport with the world’s biggest promotions. The popularity of the sport in Australia also remains extremely high, meaning that it isn’t out of the question that we could see both AEW and WWE regularly holding shows in Australia over the coming years.