SA's Rhea Ripley has won the 2019 WWE NXT Women's Championship, her third high-level accolade. CREDIT: WWE

When you’re at the top of the pile, the challengers are going to be lining up to cut you down to size.

That’s the position Aussie born professional wrestler Rhea Ripley finds herself in after claiming the WWE NXT Women’s Championship belt.

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Ripley claimed the historic victory in mid-December in Florida when she toppled longstanding champion Shayna Baszler.

Now with the silverware firmly in hand, it will be back in the state of Florida when Ripley will lock horns with a WWE women’s legend.

After celebrating a title defence, Ripley was blindsided by Charlotte Flair who accepted the challenge thrown down by Ripley to take on the Aussie at WrestleMania.

Flair, the 10-time women’s champion, had her pick of fights for WrestleMania 36 after winning the Royal Rumble and it was Ripley’s NXT Championship she landed on.

Charlotte showed up and officially challenges Rhea Ripley at WrestleMania 36 👀



(via @WWE)pic.twitter.com/iBqliFq8cg — B/R Wrestling (@BRWrestling) February 17, 2020

With the matchup officially locked in for the blockbuster show in Tampa, Florida, Ripley faces her biggest challenge yet.

Flair will be looking to recapture the NXT title, her first ever championship belt in the industry which she held for 258 days.

After departing NXT she went on to become one of the most decorated female superstars in WWE history. Moving out of the shadow of famous father, Ric.

On Tuesday she decided to deliver another shot to Ripley ahead of the WWE showcase when she appeared on Raw.

Known as “The Queen”, Flair took centre stage and took aim at her opponent and the new wave of wrestlers coming through.

“I thought about my class who built the foundation of what is now a third brand called NXT,” Flair said.

“This is what’s bothering me … the entitlement. It is because of women like Rhea Ripley who didn’t scratch, who didn’t claw, who didn’t fall down as many times as I did to gain and earn the respect that NXT has now.

“And Rhea Ripley, you have the audacity to step in my ring on my show … and hold up the title that I put on the map.

“Rhea I think you’re good, I think you’re very good. But there is a saying, pride comes before the fall and I’m going to humble you at WrestleMania.

“And everyone is the next big thing … until they’re not.”

Ripley, known as “The Nightmare”, made history in 2017 when she became the first South Australian woman signed by the WWE.

Her star continued to rise when she competed in two internationally telecast tournaments in 2018 before she took down some of the biggest names in 2019, including Charlotte Flair.

WrestleMania 36 airs LIVE on WWE Network and Foxtel’s MAIN EVENT on Monday 6th April from 9AM AEST (pre-show from 7AM). Visit wwe.com/wwenetwork for details.