Tegan Nox explains how Rhea Ripley helped during mental health dip after horror leg injury in WWE… as she opens up on Triple H's leadership since taking over from Vince McMahon

Tegan Nox was one of the premier stars during her time in NXT, so there were high hopes for her when she arrived on the main roster in 2021.

She admits she is biding her time. 'There's a time and a place,' she says. Soon, she hopes.

Her journey to here hasn't been smooth. Early injuries halted her initial run, before she was released and rejoined a year later.

Now, she's ready to go. But she's in a reflective mood, speaking of her 2018 injury that saw her suffer a torn ACL MCL, lateral collateral ligament, meniscus and patella dislocation.

Speaking exclusively to Mail Sport, Nox explains how Rhea Ripley helped her through her rehab as she experienced some of the lowest points in her career after she picked up the issue in a match against the now-megastar.

'My knee just exploded,' she says. 'It was so weird. It was just a freak accident where my toes were ever so slightly, like an inch on the ramp, and because it was unstable, it just went.

'I was supposed to go really far in that tournament [Mae Young Classic]. It was supposed to be me and Toni Storm in the final, and we have so much history wrestling all over the world together.

'Rhea would always come over to my house. She'd bring the dog over, because, at the time, I didn't have a dog, and we'd just hang out. She did go hard on the on internet, and I was all for it at one point. But then there was one point where I really dipped into, like, mental health issues and stuff, and as soon as I said that, she just she stopped. That shows the type of person that Rhea is.

'Now she's out with an injury, which sucks, because she's so good. She's one of my favourite people, not just outside the ring, but inside to watch, because she's such a good character and hot as hell.

'She's just such a good person, so I'm hoping for a speedy recovery, but it's Rhea. She's going come back and it wouldn't surprise me if she comes back way before when she's supposed to.'

Nox has high hopes for the future. Triple H, her mastermind at NXT, is in charge now following the departure of Vince McMahon and is highly thought of by the talent.

The Welsh star, who points out what makes him so special as a leader, feels no different.

'He's become a father to a lot of us,' she says. 'We call him "Daddy H" and stuff.

'He's very helpful. And when I got released, he actually called me because I was having trouble with a green card. I came back and it's been a great story ever since.

'It's wild growing up watching Triple H. I have a picture on my phone of me in Triple H pyjamas as a kid, which I haven't shown him yet. I'm waiting for the correct time. Please keep me.

'He loves his people, you can see that. He just he makes so much sense. And it's something that we're really grateful for, he knows everyone's strengths and weaknesses, and he plays to our strengths, which you can't really fault.'

Nox is speaking from inside the Virgin Media Gamepad. For her in the ring, the competitiveness doesn't just come inside the ring, but out of it too.

She has gone head-to-head with Shayna Baszler, fellow former NXT star, and well-renowned gamer.

'That's the only time I'll beat Shayna, but I beat her,' she boasts, having got the better of her in a match on WWE 2K24. 'I was myself in the first one, and that doesn't happen often, where I beat Shayna, because she's a fighter.

'Then I was Stone Cole because, you know, knee issues, and he was one of my favourites growing up. And people can't go wrong with Stone Cold, especially '97 Stone Cold.'

Mail Sport spoke to WWE superstar Tegan Nox at the Virgin Media Gamepad inside The O2