WWE’s Nikki A.S.H. Breaks Down Royal Rumble, Rhea Ripley Attack, and Shoots Down Super Villain Talk

Tonight’s Royal Rumble will host two Rumble matches, with 30 women and men looking to secure a Championship match at WrestleMania, and who better to survive that gauntlet than an almost superhero? That’s what Nikki A.S.H. thinks too, and the superstar is more than up for the challenge of the Rumble match. Winning the Rumble would put The People’s Hero right into the Raw Women’s Championship mix once again, and would certainly be a way to launch 2022 in style now that she’s parted ways with Rhea Ripley. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to Nikki A.S.H. ahead of the Rumble, and we talked about facing Becky Lynch or Doudrop, attacking Ripley, the Almost Supervillain chatter, and more!

2021 was a huge year for Nikki, which saw her become Money in the Bank winner, the Raw Women’s Champion, and WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion in a matter of months, so a Royal Rumble win would kick off 2022 in the perfect way to continue that momentum.

“It was an amazing year. Money in the Bank, Raw Women’s Champion, Tag Team Champion for the first time, broke a record. Broke a couple actually. I was the first-ever Scottish Women’s World Champion,” Nikki said. As for a win at the Rumble, that would be a superhero’s dream. “It would be something that I could say would be a goal I’d get to tick off. Money in the Bank was something else I got to tick off. Winning championships, performing at SummerSlam. All of these things were just ticking it off. And for me, not only competing in the Royal Rumble but to go on and win the Royal Rumble would be a dream come true. It would be a superhero’s dream come true and I think it would be fantastic.”

As for who she would like to face, a superhero never backs away from a fight, so she’s up for either challenge. “Oh, I mean, at the Royal Rumble we have Becky Lynch versus Doudrop for the Raw Women’s Championship. So whether it’d be Doudrop, whether it’d be Becky Lynch, Nikki A.S.H. will be issuing a challenge to the Raw Women’s Champion.”

Nikki recently ended her partnership with Ripley with an unexpected attack, and since then she’s taken a few more shots at her former friend. That’s led some to say that Nikki A.S.H. is a heel, but she doesn’t see it that way and feels like Ripley brought that attack on herself when she betrayed her.

“Yeah, she really brought that on herself. She started all of that and she betrayed me so I was really just standing up for myself. She broke up the team. I felt a huge sense of betrayal after everything that I’d done for her, and then she ended the friendship and she ended the tag team,” Nikki said. “I had no choice but to stand up for myself, and now she’s twisted this and made me out to be the villain. And I’m like, so everyone’s Almost a Super Villain. I’m like, no, no, no, no, no, Almost a Superhero.”

The People’s Hero knows some won’t see what’s best for them as clearly as she can, but that’s okay with her, as long as they don’t keep her from doing what’s best.

“They don’t and it’s fine. It’s fine. Not everyone knows what’s best for them, but I know what’s best for them and I am the people’s hero and thank you so much for calling me that,” Nikki said. “And I want everyone to address me like that and I’ve just got millions of fans across the world who love and adore me and I know what’s best for them. So they just need to let me do what I know how to do, and save them, save the day.”

Nikki A.S.H. is still unquestionably a superhero, but she has enjoyed showing a different side to herself. “Anytime I get to perform in front of my loving and adoring fans, I feel free but it’s been interesting,” Nikki said. “It’s been such a wonderful journey being the superhero, so for me, what’s thrilling is showing the fans different sides of the personality, and they’re getting to know me as a person and they’re getting to know the person behind the superhero so I think that’s wonderful.”

Now, since she did split with Ripley, you might assume she wouldn’t be up for pursuing the Tag Team Championships, but that is not the case, and she’s got the perfect idea in mind.

“For me as a superhero, I think I could be a Tag Team Champion by myself,” Nikki said. “I mean, I’m super. I’ve got very strong arms so I could carry a Championship on each arm. So I think I could win and defend the Women’s Tag Team Championships again by myself. It’s never been done and superheroes break records. Nikki A.S.H. breaks records.”

We also had to talk Spider-Man: No Way Home, and after the film expanded the Spider-Verse in such a massive way, she definitely has an idea of what she would like to see next, and that’s Spidey vs Venom.

“I think Tom Holland is absolutely fantastic as Spider-Man. I think his movies have been great. I think he’s brought so much to the role. I mean, I love Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire’s portrayal of Spiderman too, and I think they’ve all brought their own flavor and their own take on Spider-Man. That’s something wonderful to see. After watching it, I can see the number of possibilities of how the multiverse can expand. I think any fan is excited to see what’s next, and I think I would love to see Spider-Man and Venom. That would be great. And Dr. Strange, I think that’s very, very, very interesting. I’m excited to see what’s next for Spider-Man and the MCU.”

2022 is going to be loaded with superhero films, including The Batman, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Aquaman 2, Moon Knight, and more. So, what two films is she looking forward to the most?

“Batman, I’m excited to see how Robert Pattinson does it because I think he’s great. I really like him as an actor and I’m excited to see what he brings to the role. Because again, it’s just seeing this iconic character being brought to life in a different way. So Batman and I’m really, I think Morbius looks, I think it looks terrifying,” Nikki said. “I mean, pretty much all of them, but those two are the ones that are standing out.”

You can watch Nikki A.SH. compete in the Royal Rumble tonight, which streams live on Peacock at 8 PM EST, with the kickoff show starting at 7 PM EST.

Will Nikki A.S.H. win the Royal Rumble? Let us know in the comments or as always you can talk all things wrestling @MattAguilarCB!