WWE Night of Champions 2025 Results & Reactions

It was supposed to be a renewal of their rivalry, and after nearly 13 years since they last feuded, they deserved the spotlight, but were never got the clean finish. The Saudi shows carry great weight with them, and the pressure to put on ‘WrestleMania’ caliber shows often times creates convoluted bookings filled with stars and void of substance.

Today, a “Mania booking” translates into sending out every ‘over’ face and ‘heat holding heel’ on the roster for a chaotically overbooked ending. The match hit every note it needed for the sake of fan nostalgia, and the creativity in the reversals and callbacks will be overlooked.

Seth Rollins, who had a full entrance despite being a run-in, came out with briefcase in hand—the show almost made it the entire way without a faux ‘cash-in’ attempt. It was a mangled logic to follow, considering he did not come out with a ref but still had Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker get heavily involved. After they put Punk through the table, eventually Punk and John Cena were forced to work together.

The ’tag up’ was brief, and we, again, got a hug between Cena and an ‘unsuspecting’ face. However, Punk would catch Cena’s patented kick to the groin before getting on his shoulders. That is when Seth, who finally called for a ref, used the briefcase across the head of Punk before being tossed out of the ring by Cena, who then took the easy pinfall victory. A special shout-out to Charles Robinson, who took a crazy bump from Cena.

If all of that seemed hard to follow, add in the fact that both Penta and Sami, who have each had issues with the nameless Rollins faction. It felt strange and unnecessary when you consider the story that was being told between Cena and Punk, but it made all the sense when you remember where WWE is, both geographically and corporately.

It was not the finish Punk was hoping for in a week of problematic optics from past tweets and off-TV phone recordings, which made it necessary for Phil to apologize to the entire Saudi fanbase.

Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton (Men’s King of the Ring)

After each man made it through the first-ever fatal 4-way KOTR qualifiers, Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton successfully made it through the semi-finals against Jey Uso and Sami Zayn, respectively. The match kicked off the show, and the two vets and longtime friends told a great story.

The ‘Viper,’ the guy you could never trust, constantly looked for the ‘cheap win’ as he took covers off of turnbuckles and utilized illegal moves throughout the match. It was often Cody who capitalized on Orton’s ‘veteran tactics.’ In the end, Cody emerged victorious and was crowned the 2025 King of the Ring.

The ceremony left something to be desired as older fans will remember the pageantry of Bret Hart’s interrupted ceremony, and Stone Cold Steve Austin’s career-launching promo following his KOTR win over Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts. Cody received none of the hoopla, and the two GMs from RAW and SD simply walked in the ring and HANDED CODY THE CROWN! That’s right, they did not even crown Cody.

Jade Cargill vs. Auska—Queen of the Ring

Cargill picked up the win in a match where she really tried to showcase her full in-ring development. Auska is one of the best and is totally capable of carrying Cargill through this match. But it was Cargill utilizing reversals and transitions that stood out the most. The climax of the match had Cargill on her knees as Auska was set to deliver her finisher, but Jade caught her midair and hit her own finisher for the pinfall victory.

Like Cody, Jade’s coronation and promo were not given a proper ceremony. Jade said a ‘storm is coming for SummerSlam,’ and while it could be a throwaway line, hopefully, she goes all out on her SummerSlam gear by paying homage to Halle Berry’s memorable performance as the X-Men character.

Jacob Fatu(c) vs. Solo Sikoa—U.S. Title

It was the unleashing of the entire ‘Bloodline’ (under contract) as the long-rumored debut of New Japan standout Hikuleo and the return of Tonga Loa stole the climax of Solo’s successful U.S. title win over Jacob Fatu. It might go down as a seriously short run for Fatu, but nobody can begrudge him for falling short on the night the 7-footer ‘ran the play.’

The match itself was excellent, a real battle between the ‘Samoan styles’ that included subtle shoutouts to their famous family predecessors. It was an evenly fought match for the most part, but when Jacob started to gain a real momentum, Solo’s first ‘safeguard’ was sent out in the form of Tonga Loa. He came out (of course, in a black hoodie) and was merely a stick in Jacob’s spokes meant to kill his motion.

Fatu was able to regain control and even hit his springboard moonsault off the top turnbuckle onto Solo. He covered for what should have been a successful defense, but that is when Hikuleo pulled Jacob out (by his freakin’ head!) and choke slammed onto the commentary desk. The interference was enough to keep Fatu down as Solo capitalized with the pinfall victory.

Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez—Street Fight

The best match on tonight’s card was easily Ripley-Rodriguez, as the Street Fight did not need to travel outside of the ringside barrier. They utilized weapons like chairs and kendo sticks, but it was the creativity in their table spots that really sent this one over the top.

First, it was Raquel utilizing the top of the commentary desk between the bell keeper guardrails. The piece exploded when Rodriguez dropped her through it and onto the concrete floor. But it was the finish that made this match test the boundaries of a 5-star match, as Raquel set up a table in the corner earlier in the match. When Raquel finally attempted to make use of it, Rhea escaped with a truly athletic maneuver that was basically a hurricanrana.

Rhea was able to gain control and set the table across the top turnbuckle, creating a platform. Rhea had Rodriguez up to the top of the table and hit the ‘Riptide’ for the win.

Sami Zayn VS Karrion Kross—Singles Match

The last-minute match replaced the IC title match between injured champion Dom Mysterio and anxious challenger AJ Styles. The feud between Zayn and Kross has amplified off a simple, yet effective, backstage confrontation week to week. The ‘will Sami turn’ angle has been played up since the ‘Raw after Mania.’

Kross has been a fan favorite since his own Mania run, where a handful of off-show moments made him a social media darling. Many have wondered when the ‘Kross push’ would begin, and rumors of a potential Kross injury stole the narrative away from the program itself.

Kross tried his best, but Sami was able to hit the Helluva Kick after being on the bad end of a relentless beatdown. Zayn picked up the win, but this story feels like it is still developing.