WWE Night of Champions 2025: Ranking every match from worst to best

WWE Night of Champions delivered a power-packed premium live event to all its fans from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The PLE consisted of six matches on the card, and witnessed a big title change as well as the winners of the King and Queen of the Ring Tournaments.

While every superstar tried their best to put up a great fight, some matches shone more than others. Here are three of the best and three of the worst matches that fans saw unfold at Night of Champions.

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#3 Best: Cody Rhodes won the 2025 King of the Ring Tournament

The final round of the 2025 King of the Ring Tournament saw Cody Rhodes clash with Randy Orton. The two brought a rich history of both friendship and rivalry to the ring, spanning their intertwined pro wrestling careers. Both former Legacy members were determined to get the win to get a shot at the Undisputed WWE Championship, especially due to its current holder, John Cena.

The Viper had landed a solid mid-air RKO to The American Nightmare in the final moments of the match. However, it failed to get the job done. This made Randy Orton expose one of the corner turnbuckles in desperation. However, he couldn’t use it and ended up hitting the exposed steel ribs-first himself. Cody Rhodes followed this with a Cross Rhodes to win the match and become the 24th KOTR winner.

The match saw both wrestlers push each other to their very limits. Aside from the exchange of blows, this fight also carried strong storytelling elements, especially considering Orton’s usage of underhanded means to win the match. The American Nightmare thanked him afterward and praised him as a future WWE Hall of Famer.

However, The Viper didn’t seem to be hitting home, and the 14-time world champion looked very upset. After all, this was the second consecutive year when he finished as the runner-up in the King of the Ring Tournament, with his 2024 loss coming at the hands of Gunther. Thus, this match easily made for one of the best of the night.

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#3 Worst: Karrion Kross vs. Sami Zayn failed to add much value

Karrion Kross finally got the chance to get in the ring with Sami Zayn after haunting him and playing mind games for months. The Canadian agreed to trade blows with the former Final Testament leader after his KOTR semifinal loss against Randy Orton.

Neither of the former NXT Champions held back, and both landed their key moves to turn the tide several times. Each time Karrion Kross had the upper hand, he also threw verbal attacks at Sami Zayn, which was in line with his character.

Despite this, the match didn’t feel as if it had PLE value. It could have easily been fought on a regular episode of WWE RAW, especially since Kross gained no storyline progression from the encounter.

Instead of shifting him towards his dark side, this match just made the OG Bloodline member more determined to stay babyface for longer, especially when he won before the crowd of Saudi Arabia, which loves Zayn.

This could also be a reason why this match was added to the PLE's final card, and Triple H may have tried to capitalize on Riyadh’s love for the Canadian. The four-time Intercontinental Champion did receive a massive pop, and the keffiyeh he donned during his entrance further connected with the fans. Aside from this, the match failed to serve any other purpose.

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#2 Best: Solo Sikoa lived an unofficial winner-takes-all experience

Solo Sikoa defeated Jacob Fatu to win the United States Championship at WWE Night of Champions. While The Samoan Werewolf had a sharper edge against his opponent throughout the match, Sikoa stole the US title owing to a returning Tonga Loa and a debuting Hikuleo. Thus, The Street Champion used his ability to increase the number of his supporters right when the iron was hot.

Hikuleo made a last-minute save for the New Bloodline leader and Chokeslammed Jacob Fatu on the announce table. He then rolled The Samoan Werewolf back in the ring, where Sikoa landed a Samoan Spike to finish things up. With this, the son of Rikishi has won his first-ever WWE main roster title.

Moreover, aside from the United States Championship, he also has an ironclad faction at his side. Thus, Sikoa will now be able to rebuild his dominance of SmackDown since his loss during The Bloodline Civil War at the 2024 Survivor Series: WarGames. With two additions, one of whom is a 6’8” towering giant, Hikuleo, Sikoa truly won it all at Night of Champions.

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#2 Worst: Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez didn’t belong on the card of WWE Night of Champions

WWE usually sticks to five matches or fewer in every premium live event. If any match felt like a stowaway, it was definitely the encounter between Rhea Ripley and Raquel Rodriguez. The two big women landed several powerful blows on each other and took full advantage of all the weapons available to them in the Street Fight setup.

Despite this, the match felt like a vestigial addition because of the lack of promo and storyline work put into it. A PLE match should have been a turning point or a culmination point for this fresh feud between Mami and Big Mami Cool. However, it just seemed like a checkpoint in this developing feud.

Roxanne Perez interfered in the match to help the WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion. However, The Eradicator was ready this time and single-handedly managed to win the match despite the two-time NXT Women’s Champion’s involvement. While a victory for Rodriguez would have meant stronger ties between her and Roxy, it remains to be seen where the storyline will head after the Aussie ended up winning the street fight.

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#1 Best: John Cena and CM Punk delivered a great end to their WWE rivalry

The main event of WWE Night of Champions saw John Cena put the Undisputed Championship on the line against CM Punk. The iconic rivals had built a lot of hype for this bout as Cena stole Punk’s famous pipebomb promo. In response, The Second City Saint stole The Franchise Player’s rapping gimmick and dubbed himself the ‘Doctor of Punkanomics,’ dissing the Undisputed Champ on the go-home episode of SmackDown.

Their encounter in Riyadh surprisingly saw The Last Real Champion dominating the flow of the match. Just when CM Punk was in a position to secure a win, Seth Rollins and his crew interfered while the referee was knocked out. The Visionary’s men, Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed, faced resistance from Sami Zayn and Penta, who put a dent in Rollins’ plans.

Showcasing his dominance as the bigger heel, John Cena took out the official that The Architect had brought with him to prevent Mr. Money in the Bank from cashing in his contract. Moreover, Cena and Punk even teamed up for a while to put down Bronson Reed. The truce didn’t last long as The Franchise Player tried to sneakily low blow The Second City Saint while feigning a handshake.

Seeing through the cheap trick, The Straight Edge Superstar blocked the low blow and almost landed a GTS. However, Rollins attacked him with his MITB briefcase and took him out with a Curb Stomp. The Undisputed WWE Champion quickly tossed The Visionary out of the ring to pin his challenger and retain his title.

Aside from the high-stakes action, this match has now permanently sealed the head-to-head record between Cena and Punk at 7-6. Thus, while The Straight Edge Superstar stole his rapping gimmick, Cena will always have the claim of having the final mic drop at WWE Night of Champions.

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#1 Worst: Asuka should have become the Queen of the Ring

The final round of the 2025 WWE Queen of the Ring Tournament saw Jade Cargill win against Asuka. The Empress of Tomorrow was riding a good comeback wave after ending her year-long injury hiatus to enter QOTR. However, The Storm tore through her momentum to win the crown and will now head to SummerSlam to face Tiffany Stratton for the WWE Women’s Championship.

With this, Triple H and his team have chosen to make Cargill and Stratton clash, with Ms. Money in the Bank, Naomi, looming as a constant threat. But this sacrificed the storyline where Asuka could have faced her former Damage CTRL ally, IYO SKY. WWE had also teased a future feud between the two Japanese stars in a RAW segment ahead of Night of Champions.

Jade Cargill could have easily started an organic feud with The Buff Barbie, considering their history in the last few months. The same can’t be said for The Empress of Tomorrow, who just made a WWE return. This also leaves IYO SKY without a credible opponent for SummerSlam, since Rhea Ripley is currently feuding with Raquel Rodriguez.

The match didn’t have any problems, and The Storm smoothly converted an Empress Impact into a Jaded to win the match. However, considering the ongoing storylines, WWE now has some gaps to fill for the Women’s World Champion, IYO SKY. It will be interesting to see how Triple H and his team build up for the upcoming SummerSlam season.