WWE Night Of Champions 2025 Review

I was a little hesitant to watch and review this show. Since it occurred earlier in the day, I was able to preview the not-so-surprising results and thought I might simply pass it up. However, around dinner time, I needed something to watch and figured this would be fine. In the end, there were a few matches I actually wanted to see and figured to ignore the results and see if I could just enjoy the matches for themselves.

Despite the recent Middle East conflicts, the WWE ended up partaking in this event (along with Smackdown). I was kinda hoping to see something come up where the event would be cancelled but I’m guessing that it would’ve put a huge damper on the WWE’s relations with that section of the world. Not to mention cutting a huge amount of income. That said, regardless of politics, the atmosphere itself for the show was quite amazing. That’s one thing you couldn’t take away as the people who attended obviously just wanted to be the same as the typical WWE Universe member.

Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes for the King of the Ring

This match wasn’t bad at the start but I’m not a fan of Cody’s “modern” style. Oddly, the crowd was really behind Orton more than Cody, even though the crowd seemed to want to sing Cody’s entrance. So it’s a weird kind of reaction because it feels like the crowd were several months (or years) behind. The story they attempted to setup was how Orton hurt his back on a weird superplex and Cody needed to get aggressive since he was hungrier. The problem is that Cody’s “modern” style does not lend itself well to that kind of story and that if they wanted to execute that idea Cody needed to completely change his mode of offense to be rougher. At one point, Orton was going for the punt but did the whole stupid “I’m conflicted” story, which is ridiculous because he admitted beforehand he needed to win this event. Because Orton took too long, Cody avoided the punt. Eventually, Orton removed the turnbuckle but messed up and hit the side of his shoulder to stun him. I think Cody then took advantage of the situation to hit Orton with the Cross Rhodes to get the pin. Crowd did not react for that finish nor did I because it came off really flat.

Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Rodriguez

This was a street fight but they started in the ring. It really didn’t feel like a street fight outside of a few stupid spots like the kendo stick, chair and some no DQ moments along with a shitty table spot at the end. Honestly, they could’ve had a far better match if they did not have the stupid stipulation which added absolutely nothing. Most of the match wasn’t bad except the horrible finish. They took forever trying to balance on the table while the idiotic referee held the table still. I fucking hate that shit. Rhea delivered her finishing move from the top of the table but I don’t see why they needed the table. The only aspect that might’ve been relevant with the table was when poor Raquel hit her throat near it. That looked a bit dangerous and silly. Either way, this match was nothing really and nothing progressed.

Sami Zayn vs. Karrion Kross

Another filler match. The announcers were trying to play up that Karrion is getting hype by social media so he’s getting a little bit of a push. The problem is that he really sucks in the ring. I might complain about other wrestlers doing too much but Karrion barely does anything. And he’s very limited so he returns to his side salto type of suplex. I think Kross can do fine in a 3 minute match where he executes his 5 moves ‘o doom but other than that he should never go beyond 5 minutes.

Solo Sikoa vs. Jacob Fatu

This was for the US title. Solo is a funny dude. He’s not a great wrestler by far. Kinda like Karrion Kross but Solo has a lot of personality in the ring. I like how he comes off being silly but he’s still trying to be serious. That to me works. And he does it quite well. End was a clusterfuck but this was the only match that moved anything along where Solo’s group saw the return of Tama Tonga and the debut of Hikuleo (whose name the announcers completely botched and made me confused). JC Mateo helped out too and Solo screwed Jacob out of the US title. That’s fine but I hope that Jacob gets moved to Raw because I don’t want to see Jacob feuding with the Bloodline v2 forever like WWE wrestlers tend to do. Also, that title reign felt ultra short for a guy of that caliber. I have no idea what they have planned for Jacob but at least Solo seems like a threat again.

Asuka vs. Jade Cargill

This was for the Queen of the Ring. And for me, this was one of those morbid curiosity matches because I want to see Jade and whether or not she improves. Visually, this match was a complete mismatch because Asuka is tiny. Style-wise, this was a horrible mismatch. This match really had no structure and mostly had both women trading moves. Asuka wants to go at 100 mph but Jade doesn’t seem to have the in ring cardio. I think Asuka might’ve legitimately hurt Jade’s leg or at least caused her some pain because Jade really sold it. Jade probably can do more than Karrion Kross but there’s too much else that’s important missing especially positioning. And I’m sorry but Asuka can’t carry a match. I think when she started in the WWE she was good but the WWE style has devolved so much into just spots that she doesn’t build her matches anymore. The finish was blown because Jade leaned back too far that caused Asuka’s shoulders to get out of position but the referee still counted it, making the end anti-climatic and questionable.

However, the key here was that the crowd clearly wasn’t happy. The crowd had smatterings of boos whenever Jade did anything but really still loved Asuka. I think to be perfectly frank here, the crowd appreciates actual talent. So Jade came off bad because she’s not polished and probably a tad arrogant. Her speech points to that arrogance where she addressed the boos, which obviously got to her. I can see where she’s coming from but there comes a time where you need to listen to feedback and get off your high horse. If people aren’t always reacting there’s a clear reason.

I will say Jade was fucking hot here. I loved her Storm costume. I really wish she could improve in the ring and get some humility because she does legitimately come off like someone whose ego is getting out of control. As for the result, I didn’t mind because I already read Jade is getting a push. But I can’t see her last long just because she’s not up to par. Like the only match I want to see with her is against Charlotte. I think Jade’s best opponent thus far has been Liv Morgan, who should have been her opponent here (if it weren’t for the injury). Also, I didn’t care for Asuka here. I was hoping for more but something was off.

CM Punk vs. John Cena

For the Undisputed World Championship. This was the other match I really wanted to see. I was very impressed with Punk and Cena during the Elimination Chamber and wanted to see more. Most of this match was excellent up until the clusterfuck Paul Heyman finish. This would’ve been the match of the night except for that stupid finish. I get that Seth needed to screw Punk over and that Cena needed an out. But I just fucking hate Paul Heyman right now. Yes, anything he’s involved in gets the most attention and biggest stories but it’s the fucking same thing over and over. Overbooked, shitty, inconclusive, unsatisfying finishes. This reminds me of that episode of South Park when Cartman dresses up as a robot helper and some studio kidnaps him and forces him to come up with movie ideas. Then all the movie ideas are just some stupid Adam Sandler schtick by the numbers.

I’m guessing by the way this stupid situation has been progressing it’s supposed to lead towards Cena coming back to the light side because of how Seth tried to interfere which forced Punk and Cena to temporarily work together. Then the announcers kept harping on the “soulless” description of Cena. This is such a wretched story line that I wish they abort it soon. Obviously, this is just Cena having fun and you could tell that Punk is enjoying himself too with Cena. But this whole thing is no good and it’s killing the show because they have to act like Cena is in isolation so he gets the spotlight. With Seth getting involved, it does connect Heyman to Cena indirectly but there’s something big missing.

Final Thoughts

Another disappointing PPV. I’m down to clips and PPVs and it’s really hard to get enthused about a product that just is empty and paint by the numbers. Solo winning the belt was a surprise that I didn’t mind because at least it wasn’t expected and he needed something since he’s been deader than sidewalk dog poop after the Bloodline disbanded. But they really need to start moving the pieces around a lot more because some of the choices are just wretched right now.

 

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