Ranking the 10 Biggest Stars in WWE's Men's Division for WrestleMania 41 Season
WWE has spent the last two years crafting a roster of legitimate stars, any of whom could main-event a major show and be accepted in that role, thanks in large part to a vastly improved bond between creative and in-ring performance.
With so many names at its disposal, the company is sure to have scenarios in which some are left out through no fault of their own and others find the greatest success of their careers.
In preparation for WrestleMania 41, enjoy this look at the 10 biggest stars on the WWE men's roster, ranked according to overall impact on the product this year and their projected spot on the card at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on April 19-20.
10. Drew McIntyre
1 of 10
Six months ago, the idea that Drew McIntyre would rank this low on this list would have been unfathomable.
One of the best characters in WWE, a talker who found himself in 2024 and was enjoying a run in a top spot that he had long ago earned, the Scot was one of four or five guys driving stories and consistently headlining Raw.
That is not the case now, though, as McIntyre has taken a backseat on this Road to WrestleMania, engaged in a rivalry with Damian Priest that feels like a waste of potential for both men given how important they have been to the company's TV efforts over the last 12 months.
That McIntyre is as strong a wrestler and as great a character as he is at least earned him a spot on this countdown, something that cannot be said of The Archer of Infamy.
9. Kevin Owens
2 of 10
Kevin Owens is good enough to rank much higher on this list and his work speaks for itself.
One of the most engaging performers in WWE, the Canadian has been one of the MVPs of the company's TV through the first quarter of 2025 and is gearing up for what appears to be a WrestleMania 41 date with Randy Orton.
Thanks to the logjam of stars elsewhere on this countdown, it makes it difficult for him to enter that upper echelon, but no one will work harder or more passionately to get over what he and The Viper have cooking for The Showcase of the Immortals than Owens.
The Prizefighter remains one of those truly great storytellers who should be cherished now and will be long after he has wrestled his last match.
8. Randy Orton
3 of 10
Like Owens, it is a testament to the stars still left to discuss on this countdown that Randy Orton ranks as low as he does on this list.
The Viper returned at Elimination Chamber and wasted little time letting the wrestling world know he has his sights on former friend and tag team partner Owens.
Orton threatened KO with a punt, something we have not seen out of the third-generation star in nearly five years, but he failed to execute it.
Do not expect that to be the last time as The Apex Predator has revenge on his mind and will not stop until he has achieved it, regardless of the stage or opponent.
.jpg?w=256)
7. Gunther
4 of 10
World heavyweight champion Gunther has stood atop the Raw mountain since last August and has vanquished every challenger, including the man he will defend against at WrestleMania: Jey Uso.
This time, though, he faces a challenger with momentum on his side after winning the men's Royal Rumble and will have to set aside all preconceived notions about Uso.
In his previous two appearances on the grand stage, Gunther has produced Match of the Year candidates with Sheamus and Drew McIntyre in 2023 and Sami Zayn last year in Philadelphia.
The Ring General will be looking to add to his legacy as one of the best big-match performers of all time when he sets foot inside the squared circle to do battle with Uso in Las Vegas.
6. Seth Rollins
5 of 10
Fans have spent most of 2025 watching Seth Rollins' gradual emotional descent, fueled by his obsessions with Roman Reigns and CM Punk.
That obsession has cost him a match against The Best in the World and victories at the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber.
More relentless, dangerous and unpredictable than ever, The Visionary's road to WrestleMania is still unclear, with options including a one-on-one match with Reigns or a Triple Threat also involving Punk.
Regardless, the man who has repeatedly asked his fellow Superstars to fight for the company against his two main rivals now faces scrutiny as some wonder whether his call to action is for the sake of WWE or for the opportunity to clear out two of the biggest roadblocks on his path back to a world title.
5. Roman Reigns
6 of 10
The idea of Roman Reigns just barely cracking the top five before any other WrestleMania in recent memory would be absurd.
After all, The Tribal Chief was the centerpiece of the WWE Universe, the man around whom an entire four-year Bloodline saga revolved. He was the guy in WWE and the longest-reigning heavyweight champion since Hulkamania ran wild in the 1980s.
Entering this year's event, Reigns does not have the weight of the world or the lofty expectations of an entire company resting on his shoulders.
The Bloodline story has reached a fitting end with his victory over Solo Sikoa at the Raw on Netflix debut in January, and he is free to focus his attention on other things, including avenging his long history with Rollins and settling up with Punk, a man with whom he also has beef.
Perhaps he wrestles Rollins or is one-third of a star-studded Triple Threat, but one thing is for certain: Reigns is not, and does not have to be, the top-billed Superstar on this year's card.
While he rightfully commands attention and will be part of one of the hottest matches on the show regardless, that isn't necessarily a bad thing for anyone.
4. CM Punk
7 of 10
Since the very beginning of his WWE career, CM Punk has made it clear he still has one dream to check off his bucket list: to main-event WrestleMania.
It was a dream denied him during his first run with the company, even if his 2013 matchup against The Undertaker was an infinitely better option for that spot than the subpar contest between John Cena and The Rock.
Last year, Punk suffered a triceps tear that sidelined him from The Show of Shows and cost him an opportunity to challenge Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship.
Now in 2025, he finds himself embroiled in a red-hot rivalry with Rollins and seeking revenge on Reigns following an attack that coincided with him leaning on his friend, Paul Heyman, at the conclusion of Raw on March 10.
Could he find himself opposite both men in Las Vegas, with a chance to headline one of the two nights, if for no other reason than the undisputed star power in that one match?
Regardless of whether he does, one thing is for sure: No one will talk the fans into caring more about what he does than Punk, and that inches him slightly ahead of Rollins and Reigns here.
3. Jey Uso
8 of 10
"Which one are you?" is a question Jey Uso recalled being asked by fans unsure of whether they were talking to him or his brother when he first tasted singles success in 2020.
Fast-forward five years and there is no doubt as to who he is.
Yes, Jey is one-half of arguably the greatest tag team in WWE, but he is also a singles star ready to achieve the one goal that has eluded him to this point in his career after picking the biggest victory of his career in the men's Rumble match.
At WrestleMania, he has the chance to add "world heavyweight champion" to his resume, something few could have expected before the start of the Bloodline story that catapulted him to singles acclaim.
Jey's organic rise, capped by enormous popularity and a WWE machine fully behind him, makes him one of the best stories of 'Mania season, and his impending coronation in Vegas should be one of the defining moments of this year's show.
2. Cody Rhodes
9 of 10
Cody Rhodes entered WrestleMania 40 seeking to finish his story and take his rightful place at the top of the wrestling world as the new undisputed WWE champion.
He did just that, ending the tyrannical run of Roman Reigns and giving fans a legitimate feel-good story to conclude a four-year stretch of wrestling's top heel closing out the show.
This year, The American Nightmare enters as the defending champion. Not just the defending champion, but the one with the duty to rob The Rock and John Cena of the satisfaction of taking the title from him.
Faced with the unenviable task of preventing one of the greatest babyfaces-turned-heels taking a historic 17th championship, Rhodes is to this generation of fans what Cena was to a previous era: A role model and a hero.
A phenomenal talker, with the ability to express himself clearly and emotionally to the fans and forge an unbreakable bond with them, Rhodes has already made an impact on this road to WrestleMania by never wavering on his morals and breaking out a timely insult for an icon gone bad.
1. John Cena
10 of 10
John Cena could have returned to WWE for his retirement tour, made like Journey and played the hits, and then ridden off into the sunset with a 17th WWE world title reign and a career that would go down in history as one of the best ever.
Instead, he went a different route, undergoing a character change when fans least knew they wanted it and becoming the villain they had at one time begged him to be.
By betraying the WWE Universe and siding with The Rock in the name of breaking a record, Cena underwent a transformation that others in his position would not have been as bold or courageous to do.
A heel turn 21 years after first turning babyface and igniting a run that would take him to the highest perch in pro wrestling is an incredibly risky thing to pull off, especially when the star in question is as visibly involved in charities as Cena is.
Still, The GOAT pulled the trigger and made a drastic change that could have been disastrous but instead took one of the most one-dimensional characters on the show and turned him on his head.
Now criticizing fans for bullying him and never asking how he felt while he paraded around the ring teaching their kids how to live an admirable life, Cena is an entirely different beast seeking everything owed to him, whether he earned it or not.
That is an entitled heel fans can get behind and one who should make for one of the hottest environments in recent WrestleMania memory.
.jpg?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Offseason Moves for Every Team 👉")
.png?w=600 "New NBA Mock Draft 📝")
