WWE Saturday Night's Main Event XL Match Card Predictions After Night of Champions

Even in the wake of Night of Champions 2025, WWE's seemingly-never-ending string of shows will continue with Saturday Night's Main Event XL in two weeks on July 12 along with Evolution the next night and SummerSlam soon after.

Thus, it's important for the promotion to have several storylines catching fire simultaneously to give fans plenty to look forward to in the weeks and months ahead. Night of Champions may have brought closure in some situations, but it also left the door open for a handful of potential matchups at the upcoming installment of Saturday Night's Main Event.

Gunther vs. Goldberg for the World Heavyweight Championship is already official for the show and is expected to be the primary attraction with it emanating from Atlanta, a city Goldberg has plenty of history in from both his time in football and wrestling. That alone will make the event newsworthy with it marking Goldberg's last match ever.

Nothing else is confirmed for the card as of now, but it should become more clear as early as Monday's Raw.

With multiple matches teased during Night of Champions, the following is the most likely lineup for Saturday Night's Main Event.

Gunther vs. Goldberg (World Heavyweight Championship)

As noted, Gunther defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Goldberg was announced as the marquee match for the upcoming Saturday Night's Main Event weeks ago when Goldberg returned for the first time in years to confront Gunther.

Gunther was always the opponent that made the most sense for Goldberg to face in his final match coming off their heated interaction at last October's Bad Blood event. Putting the World Heavyweight title up for grabs wasn't necessary (especially with Goldberg having done nothing to earn the opportunity), but it does certainly raise the stakes.

They've kept the story simple so far and it's made for a compelling buildup to the bout. There's no reason for the match to be booked like anything other than a straightforward squash for Gunther with Goldberg scoring a few hope spots before eating defeat.

It should be a decisive win for The Ring General, but that doesn't mean Goldberg can't get a few moments with the fans afterward to end his illustrious career. No Money in the Bank cash-in is needed, either. Goldberg can get the spotlight one last time without having his hand raised or there being an excessive amount of interference.

Dominik Mysterio vs. AJ Styles (Intercontinental Championship)

Among the matches originally announced for Night of Champions was Dominik Mysterio vs. AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Championship. However, the bout was bumped from the card on the June 23 edition of Raw when Adam Pearce declared Mysterio wasn't cleared to compete.

The injury Mysterio sustained wasn't made clear, leaving fans to wonder whether it was a storyline explanation for why he wouldn't be present at the event. Regardless, it was established that Styles would get his crack at the title another time, and there's no better place for them to face off than Saturday Night's Main Event.

If Mysterio is legitimately hurt, then the match will have to wait, but if not, WWE should be looking to get it done on the sooner side. Mysterio feuding with Finn Balor also appears to be imminent, so Mysterio vs. Styles must be done before that can get underway.

Styles has worked his way through The Judgment Day in the last month or so and is a credible challenger for Mysterio to beat. It's worth noting he won't have Liv Morgan in his corner with her also getting injured recently, so he'll be walking into this outing at a distinct disadvantage.

John Cena and Cody Rhodes' Undisputed WWE Championship Contract Signing

Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton in the opener of Night of Champions to not only become King of the Ring but also secure his spot at SummerSlam against John Cena for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Cena successfully defended the title against CM Punk later in the night, so unless he has another title defense in July, Cena vs. Rhodes can be considered locked in for the August extravaganza. It will serve as the rematch to their underwhelming encounter at WrestleMania 40, so the pressure is on for them to deliver and exceed expectations.

Before then, though, to ensure their presence is felt at Saturday Night's Main Event, a contract signing should be in order. The event emanating from Rhodes' home state of Georgia makes it a must that he can appear in some form or fashion and this would be the most effective use of him if there isn't an obvious opponent for him.

Cena and Rhodes can exchange some words, put pen to paper and ideally amplify the excitement for their looming rematch. It wouldn't have to eat up much television time, but it would be a massive attraction for the event, nonetheless.

Bayley vs. Lyra Valkyria

Evolution being a mere day after Saturday Night's Main Event makes it difficult to add a women's match to the latter show since it's safe to assume most will be saved for the all-women's event.

Giulia and Zelina Vega having a rematch for the Women's United States Championship is a possibility, but the last installment in May featured something similar with Vega defending against Chelsea Green in a rematch. Running that back so soon would be nothing out of the ordinary.

Bayley vs. Lyra Valkyria, meanwhile, was set up when Valkyria unintentionally cost Bayley the Women's Intercontinental Championship by interfering in her Raw match with Becky Lynch. It could realistically take place at Saturday Night's Main Event if it ends up having Evolution implications.

It'd be logical to give it the stipulation of the winner challenging Lynch for the title at Evolution the next night, only for it to have some sort of non-finish and turn it into a Triple Threat instead.

There aren't any other matches that make sense for the show that wouldn't be outright added to Evolution (part of the problem doing the shows so close together), but Bayley vs. Valkyria would give this card a boost of star power and be a great match with the allotted time.

Seth Rollins vs. CM Punk

Seth Rollins has so many enemies at the moment that there's any number of potential opponents for him at Saturday Night's Main Event, but with it being a bigger platform, it should be where he and CM Punk have the long-awaited blow-off to their personal program.

Just as Punk was about to beat John Cena for the Undisputed WWE Championship at Night of Champions, Rollins interfered with his cronies and ensured that wouldn't become a reality. Punk has been thwarted by him enough times this year that it seems the only way he'll be able to move forward and focus on other goals is by putting him in the past.

One more match between the two is necessary to wrap up their rivalry once and for all, especially if there are other plans in place for them at SummerSlam.

Rollins recently laid out LA Knight, so it'd be appropriate for Knight to take out Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed during Punk vs. Rollins and cost him the win. That's the perfect SummerSlam match, whereas Punk could be challenging Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship.

They can't continue to coexist on the same show without settling their score. What went down at the conclusion of Night of Champions should be the ultimate incentive for Punk to want to face Rollins again one-on-one and finally give him his comeuppance.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.