Final Picks for John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes and WWE SummerSlam Night 2 Match Card

Night 1 of WWE SummerSlam 2025 had its fair share of highlights and culminated in unforgettable fashion, but similar to WrestleMania 41, the potential is there for it to be topped by a stacked second night.

John Cena and Cody Rhodes will finally meet in a rematch for the Undisputed WWE Championship, this time in a Street Fight. Their original encounter at The Show of Shows was largely underwhelming and had a flat finish, so the pressure is on for them to redeem themselves with a much better bout and ideally a title change.

They stand to be upstaged by what should be another exceptional outing between Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria for the Women's Intercontinental Championship.

All signs point to Valkyria giving her former mentor her comeuppance and getting the belt back, but interference and a betrayal from Bayley remain strong possibilities.

The Women's World Championship Triple Threat will be another must-see matchup as Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky aim to end Naomi's title reign prematurely.

Ripley and Sky delivered yet another instant classic at Evolution, and throwing Naomi into the mix will only make matters more exciting.

These are the last-minute predictions for Night 2 of SummerSlam 2025 that matter most just hours ahead of the event.

WWE Tag Team Championship Six-Pack TLC Match

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The last match announced for the SummerSlam card promises to be one of the most thrilling of the whole weekend.

SmackDown's tag team division has consistently been the biggest bright spot of the show for the better part of the past year. The Street Profits, DIY and Motor City Machine Guns have put together a string of exhilarating matches, and Fraxiom, The Wyatt Sicks and the duo of Andrade and Rey Fenix have now entered the equation as well.

The Triple Threat TLC matchup the former three tandems had on the post-WrestleMania SmackDown was a gem and saw The Street Profits pull out the victory and retain the titles.

The Wyatt Sicks are walking into Sunday's installment as the defending champs, but realistically, any of the competing teams could leave with the gold.

Having just captured the twin titles recently on SmackDown, Wyatt Sicks winning would make the most sense, but the odds of the belts being successfully defended yet again—especially with so many teams taking part—aren't in their favor.

Andrade and Fenix have turned into an incredible unit and it'd be a refreshing to see them with the titles for a bit, ripping it up with everyone else in the division before inevitably going their separate ways.

Prediction: Andrade and Rey Fenix win the WWE Tag Team Championship.

Dominik Mysterio vs. AJ Styles (Intercontinental Championship)

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Dominik Mysterio has become quite the fan favorite since winning the intercontinental title at WrestleMania 41 and has managed to retain the belt in matches with Penta and Octagon Jr. since then.

Liv Morgan's injury may have derailed whatever plans WWE had for the couple this summer, but that shouldn't affect the roll Mysterio is on. He's avoided defending against AJ Styles since late June, and it will be a quality contest once the bell rings, but the finish feels like a foregone conclusion.

Likely by nefarious means, Mysterio will find a way to silence Styles and extend his reign even longer.

Although that was already appearent, WWE made it even more obvious that Mysterio will win on Sunday when Styles pinned him in the six-person tag team match on Monday's Raw. That's typically a sign that the heel champion will retain when the title is on the line.

The Phenomenal One belongs in a prominent spot on the card and will hopefully bounce back from the loss, but the belt will remain in Mysterio's possession for the foreseeable future.

Prediction: Dominik Mysterio retains.

Becky Lynch vs. Lyra Valkyria (Women's Intercontinental Title No DQ Match)

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Becky Lynch and Lyra Valkyria have quietly had WWE's best feud of 2025 so far, starting with the former betraying the latter on the post-WrestleMania Raw and escalating through their battles over the Women's Intercontinental Championship.

At SummerSlam, all of their animosity will come to a head in a No Disqualification, No Count-Out match with the added stipulation that Valkyria can no longer challenge for the title if she loses for as long as Lynch holds it.

The most appropriate ending to the story is Valkyria avenging her losses to Lynch from Evolution and Money in the Bank by beating her decisively on Sunday night. Valkyria has already benefited big time from working with The Man through the spring into the summer, and beating her again will boost her stock that much more.

However, Bayley will undoubtedly factor into the finish after failing at Evolution and again on the next night's Raw in a No. 1 Contender's match. Her growing frustrations will amount to her interfering and costing Valkyria the win, cementing her heel turn in the process.

That would give Valkyria someone to work with heading into the fall, but that feud works just as well with Valkyria as the women's intercontinental champion again.

So, this bout could go either way, but Lynch retaining seems to be the direction WWE is leaning toward going in.

Prediction: Becky Lynch retains.

Solo Sikoa vs. Jacob Fatu (United States Championship Steel Cage Match)

The underlying tension between Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu has played out organically and gradually since the start of the year, eventually leading to Sikoa turning on Fatu soon after he clinched the United States Championship.

Sikoa stole the star-spangled prize from Fatu at Night of Champions but hasn't had the most stellar run so far. He's been pinned twice in tag team matches and was barely able to beat Jimmy Uso to retain the title at the latest edition of Saturday Night's Main Event.

Anything other than Fatu regaining the gold from Sikoa at SummerSlam would be egregious, especially inside of a steel cage.

Truthfully, Fatu has little to gain from a second stint with the U.S. title. He should be main-event bound before long and doesn't need the secondary prize to continue his ascent toward the top of the card.

The title's involvement in this story is irrelevant. Fatu must definitively defeat Sikoa so this storyline can culminate and both parties can move on. Plus, the belt would be better around Fatu's waist if there's any hope of it reclaiming the level of prestige it once had.

Prediction: Jacob Fatu wins the United States Championship.

Naomi vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Iyo Sky (Women's World Championship)

Naomi has legitimately been WWE's breakout star no one was expecting in 2025—15 years removed from her first on-screen appearance with the company.

She has excelled as a heel and deservedly cashed-in her Money in the Bank briefcase successfully at the end of Evolution to become the brand-new Women's World champion. She's doing some of the strongest work of her career both in the ring and on the mic and should stay atop Raw's women's division for a few months at the very least before being dethroned.

It's painfully clear that Rhea Ripley will be champion again sooner rather than later. Many assumed it would happen at Evolution, and although she lost thanks to Naomi's surprise cash-in, WWE is merely delaying the inevitable.

That said, there's no use in rushing into another Ripley title run. The company will be holding Crown Jewel in her native Australia this October, and that would be the perfect place for her to finally reclaim the title she's been in hot pursuit of since March.

In the interim, the division should be built around Naomi. That unfortunately means Iyo Sky will be eating the pinfall loss once again at the hands of Naomi so Ripley can be protected in defeat, but Naomi winning at SummerSlam is what's most important, ahead of an anticipated title defense against Stephanie Vaquer at Clash in Paris.

Prediction: Naomi retains.

John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes (Undisputed WWE Championship Street Fight)

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John Cena unseating Cody Rhodes as undisputed WWE champion at WrestleMania 41 to further his heel run was a necessary move at the time. But the follow-up has left a lot to be desired and now it's necessary to transition the title back to Rhodes.

Cena hasn't done as well in the role as hoped and nothing will be accomplished from him holding onto the prestigious prize for the remainder of his retirement tour. Rhodes returning to chase mode has been a breath of fresh air for his character, but he's long been ready to reclaim his spot as WWE's top dog.

In addition to the outcome, the key will be the execution of the immediate aftermath. It was always more a matter of when than if Cena would be babyface again, but it's imperative he turn as soon as SummerSlam by endorsing The American Nightmare following the loss.

That would effectively kick off the final stretch of his in-ring career as a beloved hero and give Rhodes the stamp of approval he needs to win over any detractors. The match itself should be an improvement over their WrestleMania debacle, provided there isn't any nonsensical interference from The Rock or Travis Scott.

They need to hit a home run to end SummerSlam on a high note, the exact opposite of what went down at WrestleMania.

Prediction: Cody Rhodes wins the Undisputed WWE Championship.