WWE Wrestlepalooza 2025 Results, Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights

For the first time, WWE produced Wrestlepalooza, the latest addition to its premium live event schedule. For the final time, John Cena and Brock Lesnar squared off, kicking off the show with the last chapter in their marquee rivalry.

That contest dominated the headlines entering the show, but it was AJ Lee's return to the squared circle and partnering with her husband, CM Punk, against world heavyweight champion Seth Rollins and women's intercontinental champion Becky Lynch that had the wrestling world buzzing.

Who emerged from those two blockbuster match-ups and was Cody Rhodes able to successfully defend his Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre?

Find out in this recap, including grades and analysis from each match on WWE's jam-packed debut on the ESPN app.

Match Card

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Announced in advance of the show were:

• John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar
• Undisputed WWE Championship Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre
• Mixed Tag Team Match: CM Punk and AJ Lee vs. Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch
• The Usos vs. Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker
• Women's World Championship Match: Iyo Sky vs. Stephanie Vaquer

John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar

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Last Time in Action: John Cena fought to a no-contest with Sami Zayn (SmackDown, September 8); Brock Lesnar lost to Cody Rhodes (SummerSlam, August 5, 2023)

The final battle in the legendary rivalry between Cena and Lesnar did not waste time delivering fireworks as Paul Heyman emerged from the shadows and performed The Beast Incarnate's special introduction. He did not, however, hint at any further involvement with his former client.

Once the bell rang, Lesnar utilized his power and ferocity to overwhelm the Unseen 17, tossing him around the squared circle and establishing dominance early and often.

When Cena created separation and hoisted Lesnar up for the Attitude Adjustment, the heel escaped and cut him down with a big clothesline. An errant charge into the corner finally allowed Cena to mount an offense, including four shoulder tackles and three of his trademark finishers.

Lesnar kicked out at two, recovered, and delivered six consecutive F-5s to pick up what could best be described as an uncontested match.

After the match, he delivered an F-5 to the official and added another to Cena, standing tall to a chorus of boos from the fans in attendance, many of whom were sporting yellow Cena T-shirts.

Result

Lesnar defeated Cena via pinfall

Grade

C

Top Moments and Takeaways

• The cameras caught Tyrese Halliburton sitting at ringside, his jaw dropped. It was an apropos expression given the fact that so much of WWE had been centered around Cena's retirement tour, only for the company to run back the SummerSlam 2014 main event.
• This was a carbon copy, albeit shorter, of the aforementioned 2014 jaw-dropper. There was no real reason to run that match back beyond re-establishing Lesnar as a badass, something everyone is already familiar with. Cena was undeniably one of the selling points of this show and unless the story moving forward is a gradual decline leading to his last match, which would be absurd, there was no need for a replay of a match fans were all too familiar with and no longer carried the same effect it did over a decade ago.

The Usos vs. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed

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Last Time in Action: The Usos defeated A-Town Down Under (Raw, March 24); Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker defeated Fraxiom (SmackDown, September 20)

A backstage confrontation earlier in the evening during the Wrestlepalooza kickoff show led to Raw general manager Adam Pearce naming LA Knight as the special guest referee for the match between the reunited Usos and The Vision's Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker.

The heels dominated early on, weathering a brief onslaught from the twins and isolating Jimmy. Capitalizing on what Knight had admitted during the preshow about relaxed rules, the heels introduced a steel chair into the fray. Jimmy, though, turned it against them, dropping Reed face-first into it. The babyfaces could not capitalize, though, as Breakker broke up a hot tag and retained the advantage for his team.

Jimmy finally made it to his brother and Jey exploded into the match, taking the fight to both heels and injecting much-needed life into the contest. The babyfaces introduced a table into the fray, but the heels set it up to utilize. A few double superkicks led to the 1-D, but Reed broke up the pin.

The action broke down, Jimmy delivered a Swanton Bomb to Reed, Breakker speared him, and Jey delivered one his own, followed by the Uso Splash for a dramatic two count.

The tension between Jey and referee Knight continued to mount, halting the babyfaces' momentum. Breakker took advantage, delivering a double spear that drove both Usos through the table. A tsunami to Jey earned the heels a victory.

Result

Reed and Breakker defeated The Usos (Reed pinned Jey)

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

• The Usos entered the arena to their old theme music, featuring both on vocals, drawing a predictably big ovation from the fans. Reed and Breakker entered in matching leather jackets. Tag teams totally reek of awesomeness.
• Jey hit Reed with a chair, which bounced back up and busted the former world champion open in a scary moment.
• The match was strong, with a proper amount of chaotic tag action down the stretch. The weaponry felt unnecessary, but the rest of the action was good enough to compensate for its forced nature.

Women's World Championship Match: Stephanie Vaquer vs. Iyo Sky

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Last Time in Action: Stephanie Vaquer defeated Kairi Sane (Raw, September 15); Iyo Sky defeated Raquel Rodriguez (Raw, August 18)

Two of the most respected and acclaimed women's wrestlers on the planet squared off for the vacant Women's World Championship in the third match of the night as Vaquer battled Sky.

Grappling early gave way to The Genius of the Sky, taking early control of the match while the commentary team questioned whether La Primera could defeat one of the best in the business on a stage of this magnitude. The former champion caught Vaquer with a springboard dropkick, then followed up with a tope suicida that flattened the Chilean-born competitor at ringside.

Vaquer fought back, launching herself off the ropes with consecutive cross body blocks and downing her opponent with a suplex. The combatants exchanged rights that transitioned into forearms. The crowd came alive as Vaquer teased the Devil's Kiss, but Sky countered with a rollup for two. A double stomp gave way to a crossface, but Vaquer escaped.

La Primera caught Sky mid-flight, blocking the Over the Moonsault with two boots to the midsection. She followed up with the second dragons crew leg whip of the match, then added the Devil's Kiss to the delight of the fans. Sky recovered and stopped her opponent on the top rope, then delivered a Spanish Fly.

Sky exposed her knees for added effect on her moonsault but missed, driving the injured joint into the mat. Vaquer responded with a picture-perfect Spiral Tap for the win and title.

Result

Vaquer defeated Sky to win the title by pinfall

Grade

A

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Sky's selling of her knee in this match was nothing short of spectacular and set up the finish nicely.
• It is not a stretch to suggest that women's wrestling has carried WWE in 2025, and that was the case three matches into Wrestlepalooza as well. This was the best match on the card to this point, with another extraordinary showing from Sky and a performance from Vaquer that demonstrates why the company was so quick to push her as hard as it did.

Mixed Tag Team Match: CM Punk and AJ Lee vs. Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch

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Last Time in Action: CM Punk and AJ Lee have never teamed together; Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch defeated Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans (Extreme Rules, July 14, 2019)

For the first time in 10 years, AJ Lee set foot inside the squared circle for a WWE match, teaming with her husband, CM Punk, to battle world heavyweight champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins and his wife, women's intercontinental champion Becky Lynch.

Rollins and Punk defined the early moments of the match, with the world champion beating his rival down and isolating him from his significant other, all while Lynch added a few insulting slaps for good measure. Feeling confident, Rollins hoisted the women's IC champ overhead and attempted to drop her on Punk, but The Best in the World rolled out of the way and Lynch crashed to the mat.

Still, the alert heels retained control of the bout.

Hubris again proved costly as Rollins mockingly skipped around the ring, only to eat a GTS from Punk for his troubles. Lynch tried to prevent the tag but failed, and Lee made her pay for it. Lee pummeled The Man to chants of "you've still got it," then added a shot or two for good measure to her husband.

Punk and Lee teamed up for a modified Sliced Bread No. 2, then added stereo running knees, bulldogs, and shining wizards.

A double submission spot saw Lee apply the Black Widow to Lynch and Punk the Sharpshooter to Rollins, but the world champion raked Punk's eyes to break up the moment.

Lynch and Rollins, not to be outdone, delivered a double Pedigree spot, but could not keep their opponents down. Moments later, Lynch applied a Sharpshooter to Punk to little effect as the babyface countered and applied the hold to Big Time Becks.

The exchange of finishers continued until Lynch delivered a Manhandle Slam to Lee, who kicked out at the very last second.

Ultimately, a commentary table spot left Lee with Lynch, who tried for a Manhandle Slam, only to find herself trapped in the Black Widow. The IC champ tapped and the babyfaces stood united and victoriously in the center of the ring.

Result

Lee and Punk defeated Lynch and Rollins when Lee submitted Lynch

Grade

B+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Michael Cole noted that lots of people are calling Lynch the best women's wrestler in WWE history. B/R did.
• Punk sported a jacket that read, "AJ's husband."
• This was a ton of fun. Will it win Match of the Year nominations? No, but it never had to. It delivered the entertaining husband-wife spots that we expected, shone a bright light on Lee in her first match in 10 years, put her over the always selfless Lynch, and let the babyfaces celebrate. It was everything it needed to be, with a hot crowd that loved every minute of it.

Undisputed WWE Championship Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre

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Last Time in Action: Cody Rhodes and John Cena defeated Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul via disqualification (SmackDown, August 8); Drew McIntyre defeated Randy Orton (SmackDown, September 19)

Rhodes dealt with the effects of the beatdown suffered Friday on SmackDown early in his defense of the Undisputed WWE Championship against McIntyre, stumbling during a Cody Cutter attempt and appearing to be a "step off" as Wade Barrett noted on commentary.

Even when The American Nightmare did mount an offensive, such as a superplex from the top rope, he responded slowly, holding the back of his head. He shook it off, traded rights with McIntyre and added a snap powerslam for a two count.

Back-and-forth action continued until McIntyre exposed a turnbuckle. With the referee's attention diverted, the challenger rolled up the champion but could not benefit from the official's count.

The Scottish Warrior teased a Claymore through the commentary table, ala his initial attack on Rhodes after SummerSlam, but the referee prevented it. When McIntyre executed the move, he missed, potentially destroying his leg in the process.

The injury prevented him from delivering a Claymore in the ring and Rhodes took advantage of it, delivering a super Cody Cutter and adding Cross Rhodes to secure the victory.

Result

Rhodes defeated McIntyre to retain via pinfall

Grade

B+

Top Moments and Takeaways

• Before the main event, The Undertaker made a surprise appearance, joining Stephanie McMahon at ringside, where he revealed that she will be the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

• McIntyre and Rhodes have great chemistry and this was a strong main event match. It was no frills until late, which brought the grade down a bit, but it was the latest strong main event from The American Nightmare.
• The question is how McIntyre recovers from this. It is likely not the end of the program, but he's a guy who continues to get looks but is never booked to actually win the main event, which ultimately hurts his credibility in that spot. Barrett questioning the referee's positioning on the roll-up and his role in McIntyre crashing into the table holds no water because ultimately, the challenger was the architect of both of those "injustices." He will cry and moan and get another title shot, but eventually, he has to win one to be taken seriously in those matches.

Overall Grade

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WWE jam-packed the Wrestlepalooza card with stars, made a huge deal about the ESPN debut and delivered one of the slickest presentations in quite some time.

The second half of the card was excellent, beginning with a show-stealer from Vaquer and Sky, a hellishly fun mixed tag match, and a mostly wrestling-centric match from Rhodes and McIntyre.

With that said, the marquee match on this card was Lesnar-Cena and it would be a mistake to suggest it did not leave a bad taste in the mouths of the WWE fans. Lesnar making kids cry and turning Cena's celebration into a living hell is exactly what makes a great heel and had we not already seen that same story play out 11 years ago, it would have been a hit.

That was not what the match needed to be in 2025.

Lesnar could have still won, but in something with more drama and back-and-forth than the homage to their squash match at SummerSlam in 2014.

It took a lot to recover from that start and while the show most certainly did, it is still a damper on what was otherwise an enjoyable few hours.

Grade: B-