It’s that time of year. Let the debate begin, but then end with this list of the top ten matches of 2025.
You know me. I’m all about transparency. So, what factored into the construction of this match of the year 2025 breakdown? Take a look …
Story – Was there a good story within the match?
Pageantry – What was the spectacle of the bout like?
Stakes – Anything on the line? If so, what was it?
Scale – Where did the match take place and what did it do for the card?
In-Ring – How good was the in-ring product?
Entertainment – Did the match entertain and was it fun to watch?
Here we go.
10. John Cena vs. Gunther - WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event 12/13/25
The audience deeply cared about this match. The John Cena retirement tour of 2025 didn’t get off to a strong start, but it finished with a masterpiece. In 2025, it’s rare to get a crowd that is all-in on the same winner, but for Cena’s last match against Gunther, that’s exactly what happened. The audience was loud and both men in the match capitalized. Near falls and near tap outs were used in abundance and they had fans on the edges of seats in the entire sold out building. Then there was the was finish. John Cena tapped out. He gave up. Nobody could believe it and that audience reacted as such. Strong action, but even stronger investment because of efficient storytelling.
9. Adam Page vs. Jon Moxley - AEW All In 2025
Avengers assemble! Every wrestling fan in the world understood how this match was going to play out and that’s what made it so good. Yes, there was going to be interference. Yes, there was going to be blood. Yes, there was going to be a title change. AEW earned that predictability by telling a coherent and long-term story throughout most of the year, which saw Jon Moxley and The Death Riders bend the company to their will. The year was about defeating them. Page did with the help of everyone that Moxley wronged throughout his run. Great story, big-time stakes, and a massive stage for it to all happen on.
8. Gunther vs. CM Punk - WWE SummerSlam 2025
There is a beautiful simplicity to this match that I adore. Big heat on the heel and a babyface that didn’t give up. Everything built to a moment where the big bad heel got his due and saw his own blood, which sent him into a panic. Easy, but effective storytelling. Gunther and Punk were confident in their ability to grab the audience and they did with a slow start leading to a fast finish.
7. MJF vs. Mistico - CMLL 92 Aniversario
If you want to see audience investment at the highest level possible, watch this match. MJF played the heel perfectly and Mistico was the superhero good guy set to vanquish him on behalf of his fans. This was a lot like Gunther vs. Cena in terms of crowd engagement, but it gets a nod higher on the list because the in-ring work was significantly better.
6. Saya Kamitani vs. Tam Nakano - Stardom All Star Grand Queendom 2025
Insane athleticism. And pace. These women wrestled a wild match and captured the audience almost as soon as the bell rang. This was unique, innovative, and featured two of Stardom’s biggest stars showing out on a major stage for the company.
5. Will Ospreay vs. Adam Page - AEW Double or Nothing 2025
Same thing as Kamitani vs. Nakano. Insane athleticism and pace. This Page and Ospreay battle also had high stakes. The build was largely about being the best in the company and earning a shot at the world championship. Ospreay and Page were able to harness and focus on the desperation of that narrative throughout the match.
4. Rhea Ripley vs. Iyo Sky - WWE Evolution 2
This match was action-packed and crisp. It displayed just how professional both Sky and Ripley are. It also highlighted their chemistry together. Both women just didn’t miss much in this. And the stuff that wasn’t perfect looked great because the match felt like a real fight between two top contenders. WWE didn’t deliver a finish in this one because of the Naomi Money in the Bank cash-in, but the rest of it was so tremendous that the non-finish can actually be overlooked.
3. John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes - WWE Summerslam 2025
Well, better late than never, I guess. This bout at Summerslam between Cena and Rhodes should have been the match they had together at WrestleMania. Cena abruptly ditched the heel nonsense ahead of this one and the result was top guy of now vs. top guy of old. Like Punk vs. Gunther, it was a simple formula, but worked because of the work. Cena and Rhodes beat each other up all around the arena, kicked out of finishers in a non-obnoxious kind of way, and had the attention of a massive audience for nearly 45 minutes. The success of this was rooted in star power and stakes. The best match on Cena’s 2025 retirement tour, too.
2. Rhea Ripley vs. Bianca Belair vs. Iyo Sky - WrestleMania 41
An unexpected classic. The build to this match was atrocious. WWE shoehorned the triple threat together when a singles match between either Ripley and Belair or Sky and Ripley was the clear way to go. Instead, a convoluted story led things to WrestleMania 41. Once the bell rang, that ineffective build didn’t matter a lick. All three women worked clean and inside of fresh spots that hooked the crowd. They each shined in their own specific moments and the opportunity to do that resonated with the audience because Ripley, Belair, and Sky were all babyface stars of the women’s division that fans loved. The build didn’t give fans enough of a reason to care about the outcome, but the intensity of the action did.
1. Toni Storm vs. Mariah May - Hollywood Ending Match - AEW Revolution 2025
And what a match of the year it was. This had it all. Story, pageantry, stakes, scale, in-ring, and entertainment. In every one of those analysis buckets, this match delivered. Story? The Storm vs. May saga lasted months and months, with twists, turns, and wild pivots all the way through. Pageantry? I mean, the damn thing was called a Hollywood Ending Match. Need I say more? Stakes? Not only was the AEW Women’s World Championship on the line, but both women’s competitive pride was up for grabs too. The hatred both had for one another resonated big time and gave the women a reason to win in addition to wanting to secure the world title. Scale? This was a PPV event. AEW Revolution 2025. May and Storm didn’t draw a stadium crowd with this, but they were counted on to be a fixture of the card. AEW always needs to deliver on PPV and this match significantly helped reach that goal. In-ring? Total madness. Not a five-star mat classic, but a bloody brawl that perfectly encapsulated the entirety of their story together. Finally, was it entertaining? Duh. When you have those other elements clicking, entertainment is inevitable. May and Storm gave a more than suitable end to their long rivalry.
What was your favorite match of 2025? Let us know in the comments!
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