The King & Queen of the Ring tournaments for 2025 are officially underway as a whole host of top WWE stars are in contention to head to Night of Champions 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in an attempt to earn their shot at a world title match in their respective divisions at SummerSlam 2025 later this year – which will take place over two nights for the first time ever! Both tournaments take place over several weeks, and we will keep track of the results, all the way to the finals at Night of Champions on June 28. Check back for updates on each round of the tournament here!
The First Rounds Kicked Off With Fatal Four-Way Matches
WWE Introduced A New Twist To The King & Queen Of The Ring
- For the first time, fatal four-way matches opened up the tournaments.
- Sami Zayn was the first to advance in the King of the Ring.
- Roxanne Perez was the first to advance in Queen of the Ring.
Every first round match for the King & Queen of the Ring tournaments were announced as fatal four-way matches, rather than just singles bouts. This allowed many more names to get involved in order to earn a shot at the semi-finals and finals. On the June 9 episode of Monday Night RAW, both tournaments started. Things began with the Queen of the Ring, as Rhea Ripley, Liv Morgan, Kairi Sane, and Roxanne Perez went at it. There were interweaving stories at play, such as the previous bad blood between Morgan and Ripley, and the rising tensions in the Judgment Day between Morgan and Perez. Everyone had a role to play as the match went back and forth, remaining unpredictable the whole way through. Kairi Sane nailed her trademark elbow, but Perez took advantage and rolled her up, progressing to the next round in what was an upset in many ways given who else was in the match.
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The first men’s match featured Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio, Penta, Sami Zayn and Bron Breakker, in a match offering four distinct styles of wrestler going at it. Everyone shone, going back and forth and building up to a wild crescendo that saw the unexpected interference of LA Knight, who took out Breakker, allowing Sami Zayn the chance to hit Mysterio with a Helluva Kick to secure the win.
The First Round Continued On SmackDown
Some Big Names Advanced To The Semi-Finals
- SmackDown hosted four King & Queen of the Ring matches.
- Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes each punched their ticket to the semi-finals.
- Alexa Bliss and Jade Cargill advanced in the Queen of the Ring.
The King & Queen of the Ring tournaments continued on the June 13 episode of Friday Night SmackDown, starting out with a four-way involving LA Knight, Carmelo Hayes, Aleister Black, and Randy Orton. Knight and Black continued some of their rising bad blood, though this was the only key narrative between the competitors. In an expected turn of events, Knight’s antics on RAW came back to bite him as Bronson Reed made his presence known, attacking Knight and ultimately costing him the match. In the final stages, Hayes attempted a splash on LA Knight, only for Orton to catch him midair with an RKO, securing his spot in the semi-finals against Sami Zayn.
Elsewhere in the men’s bracket, Cody Rhodes continued his journey to redemption as he outlasted Shinsuke Nakamura, Andrade, and Damian Priest. After the four men went to battle, Rhodes reversed a move from Nakamura into the Cross Rhodes, nailing his former rival and pinning him for the victory.
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Over on the Queen of the Ring side, Jade Cargill, Nia Jax, Piper Niven, and Michin faced off in a match full of powerhouses. Whereas three of the competitors used their power, Michin had to use her smarts and speed to navigate her way through, offering a fun dynamic. Just when it looked like Niven was set to win after a crushing Michin, Cargill appeared from behind to execute a massive Jaded to win the match.
In the other four way, Charlotte Flair looked certain for a win as she had Alba Fyre locked in the Figure Eight, only for Alexa Bliss to then slam Candice LeRae with the Sister Abigail. Bliss would go for the pinfall right next to Flair’s submission attempt, as the referee counted to three. Immediately following the bell, Fyre submitted, showing just how close Flair was to advancing to the next round. In many ways, this was an upset, though it continues the trend of Flair’s losing streak.
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