The Big Wrestling Year In Review 2025: WWE, AEW & More

Much like the past few years, 2025 has been a busy one for all involved in WWE and AEW, with some stories generating polarising reactions from the fanbase.

From the John Cena retirement tour, to Mercedes Mone capturing championships all over the world, AEW and WWE beginning new media rights deals, and everything in between, anyone expecting a quiet year after the chaos that was 2024 was sadly mistaken. While the shock departures have not been as impactful as previous years, WWE acquired Blake Monroe [Mariah May] and Ricky Saints [Ricky Starks] from AEW, and Jordynne Grace and Joe Hendry also joined the roster following multiple previous NXT appearances. AEW signed Josh Alexander and Mina Shirakawa, and there are rumours that Chris Jericho could be WWE-bound once more.

Although WWE was clearly the promotion to watch in 2024, things are not the same in 2025. With costs rising, questionable bookings and the ongoing Saudi Arabia relationship, the worldwide leader has not been in the good graces it once was, and will have to figure out where it goes next year now that their biggest star is gone for good.

There have been triumphs, disappointments and the potential for 2026 to be another interesting year. But when it comes to WWE, AEW and all of wrestling in 2025, here are the stories that got the fans talking…

WWE, AEW & More Round Out 2025

January

• Tiffany Stratton cashed in her Money in the Bank contract on Nia Jax to win the WWE Women’s Championship, maintaining the 100% record of the women’s briefcase.
• New Japan once again kicked off the big shows in wrestling with Wrestle Kingdom 19 on January 4. Along with Konosuke Takeshita defeating Shingo Takagi to capture the NEVER Openweight Championship, Zack Sabre Jr. retained the IWGP World Championship in the main event.
• One night later, AEW and NJPW joined forces once more to present Wrestle Dynasty, the first collaborative show between both promotions to take place in Japan. Along with Mercedes Mone defeating Mina Shirakawa to win the RevPro Women’s Championship, the first of her many title victories this year, Kenny Omega made his return to the ring after more than a year away battling diverticulitis. Defeating Gabe Kidd, Omega had a return to form with the match being the first of the year to be awarded 5* by Dave Meltzer.
• AEW began its new media rights deal, which also marked the end of Rampage as only Dynamite and Collision were a part of the new agreement.
• WWE Raw kicked off the Netflix era in style on January 6 with a star-studded show in Los Angeles. Although The Rock made a live appearance, the Hollywood star left many with more questions than answers as he seemed to squash all tension with Cody Rhodes despite their 2024 rivalry. John Cena also kicked off his year-long retirement tour, and Roman Reigns ended his rivalry with Solo Sikoa, effectively bringing The Bloodline Saga storyline that began in 2020 to a conclusion.
• TNA and WWE officially announced that their talent exchanges would continue for years to come as part of a new deal.

February

• Jey Uso won the Men’s Royal Rumble match and Charlotte Flair won the Women’s Royal Rumble match on February 1. For Flair, she became the first wrestler to win the Women’s match twice.
• Carlos Silva was also appointed the new President of TNA, a role he has remained in since.
• AEW made its debut in Australia with Grand Slam. The show saw Toni Storm defeat Mariah May to win the Women’s Championship in the second match of their trilogy.
• After months of inactivity, Ricky Starks made his WWE debut under the name Ricky Saints.

March

• After winning the Elimination Chamber match, John Cena shocked the world by turning heel and attacking Cody Rhodes, marking the first time in more than 2 decades that he portrayed the bad guy on TV. Bianca Belair also won the women’s match and earned her own shot at WrestleMania. Kevin Owens also defeated Sami Zayn in the latest match in their rivalry, but Owens had to take time away due to requiring neck surgery, meaning his WrestleMania match against Randy Orton was off.
• AEW presented Revolution on March 9, which saw a trilogy of critically acclaimed matches. Along with Kenny Omega defeating Konosuke Takeshita to win the International Championship, Will Ospreay and Kyle Fletcher had a bloody and action-packed steel cage match, and Toni Storm and Mariah May brought their rivalry to a definitive crescendo with the Hollywood Ending match, which was also May’s final appearance in the company.

April

• AEW presented Dynasty, which saw Jon Moxley defeat Swerve Strickland in the main event, but was also the show where Chris Jericho had his last match. Following an appearance on the next episode of Dynamite, Jericho has not been seen since, with rumours of a WWE return intensifying as the year went on.
• WWE hosted its biggest show of the year, WrestleMania 41. Night 1 saw Jey Uso defeat Gunther to win the World Heavyweight Championship, and Seth Rollins won the main event over Roman Reigns and CM Punk after Paul Heyman betrayed both men to sign with The Visionary. Night 2 saw an incredibly mixed quality of matches, as Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY and Bianca Belair had one of the best matches of the year in the opener, but John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes left the show on an incredibly flat ending. With no appearance from The Rock and a disappointing Travis Scott Cameo, John Cena pinned Cody Rhodes to win his record-breaking 17th World Championship.
• WWE announced it had acquired Lucha Libre promotion AAA, and would be working closely with the company moving forward.
• On the Raw after Mania, Rollins recruited Bron Breakker to be a part of his faction. Rusev and Aleister Black also made their returns to the company.
• RevPro returned to Doncaster for the High Stakes show, which saw Mercedes Mone defeat Kanji in the main event.

May

• WWE presented Backlash, which was the final time that John Cena faced Randy Orton
• Trick Williams defeated Joe Hendry at NXT Battleground to win the World Title and become the first contracted WWE star t0 hold a TNA championship.
• AEW presented Double or Nothing, which saw the latest instalment of Anarchy in the Arena, and Mercedes Mone and Adam Page win their respective Owen Hart Tournaments.

June

• R-Truth was released by WWE. Following mass outcry from the fans online and in arenas, Truth made his shock return at Money in the Bank to get revenge on John Cena, and was re-signed shortly afterwards.
• Seth Rollins and Naomi won the Money in the Bank contracts, with each being successful with their respective cash ins.
• WWE returned to Saudi Arabia for Night of Champions, which saw CM Punk compete in his first match in the country. Punk lost to Cena in the main event of the show.
• Mariah May made her shock WWE debut, and was renamed as Blake Monroe.

July

• Goldberg competed in his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event. After losing to Gunther, Goldberg addressed the fans in attendance, but the speech was cut off due to timing errors. This was also the show where Seth Rollins seemingly suffered a major knee injury.
• AEW presented All In: Texas, which was the company’s biggest show of the year at Globe Life Field stadium in Arlington. Adam Page defeated Jon Moxley in the main event to end Mox’s stranglehold on the World Title. Darby Allin also returned to TV after his successful climb of Mount Everest.
• WWE presented the second all women’s show Evolution, which saw Naomi cash in her Money in the Bank contract in the main event of Rhea Ripley vs. IYO SKY to walk out as Women’s World Champion. Naomi would later vacate the championship due to pregnancy.
• Hulk Hogan passed away on July 24 age 71.
• WWE premiered the Netflix behind-the-scenes show Unreal, which gave fans a never-before-seen look at the inner workings of the company.

August

• WWE presented the first 2 night SummerSlam in New York, which saw title changes on both nights. The end of night 1 saw CM Punk defeat Gunther to win the World Heavyweight Championship. However, Seth Rollins appeared shortly afterwards to reveal his injury was actually a ruse. Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank contract to win the World Title. In night 2, Cody Rhodes defeated John Cena, who turned babyface the week before, to win back the WWE Championship, and Cena was attacked by a returning Brock Lesnar shortly afterwards.
• AEW returned to the UK with Forbidden Door, which saw a multi-man cage match end the show, which was also Hiroshi Tanahashi’s final UK match. Will Ospreay addressed the fans after his team picked up the victory, but was attacked at the end of the show as he needed time away for neck surgery.
• Clash in Paris saw WWE return to France and was the final show to air on Peacock, as a new deal had been struck with ESPN.

September

• AJ Lee made her return to TV after 10 years away. Lee sided with her husband CM Punk as part of Punk’s feud with Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch.
• WWE presented Wrestlepalooza, which also marked the debut of the company broadcasting its PLEs on ESPN. Along with the in-ring returns of AJ Lee and Brock Lesnar, the show also saw Stephanie Vaquer crowned the new Women’s World Champion. Even though WWE were hoping to make a major impact with Wrestlepalooza, many found the show to be underwhelming, with ESPN themselves only awarding the show a C grade.
• WWE announced that WrestleMania 43 would take place in Saudi Arabia, marking the first time the show will emanate from outside North America.

October

• Following an Invasion storyline, NXT and TNA battled it out on the Showdown special, which saw team NXT ultimately emerge the winners.
• WWE returned to Australia for Crown Jewel. John Cena competed in his final international match with a win over AJ Styles, and Seth Rollins finally picked up a win over Cody Rhodes, winning the Crown Jewel Championship in the process. However, Rollins picked up an injury in the match that required surgery. Bron Breakker attacked Rollins the next night on Raw to write The Visionary off TV, vacating the World Title in the process.
• Lincoln-based promotion Fight Factory Wrestling presented its annual Bodyslams to Cancer show, which raised more than £6000 for local charity Sophie’s Journey
• Mike Santana defeated Trick Williams at Bound For Glory to win his first TNA World Championship.

November

• Kazuchika Okada was revealed to be Hiroshi Tanahashi’s final opponent at Wrestle Kingdom 20.
• John Cena defeated Dominik Mysterio on Raw to win the Intercontinental Championship, finally becoming a Grand Slam Champion after 23 years on the main roster.
• AEW presented Full Gear, which saw Ricochet crowned the first-ever National Champion, and Samoa Joe defeated Hangman Page in the main event to win his second World Championship in the promotion.
• WarGames returned at Survivor Series with the heel team of Logan Paul, Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed, Drew McIntyre and Brock Lesnar emerging victorious over team CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, The Usos and Roman Reigns. Dominik Mysterio also defeated John Cena to win back the Intercontinental Championship, thanks to a returning Liv Morgan.

December

• John Cena competed in his final match, losing via submission to Gunther. The finish was not well-received by the fans with Triple H receiving heavy boos when he appeared in front of the fans.
• AEW presented Worlds End, which saw a returning MJF win the World Championship in the main event. Jon Moxley won the Continental Classic, defeating Okada in the finals.

Featured image: WWE