10 Worst WWE Matches of 2025 That Fans Want to Forget
John Cena and Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza
10. Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley vs. Aleister Black and Zelina Vega (SmackDown, December 12)
What should have been a heated mixed tag main event instead turned into an uncomfortable watch. The match lacked intensity and rhythm, with several noticeable mistakes throughout. Ripley and Vega spent most of the match together but never seemed in sync, culminating in a badly botched Riptide counter that resulted in a frightening landing for Vega. Priest and Black fared slightly better when paired off, though even their exchanges featured sloppy moments. A few visually impressive double team spots could not cover for how disjointed the match felt from start to finish.
9. Becky Lynch vs. Nikki Bella
Nikki Bella’s return to a major singles match was a feel good story, but the performance itself fell flat. Bella showed clear ring rust in her first high profile singles bout in years, and Becky Lynch failed to elevate things on the night. The match dragged, featured awkward selling and was defined by a badly missed kick that drew attention for all the wrong reasons. The decision to end it with a simple backslide after an extended runtime only highlighted how little momentum the match ever developed.
8. Tiffany Stratton vs. Nia Jax vs. Jade Cargill (SmackDown, September 26)
On paper, this triple threat title match had intrigue and variety. In execution, it steadily unraveled. Timing issues, missed spots and visible hesitation plagued the match, particularly as it approached the finish. Jade Cargill suffering a bloody collision with the steps and a completely botched pinfall sequence ruined any remaining credibility. WWE later edited the ending for online release, which said everything about how badly the live version went.
7. Solo Sikoa vs. Jacob Fatu (SummerSlam)
A steel cage match between two powerhouses promised brutality and intensity. What fans got instead was slow paced, overbooked and largely lifeless. Crowd investment was minimal until interference became the focus rather than the wrestlers. Repeated run ins defeated the purpose of the cage, and the use of handcuffs after a previous match had already relied on them felt creatively bankrupt. The match was not terrible in isolation, but given the talent involved, it was a major letdown.
6. Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena (Wrestlepalooza)
Lesnar squashing Cena at SummerSlam 2014 once shocked the world. Doing it again more than a decade later felt tired and unnecessary. As part of Cena’s retirement run, this match should have meant something. Instead, it repeated a formula fans had already seen play out to better effect years earlier. The result did nothing for either man and came across as a waste of one of Cena’s final appearances, especially when newer stars could have benefited far more from the spotlight.
5. Karrion Kross vs. Sami Zayn (SummerSlam)
Despite strong crowd support for Karrion Kross throughout the year, his biggest match failed to deliver. Against a consistently reliable Sami Zayn, the lack of chemistry was surprising. The match felt longer than it actually was, the storyline hooks did not translate into compelling drama, and the clean loss left Kross looking flat in what turned out to be his final WWE match. It was forgettable in every way a SummerSlam bout should not be.
4. John Cena vs. R Truth (SmackDown, June 20)
With fan sentiment firmly behind R Truth and Cena working as a heel, this had the ingredients for an emotionally charged television match. Instead, it played out like a placeholder. The action was minimal, the intensity nonexistent, and the disqualification finish only reinforced the sense that the match existed solely to set up a post match angle. Given Cena’s limited schedule, it felt like another squandered opportunity.
3. Tiffany Stratton vs. Charlotte Flair (WrestleMania 41)
After a chaotic build, simply getting this match to WrestleMania felt like an achievement. Unfortunately, the bell did not magically fix things. Despite having ample time, the match never found a groove. Awkward transitions, visible tension and poor chemistry held it back throughout. Both women showed flashes of athleticism, but the overall result was far below the standard expected on wrestling’s biggest stage.
2. Zelina Vega vs. Chelsea Green (Saturday Night’s Main Event, May 24)
Vega and Green struggled to find chemistry throughout their program, and this match exposed every weakness. Timing issues and miscommunication defined the contest, making it feel sloppy and unfocused. A badly botched sequence near the end resulted in Green suffering a broken nose, overshadowing everything else. One clean looking move late in the match could not salvage what was an overall poor performance.
1. John Cena vs. Cody Rhodes (WrestleMania 41)
The WrestleMania main event is the one match WWE cannot afford to get wrong, and yet this one failed on nearly every level. As Cena’s final WrestleMania and a historic title opportunity, expectations were sky high. Instead, fans got a slow, plodding match dominated by Cena, with little urgency from Cody Rhodes. Outside involvement felt forced, the storytelling contradicted Cody’s established character, and the finish left the crowd deflated. What should have been a defining WrestleMania moment instead became one of the most criticized main events in recent memory.
