The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hosted WWE Night of Champions 2026. They have hosted some massive events and maintained a monopoly over the Night of Champions title for years. Not only has WWE attached this PLE to Saudi Arabia, but they have also included the finals of the King and Queen of the Ring tournament. A great move and one that has made this night one of the most anticipated on the WWE calendar.
WWE has upped the ante, promoting 6 matches for the event. Three championships will be decided, as well as the King and Queen of the Ring, and a Steel Cage grudge match. Every match can steal the show, and its victors will have all the momentum in the world behind them as WWE heads towards the Biggest Party of the Summer. But who will be the winners? Will the matches be the quality that we have come to expect from Night of Champions? The show is about to begin, so let’s sit back and enjoy.
King of the Ring Final: Oba Femi v Jey Uso (3/5)
There was much speculation about how this match would end. The wrestling world has grown tired of Jey Uso, and having him go over Oba Femi would have sent the IWC into a frenzy. The only way that this would have worked was if Brock Lesnar had made an appearance, and he was absent from Night of Champions.
Jey Uso didn’t have much of a chance against the larger Oba Femi, and the match was booked quite well to reflect that. The master of the Yeet used his quickness to get the advantage on Oba Femi, even hitting multiple finishers on the Ruler. Oba did a great job of selling this offense, but when it came time to turn it on, Oba Femi cruised to the victory.
Once again, Oba Femi was promoted like an unstoppable force, but this match was a paint-by-numbers. Nothing offensive happened, but also nothing that was going to have the crowd chanting for more. Oba Femi’s win was the right call, and it will be interesting to see who he challenges at SummerSlam.
Queen of the Ring Finals: Liv Morgan v Iyo Sky (3.5/5)
This was not the final that anyone predicted. Morgan is already a World Champion, but her heel status allows her to reach the finals. Iyo Sky was a great choice for Morgan’s final opponent, as she represents the wholesome babyface side of this dynamic.
Liv Morgan spent the first part of the match on the offensive, controlling every aspect of Iyo Sky. It was a bit slow in parts, but it was necessary to build tension for when the match opened up. Sky can do no wrong with the WWE Universe, with her selling and offense being the best in the company. Iyo Sky is an incredible talent, and it was 100 percent the right call to have her overcome the odds and capture the Queen of the Ring crown.
The finishing sequence was a great bit of storytelling, with Iyo Sky’s selling of her knee being perfect. It was a great bait and switch, as everyone in the world was expecting Liv Morgan to win in the fashion that she defeated Charlotte Flair on SmackDown. The crowd was all-in for this finish, and Iyo Sky’s acceptance speech took the ambiguity out of who she will challenge at SummerSlam.
Steel Cage Match: Seth Rollins v Bron Breakker (4.75/5)
This was a match months in the making. When Bron Breakker turned on his former stablemate, the world knew that these two men would end up here. Their traditional matches were great to whet the appetite, but this main course was the highlight of their program.
Seth Rollins and Bron Breakker throwing every weapon into the ring that they could get their hands on was awesome. It hyped the crowd up even more for this match, which proved to be the best either man has competed in this year.
Steel Cage matches have a history of letting people down, as they don’t reach the level of violence that is expected. That was not a problem here when Breakker and Rollins started throwing bombs from the opening bell. It was clear that a normal offense would suffice, and things turned ugly.
The spots grew increasingly dangerous, with a suplex off the cage through a table being a highlight. It was also great to see Bron Breakker get busted open, as is the norm when talking about classic cage matches. Another great piece of storytelling was Breakker and Rollins refusing to relent to the other man’s finishers.
It sold the importance of winning this match, and both men looked like gods at the end. Only an avalanche stomp would put Bron Breakker down, ending one of the best Steel Cage matches in years.
United States Championship Match: Trick Williams v Ricky Saints (3/5)
It’s a darn shame that the Saudi crowd decided to sit on their hands for this match. The whole show, until this point, the crowd was eerily silent, and they were dead for large portions of this contest. Which should be a reflection of the fantastic job that Trick Williams and Ricky Saints put in.
First, it should be mentioned how seasoned Saints are as a heel. His facial expressions and selling were on point, and his spot to get Lil’ Yachty banned from ringside was a wonderful callback. Hopefully, WWE knows what they have here and keeps the momentum going.
There were no notes on the wrestling during this match. Williams and Saints have clear chemistry and pulled out some fun spots, while still leaving something for future matchups. The finish came with little build, so that does take away from the overall product, but it was still well executed. A clean finish doesn’t damage Saints, but he needs to get some heat back quickly.
Women’s United States Championship Match: Tiffany Stratton v Jade Cargill (2/5)
Jade Cargill and Tiffany Stratton were a recycled program, but enough time had passed that this program didn’t feel done to death. Stratton and Cargill are two great young stars, but they have the same problems that plagued their previous matches.
The chemistry just wasn’t there between these two women, and it hurt the overall presentation of the match. There were too many miscues on spots that should have been easy to roll through, and killed any momentum they were building towards.
It says something that Charlotte Flair and Chelsea Green were getting bigger reactions than the two women who were in the match. There was too much screwiness going on towards the end of the match, with too much outside interference.
If WWE wanted to get Jade Cargill and Charlotte Flair, there were better ways to do it than this. Promoting the Women’s United States Championship has been an issue for WWE, and this television, not PLE, match wasn’t helping.
Read More: How to Watch WWE In Every Country It’s Available
WWE Championship Match: Cody Rhodes v Gunther v Sami Zayn (4.5/5)
The complexity of the storytelling heading into this main event shows why WWE is the premier wrestling organization in the world. Multiple layers saw Cody Rhodes fighting a war on two fronts. Fronts that he was tired of fighting from behind, thus this triple threat was booked.
The Saudi Arabian crowd was firmly in the corner of Sami Zayn, and frankly, it was nice to see the crowd get off their hands. As the match started, Sami Zayn was swatted aside by Rhodes and Gunther, bringing the underdog nature of Zayn to the forefront. It was in concert with the story WWE had been telling, and it’s great to see the continuity shine through.
This was the best triple threat match in years. The wrestling was spot on, and the storytelling was superb. Cody Rhodes was the clear favorite, but WWE bookers did a fantastic job of giving each man their big chance to walk away as the champion.
No one knew how the match was going to end, and just when everyone thought Cody Rhodes was going to retain, Sami Zayn rolled up the champ out of nowhere for the win. Sami Zayn finally reached the top of the mountain, and many thought it would never happen—great job by everyone involved, and congratulations to Sami Zayn.
