We’ve officially hit the second week of this year’s King and Queen of the Ring 2026 tournament, and things couldn’t feel more unpredictable. Moving on isn’t just another notch on the belt; it’s about cementing a legacy and earning a ticket to the main event.
With a guaranteed championship match on the line, the stakes couldn’t be higher. One wrong move right now means a shattered dream, while a victory guarantees a date with destiny.
Winning the tournament guarantees two things for the King and Queen: a prestigious royal title crown and a guaranteed world championship match at SummerSlam.
On the men’s side, while many predicted the finals would feature a rubber match between Seth Rollins and Bron Breakker, both competitors were shockingly eliminated in their opening matches.
Breakker lost his opening qualifier match to Dominik Mysterio without any interference from Rollins. Seth’s loss, however, was the exact opposite; Breakker appeared toward the end of the contest just as Rollins was closing in on victory, wiping him out with a massive tornado spear.
The most shocking part of that matchup wasn’t just that Rollins lost, but that WWE chose to give the win to 22-year-old Je’Von Evans. The victory advances Evans to the semi-finals, where his opponent will be decided tonight on SmackDown following a high-stakes Fatal 4-Way match between LA Knight, Jey Uso, Royce Keys, and Finn Bálor.
Moving over to the women’s side, we have seen far less unpredictability, apart from the bizarre involvement of reigning Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan. In her opening qualifier, WWE made the unexpected decision to have her defeat Becky Lynch, Chelsea Green, and Alexa Bliss.
Morgan will have to wait until tonight to find out who she’ll meet in the semifinals, pending the outcome of the Fatal 4-Way match featuring Sol Ruca, Lyra Valkyria, Charlotte Flair, and Jade Cargill.
The other half of the bracket has felt much more predictable, starting with IYO SKY winning her opening matchup against Roxanne Perez, Giulia, and Lash Legend. Her semifinal match is already set following Raquel Rodriguez’s dominant performance over Bayley, Jacy Jayne, and Kiana James.
We are still a few rounds away from crowning the 2026 King and Queen of the Ring, but we’re tackling the daunting task – especially on the chaotic men’s side – of breaking down who we think should win versus who we think will win. Let’s see who is truly ready to claim the throne.
WWE King and Queen of the Ring 2026 Predictions:
Who Should Win the Queen of the Ring Tournament…
In terms of who should win the Queen of the Ring tournament, our pick is one of the established favorites: Charlotte Flair. Since her nickname is literally “The Queen,” the possibility of her winning a tournament that shares the name with her own moniker feels incredibly fitting.
Since the tournament’s inception in 2021, it is shocking that the most decorated female wrestler in WWE history has yet to compete in the event.
WWE has been dropping subtle hints over the last couple of months that Flair could soon return to the singles main title scene. Most recently, Flair put Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley on notice last week on SmackDown, stating that she’s going to win Queen of the Ring and challenge her at this year’s SummerSlam.
Even if Flair is the choice to win the whole tournament, the company has an intriguing, far more unpredictable alternative right in front of them. If Flair wins this Friday, she will collide in the semifinals with Liv Morgan, who is already holding the Women’s World Championship.
For Flair to win the whole tournament, she would already have to defeat one of the top champions to get the crown. A semifinal victory here could lead to Flair taunting Morgan, stating that she has already beaten her once and is confident she can repeat history at SummerSlam.
Who Will Win the Queen of the Ring Tournament…
When it comes to who will win the Queen of the Ring tournament, we’re pivoting away from our “should win” favorite and backing IYO SKY. She is a phenomenal choice, and a Queen of the Ring victory might be exactly what she needs to propel her career right back to the top of the division.
SKY was shockingly left off this year’s WrestleMania card, despite arguably being WWE’s best performer for all of last year. If WWE wants to re-establish IYO as one of the premier superstars on the roster, having her capture the Queen of the Ring crown is the perfect course of action.
In the event that she wins, she is almost certain to challenge Liv Morgan, given that the only other option is Rhea Ripley. SKY and Ripley put on an incredible match whenever they square off as opponents, but considering their current friendship, it’s highly unlikely SKY would target Ripley’s title.
The story between SKY and Morgan could easily center around a simple question: who is truly the best? While Morgan can arrogantly claim that she’s the greatest Women’s Champion of all time, SKY can boldly declare that she is the best women’s wrestler.
