WWE Night of Champions 2026 predictions

WWE Night of Champions will take place today (Sat., June 27, 2026), and of the second-straight year emanate from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Arena. While there will a “Countdown” pre-show, the premium live event itself begins at 1 p.m. ET — streaming HERE on ESPN in the U.S., and on Netflix pretty much everywhere else.

The show features the finals of the King and Queen of the Ring tournaments, which will put crowns on the winners heads, and more importantly give us a pair of SummerSlam World title challengers. Night of Champions Riyadh will also feature a WWE title Triple Threat, two United States championship matches, and Steel Cage grudge match.

It’s a lot to process. Luckily for you Cagesiders, our staff of learned wrestling blowhards is here to help figure out just how the event is going to play out with predictions for each match on the card.

Let’s get to it.

WWE NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS PREDICTIONS

King of the Ring Final: Oba Femi vs. Jey Uso

Geno Mrosko: I don’t think there’s any world where Jey Uso should be beating Oba Femi at any time but especially not right now. Brock Lesnar will almost certainly be in town, and they’re probably going to use that to set up the rubber match at SummerSlam. I’m ready for that, for sure, but I don’t want it to come at the expense of Oba becoming King of the Ring. I’m going with my heart here, not my head. Pick: Oba Femi

Sean Rueter: Head, heart, or heuvos, The Ruler is one of the few things wrestling fans are excited about right now. I don’t even hate the King YEET story as much as most of the wrestle web seems to, and know that Bloodline shenanigans and BROCK SMASH could protect Oba in a loss. But throw all that out the window and have this man become King, take Roman Reigns’ title, and then retire Brock Lesnar. Pick: Oba Femi

Kyle Decker: I’m ready to be disappointed. I think it’s going to be Jey Uso. Now granted, I think that would be a terrible decision and Oba should pull double duty and face Brock & then Roman on separate nights. And injures from the Brock match that he won protects him in an L to Roman. Rematch at Mania. There’s nothing at all about the last Jey Uso title run that makes me think he should sniff the title picture. But here we are and I think they do this, maybe as a specific affront to me. Pick: Jey Uso

Claire Elizabeth: I just can’t imagine picking against the Ruler and the Destroyer of Worlds here. Jey Uso’s quest to win the other big one has a certain cachet to it even in face of his shall we say less-than-perfect wrestling acumen and “turning a big wheel marked YEET and looking at the audience for approval” promos but c’mon. Oba Femi is a force of nature. Pick: Oba Femi

Cain A. Knight: WWE has to sell out a large stadium on two consecutive nights in August for SummerSlam. Booking Oba Femi vs. Roman Reigns and CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes is the best way to do it, but there must be a reason why Oba Femi won’t stop saying Brock Lesnar’s name. Pick: Oba Femi

Marcus Benjamin: I’m not going to overthink this. Oba Femi should win. Those reasons are obvious and extremely loud anytime he’s in an arena. I initially wrote that I saw Brock Lesnar costing Oba his shot at the throne. Then it hit me that the throne is precisely the thing that might entice Lesnar into a rematch. Brock doesn’t care that you talk trash about him; he cares about business. Specifically his business. What’s better for his bottomline than winning another heavyweight championship? Oba wins, entices Brock with one more match by putting his King of the Ring crown on the line. Pick: Oba Femi

M. G0MEZ: Beside the reasons I previously outlined, Jey Uso — despite concerns about his stamina — looks like he’s getting into prime shape as SummerSlam nears, where a world title shot awaits the winner. With Oba Femi poised for a trilogy with Brock Lesnar at that event, Uso’s gym gains might suggest he’s getting ready for something bigger. Pick: Jey Uso

Jon Velez-Jackson: Yes, I believe Brock Lesnar will get involved in this match to set up a final showdown with Oba at SummerSlam. However, I can’t imagine Femi taking another major loss following his defeat at Clash in Italy. Pick: Oba Femi

Josh Jagler: It took what? 7 F-5’s for Brock to beat Oba last month? While this match is telegraphed for Brock to cost Oba, I just don’t see how they book this to make that believable, so I’m going the other way. Oba perseveres. Oba facing Brock and Roman on separate nights, as Kyle mentioned above, is a decent option, but let’s go all in on The Ruler. Let’s have him beat Roman and Brock in a Triple Threat match to close out Summerslam weekend. No need to wait until next April for Oba’s coronation. Pick: Oba Femi

Queen of the Ring Final: Liv Morgan vs. IYO SKY

Geno Mrosko: They managed to book a tournament where Sky can defeat the women’s world champion to become Queen of the Ring and therefore earn a title shot against that very same champion. Liv winning would be more interesting to me but it seem obvious that isn’t where they’re going with this. Pick: Iyo Sky

Sean Rueter: Roxanne Perez seems to have finally realized Liv is TROUBLE. She’s plotting something, and could be a factor in the final. But Judgment Day’s death has been such a slow process, I can’t see the full and final explosion happening here. That feels more like a SummerSlam angle, and… what was point of Morgan being in the tournament in the first place if she wasn’t going to win? Pick: Liv Morgan

Kyle Decker: This actually sets up some interesting matches, but only if Rhea Ripley is healthy. Rhea Ripley has never beaten Iyo Sky one on one. Liv Morgan/Rhea Ripley was a massive feud and with much of the exiled SmackDown, that could really be interesting. But with Rhea’s status uncertain, they kind of have to go with Iyo so they can set up a rematch with Morgan if they need. If Rhea is healthy, she can finally get her win against the Genuis of the Sky. Pick: Iyo Sky

Claire Elizabeth: I don’t know whether it’s her being at the center of the neverending morass that is Judgment Day’s will-they won’t-they eternal breakup, shallow disagreement at her aesthetic choices, or what, but I find myself slowly coming around to the notion that I just don’t like Liv Morgan. So, color me biased here, but mark me down for the Genius of the Sky. (…of the SKY?) Pick: IYO SKY

Cain A. Knight: Can Liv Morgan fight herself at SummerSlam if she wins Queen of the Ring and Rhea Ripley is injured? Don’t take WWE too seriously and just have fun with it if that happens, okay? Pick: IYO SKY

Marcus Benjamin: It has to be IYO SKY if only for how bad Liv, Becky Lynch, and almost every other heel woman speaks about her. Pick: IYO SKY

M. G0MEZ: This reads like a glorified non-title match between a champion and her future challenger. But rather than Iyo Sky beating Liv Morgan in a random match to earn a title shot, Sky will spoil Morgan’s dream of becoming a double champion. That sets up a sequel at SummerSlam, where a surging Sky meets a pissed-off Morgan. Saucy. Pick: Iyo Sky

Jon Velez-Jackson: This match really serves as a reminder at how sorely Stephanie Vaquer is missed right now, just in that her feud with Liv is far from resolved. But even as rudderless as Morgan as seemingly been lately, the same could be said about Iyo. A win here sets up a lot of possibilities for Sky, who remains among the very best talents on the female roster. Pick: Iyo Sky

Josh Jagler: One of the biggest matches the WWE can book in the women’s division right now is Rhea Ripley vs. Iyo Sky, and I’m betting that’s the intended direction here. An Iyo win gives them a ton of flexibility if Rhea can’t compete at Summerslam, whereas a Liv win really handcuffs them. My bet is that this match somehow adds to Judgment Day drama and leads to Liv against Raquel or Roxy (or both?) in Minneapolis. Pick: Iyo Sky

WWE championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Gunther vs. Sami Zayn

Geno Mrosko: There is a story that ends with Zayn finally winning the WWE championship but that is not this story, and QB1 is going to do his thing once more. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Sean Rueter: Not very confident it will happen, but if it doesn’t it… might be time for Der Ring General to go become El Grande Americano’s sidekick for a while, change up their whole dynamic and see if some of that AAA magic rubs off on him. Easier just to have him pin Sami though, right? Pick: Gunther

Kyle Decker: I’ve made it abundantly clear that I am a Ride or Die for Sami Zayn. But even I can’t put his name in writing as my official prediction. It’s like Lucy and the football at this point. Yes, this is a perfect situation for Sami to steal a win in Saudi to give the Last Real Good Guy and his Ride or Dies that moment. But at this point, I wouldn’t bet on it. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Claire Elizabeth: Yeah I’d love to see Sami pick up the win here but he’s too in his head and too caught up in what everybody else thinks and too alone (I mean one guy would help him but he’s currently catatonic and drooling on a road case) to be anything but a spoiler here. And boy howdy, is GUNTHER being spoiled a lot lately, huh? Sorry bud, no waking up from this particular nightmare just yet. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Cain A. Knight: It’s like WWE is trying to find out how many times in the span of 30 days they can book GUNTHER to fail at winning the WWE championship. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Marcus Benjamin: I don’t think WWE is in the best spot creatively at the moment. Everything happening with Cody typifies that malaise. I have no inkling that anything interesting will happen here. Pick:Cody Rhodes

M. G0MEZ: Gunther did the unthinkable and made John Cena give up, only to lose momentum in the months after. While Sami Zayn’s issues with Rhodes warrant a one-on-one showdown, he’s currently not a credible challenger. Ultimately, what we have are two big-name stars, each ice-cold, whose combined purpose is to keep QB1 warm for SummerSlam. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Jon Velez-Jackson: I was so close to picking Sami in an upset, but as much fun as that would be, the booking wouldn’t make sense in terms of where Cody goes next. Once again, though, WWE could be continuing its lackluster booking of Gunther after previously building him as a career-ending monster. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Josh Jagler: With SummerSlam on the horizon, I can’t really see QB1 not having the WWE Title heading into the company’s biggest show of the summer. I’m not sure where Gunther or Sami go if they lose, but Cody facing a returning CM Punk or Randy Orton for the WWE Title the first weekend of August seems to be the likely next step for Cody. Pick: Cody Rhodes

Steal Cage match: Bron Breakker vs. Seth Rollins

Geno Mrosko: I hate that when I consider Steel Cage matches these days, I often just wonder how they’ll get outside interference in the cage when it’s supposed to keep everyone else out. My guess is the bigger star wins here. Pick: Seth Rollins

Sean Rueter: They don’t have to move on from The Vision, and may have too much invested in the group to easily do so since it would require significant new plans for a Hall of Famer, a huge crossover star, a future WrestleMania main event hopeful, and Austin Theory. It’s not going to be the chicken salad Creative hoped to turn it into when Rollins got legitimately hurt. But if you have to end a star-filled program with chickenshit, I always say do it in the midcard of a Saudi PLE (ask anybody, I say that all the time). Anyway… the new tag champs pay Seth back by canceling out Theory and Logan Paul, Bronson Reed’s return sadly waits until another day, and we all move on from this cursed footnote in 21st century wrestling history. Pick: Seth Rollins

Kyle Decker: I still think they don’t feel Breakker is quite ready for the main event spot. And that where he’d be with consecutive wins against Rollins. Meanwhile, they feel Rollins can slot into any main event feud at any time. I’d firmly believe Rollins could find himself in a title match by SummerSlam and I just don’t see that for Bron at this moment. Pick: Seth Rollins

Claire Elizabeth: That’s true, Sean says that thing he said right there all time time, every day he says it. Anyway the Vision spent too long reduced to the C squad for me to believe they’re capable of being the dominant force they want us to think they are– as far as Heyman Guys go, Theory and Paul aren’t quite Rybaxel but there’s less daylight there than anyone would like– and so yeah, Seth stomps Bron’s face into the mat and the Vision experience maybe the last in their series of down endings. Pick: Seth Rollins

Cain A. Knight: At this point WWE should probably kill off The Vision for good with another Rollins win over Breakker, but I think they will drag out this story for several more months. Maybe a new member debuts and gets injured here to help make that happen. Pick: Bron Breakker

Marcus Benjamin: Listen, Bron Breakker needs to win this match if only for The Vision’s relevancy. They’re worse than the Bad News Bears at this point, and it doesn’t help that they routinely seem very dumb. I recognize that picking Bron means this feud is probably over and there’s no way it’s over anytime soon, so I’m not exactly picking safe. But I said what I said. Pick: Bron Breakker

M. G0MEZ: The time is right to take The Vision behind the barn and put it out of its misery. Injuries have derailed this group to the point where it seems like it’s time to move on. Rollins delivering the fatal bullet is a fitting end for the stable he created. Doing so also makes him a threat to someone like World Champion Roman Reigns, which may be why the OTC seemingly wants Jacob Fatu to take him out. Pick: Seth Rollins

Jon Velez-Jackson: Rollins is still one of the most over stars in WWE, and Breakker is still the future of the company. How much longer Bron can be see as the future when he loses marquee matches is up for debate, but I don’t think Seth takes a loss so close to SummerSlam. Pick: Seth Rollins

Josh Jagler: Seth was around to help the Street Profits beat the Vision to become tag team champions this week, and now it’s time for Tez and Dawks to return the favor. The Vision is more blind than ever without the Oracle backing them, and there’s no reason Seth should be losing this one. Pick: Seth Rollins

Men’s United States championship: Trick Williams (c) vs. Ricky Saints

Geno Mrosko: Saints may have a long career in WWE ahead of him but he isn’t going over the runaway freight train that is Trick Willy. Pick: Trick Williams

Sean Rueter: There are small signs main roster crowds have started to pick up what Ricky’s putting down, but not to the point he should even be in a PLE match with Yachty’s guy, let alone beating T-Dubs for the red, white and blue. Pick: Trick Williams

Kyle Decker: Ricky should bring a proctologist with him to remove the lemon pepper stepper that’s going to be lodged in him when this is over. Pick: Trick Williams

Claire Elizabeth: There’s gonna be a lemon pepper stepper boot print sitting about three-quarters of an inch deep in Ricky Saints’ face when all is said and done here. Pick: Trick Williams

Cain A. Knight: Trick Williams is a big star. Ricky Saints is not a big star. Don’t even need Scott Steiner to do the rest of the math from there. Pick: Trick Williams

Marcus Benjamin: Hey, I like Ricky a lot. But come on now. Pick: Trick Williams

M. G0MEZ: Ricky Saints has four losses in seven matches since coming to SmackDown from NXT in May. Trick Williams, who showed up on the blue brand in January after a run in NXT, has been featured in PLE main events, worked with top stars, and won a title at WrestleMania. Momentum is simply on Williams’ side at this stage in their careers. Pick: Trick Williams

Jon Velez-Jackson: One could question why Ricky Saints was brought ups soon from NXT when the main roster doesn’t seem like it has a place for him, but here we are. Maybe Saints cheats to win to set something up for SummerSlam, but I’m not counting on it. Pick: Trick Williams

Josh Jagler: Ricky took advantage of an exposed turnbuckle to beat Carmelo to earn this match in the first place, so I’d be on him looking for similar openings in this one. The difference is that Trick has more momentum in his favor than anybody in the company right now, and that should continue this weekend. A fluke win by Ricky wouldn’t surprise me because Trick and Melo both chasing Saints could be fun, but I think the Trick train continues rolling. Yeah. Uh-huh. I like it. Pick: Trick Willy

Women’s United States championship: Tiffany Stratton (c) vs. Jade Cargill

Geno Mrosko: All I can think about is that viral video of Tiffany Stratton opening WWE cards and coming across Sgt. Slaughter and calling him S-G-T Slaughter. Pick: Tiffany Stratton

Sean Rueter: There are enough Cargill enemies and kinda/wannabe friends of the champ to prevent a title change. I’m also thinking one of them will be Charlotte Flair to officially start Jade’s next program after another loss. Pick: Tiffany Stratton

Kyle Decker: This is an interesting one as it feels like this is a result of that Ripley injury. And it’s two women who kind of can’t afford the loss, meaning we’re probably getting Baddies and Chelsea Green interference. But of the two of them, Tiffy can afford it a bit more. Pick: Jade Cargill

Claire Elizabeth: Jade’s got a little bit further to fall before she can start climbing that ladder again. Pick: Tiffany Stratton

Cain A. Knight: I think reverse momentum wins the day after Cargill has regularly beaten Tiffany’s ass in recent weeks. Pick: Tiffany Stratton

Marcus Benjamin: WWE’s big story is that Tiffany can’t solve Jade. Whenever a wrestling company pushes something that hard, we’re in for a reversal of fortune. Pick: Tiffany Stratton

M. G0MEZ: Jade Cargill lost the Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 42, failed to get it back in the rematch, then got booted from the Queen of the Ring. She needs a win — and a title — ahead of a potential marquee match with Charlotte Flair at SummerSlam. Pick: Jade Cargill

Jon Velez-Jackson: Jade is still positioned as one of the top stars of the women’s division, whereas Tiffy Time expired a bit following her lackluster run as WWE Women’s Champion. While her run with the U.S. title has helped her regain some momentum, she’s just not on the same level as Cargill right now. Pick: Jade Cargill

Josh Jagler: While it feels a little weird for Jade to level down and compete for the secondary title just a few weeks after wrestling for the primary one, I think she wins it here, likely with some help from Michin and B-Fab. It feels like this will be what finally leads Tiffany to embrace a partnership with Chelsea. Pick: Jade Cargill

That’s how we see the card playing out. In the comments, tell us why we’re wrong, why we’re right, and what your predictions are for WWE Night of Champions 2026! Plus, there’s still time to jump into the ongoing Cagesider-run predictions contest in The Feed!