10 Best Wrestling Matches Of 2025

The best of the best: featuring Hangman Page, IYO Sky, and Ivar?!

WWE WrestleMania 41 Night 2 Iyo Sky
WWE

As ever, honourable mentions are vast.

At WWE SummerSlam, CM Punk Vs. Gunther divided opinion. Some thought it was an epic that ultimately warranted its glacial pace. Others thought Punk was gassed for 25 minutes and called it selling. Few could argue that the twist, which saw Punk pounce when Gunther was found out by his blood loss, wasn’t a unique idea, brilliantly executed. Cody Rhodes Vs. John Cena, from the same PLE, was a shallow, excessive match, the likes of which would see other promotions crucified - but it was loud, dramatic, and, after several awful months of John Cena’s heel character, a fist-pumping relief for WWE fans.

On the subject of other promotions…

AEW is Where The Best Wrestle; by design, the promotion spawned countless great efforts. Will Ospreay Vs. Konosuke Takeshita, from the Spring Breakthru special, was an extraordinary match pitched to remind fans that this is what you get for becoming All Elite. It was a celebration of what AEW is and what AEW does, loaded with absurd, twist-heavy sequences arranged at a ridiculous pace.

The Young Bucks enjoyed their best year since 2021, wrestling literally countless loud, exciting tag matches - the second best of which was so good that it launched JetSpeed as a permanent fixture in the doubles division. Many wrestlers not included below - Kyle Fletcher, Mark Briscoe, Speedball Mike Bailey, Mercedes Mone, Ricochet, Kris Statlander - enjoyed great years. Kazuchika Okada, when he could be bothered, was still one of the absolute best wrestlers in the world.

But what was the best of the best…?

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!