25 Best Wrestling Moments Of 2025

10. Evolution (General)

WWE Evolution 2025 Trish Stratus Tiffany Stratton
WWE

The race for best WWE PLE was not exactly hotly-contested: it was between Evolution and Crown Jewel. Elimination Chamber was probably up there.

Evolution was both very good and very nice - which was some achievement, on the night, since the show existed as a cynical AEW counterprogramming exercise. Also, by 2025, you’d like to think that real parity is the true victory. It’s good that Evolution doesn’t really need to exist as an annual event. We’re at least close to that.

Evolution II had no right to feel as warm and special as it did.

The opener was fantastic - a true Triple Threat match that made actual use of the fact that three wrestlers were in the ring. The frenetic blitz of saves and opportunistic pin attempts in the final third was a near-masterclass in urgency and drama. Both Jacy Jayne Vs. Jordynne Grace and Tiffany Stratton Vs. Trish Stratus benefitted from a lean runtime. Too many big matches in 2025 were bogged down by filler. These matches ripped and did not linger around in a self-conscious quest for acclaim. Moreover, the flow of the show was enhanced by this discipline.

The other matches outside of the main event ranged from solid to embarrassing - Natalya and Maxxine Dupri stunk out the battle royal - but WWE achieved two significant things across the undercard: Stephanie Vaquer continued her inexorable rise, and Charlotte Flair started to get over, at long last, as a babyface.

The Rhea Ripley Vs. IYO Sky main event verged on being overbooked, but mostly blew everybody away with world class-level precision and physical violence.

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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!