It takes hard work and dedication to get to the top of the division in WWE. However, it takes intestinal fortitude and perseverance to stay at the top as a champion. Winning a title comes with its perks, but the schedule of a champ is unmatched. Champs in WWE have a big red target on their back from the locker room, as all wrestlers should want to be the champion. Champions have many media appearances in between their scheduled performances that leave them with minimal down time. And, of course, champions have fans watching them with a microscope and dissecting their every move.
With great power comes great responsibility. When a professional wrestler becomes a champion, there are clearly plenty of high expectations and the weight of the show is on their back. In the history of the WWE, there have been the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the value champions periodically bring to the show. Recently, WWE has had plenty of title changes on Raw, NXT, and SmackDown, so it's a good time in the year to rank the champions as they currently stand. Here is an objective ranking of the champions in the WWE today, starting with the best: Becky Lynch.
Best: Becky Lynch
Sports Illustrated is saying it. Bleacher Report is saying it. HHH is saying it. Now, Daily DDT is saying it. Becky Lynch is undoubtedly the best champion today. Lynch is so good as champion that she sometimes feels like the world champion on Raw, rather than the champion of the mid card. Why? Like a true locker room leader should, she elevates all of her challengers to an entirely new level.
She did this with Lyra Valkyria, Bayley, Nikki Bella, AJ Lee, and even more recently Maxxine Dupri. Her ability to break young stars, like Lyra Valkyria and Maxxine Dupri, out of their shells and highlight Hall of Famers, like Nikki Bella and AJ Lee, to show the world they still got it should not go unnoticed. Whether it comes to her matches or segments, Becky Lynch steals the show every single time.
2nd: CM Punk
It would be criminal to talk about the best champions in the WWE without acknowledging the best in the world, CM Punk. Although his reign just started, Punk has always felt like the unsung champion even when he did not have the championship around his waist. Despite how many times he lost on PLEs, Punk was untouchable with his superior storytelling abilities in his feud with The Vision.
Like Becky Lynch, he is a true locker room leader who elevates the stars around him, including Seth Rollins, Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed, Jey Uso, LA Knight, Logan Paul, and even Roman Reigns. His ability to bring the best out of young stars, like the Brons, walking catchphrases, like Jey Uso and LA Knight, and even established stars, like Rollins and Reigns, should be highly recognized and praised.
3rd: John Cena
Dirty Dom would be in this spot and might still be in this spot if he wins the title back from John Cena next week on Raw in Madison Square Garden. His sneaky, nefarious tactics to win his title matches as well as his strong storytelling and character work in the Judgment Day has not only made the IC Title prestigious but also paid dividends for the common perception of him as the future of this business.
On the other hand, John Cena merely won this title for the Grand Slam, but he should also be praised for his work in this farewell tour this past year. Despite the lackluster storytelling he was given by the administration, he made the best out of what he was given to provide entertaining television for the fans. Like Lynch and Punk, Cena truly is the "greatest of all time" within the confines of the WWE.
4th: Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes receives a lot of criticism as champ. Some of the critiques are valid, as his babyface appeal is dwindling due to the lack of heel challengers on his show. When he does have a feud with a heel like Drew McIntyre, the storytelling can be surface-level and the matches can be underwhelming, as has been the case at both WrestlePalooza and SNME this year alone.
However, Rhodes has been compelling in feuds with established stars like Cena, Rock, Rollins, and Reigns. As a spokesperson for the company, he is amazing for PR and his popularity continues to be strong at the top of the merch sales. He just needs to show that he can consistently be a quarterback who can elevate the division, rather than a running-back who can merely hang with the "big boys."
5th: Chelsea Green
Chelsea Green is truly the gift that keeps on giving in pro wrestling. Although she is seen as mostly a comedic wrestler, she makes the most of the minimal time she is granted on television to entertain the fans both in the ring and on the microphone. On top of that, she has been an absolute workhorse by working Raw, NXT, and SmackDown with new ideas for her character almost every week on TV.
Although Piper Niven of the Secret Hervice got injured and written off television, that did not stop Green from keeping her gimmick relevant with Alba Fyre. Also, her recent work with NXT North American Champion Ethan Page has been commendable to the point that it is drawing more eyes to the NXT Product. Her second reign as U.S. Champ is a good sign that the fans will be in for a fun ride.
6th: Kabuki Warriors
Kabuki Warriors have been more entertaining in 2025 than they have been any other year. They had a riveting storyline with Iyo Sky and Rhea Ripley at Crown Jewel, which genuinely felt like a soap opera that gave General Hospital a run for their money. The idea of Asuka manipulating Kairi Sane and being possessive of Iyo Sky when she was befriending Rhea was solid psychological character work.
Kabuki Warriors also inserted themselves into the title picture with Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss in creative ways, including disguising themselves as doctors to get under Bliss and Flair's skin. WWE did the right thing by giving them tag gold as a reward for their efforts, and they can use those titles to add higher stakes to their long term feud with Sky and Ripley on the road to WrestleMania 42.
7th: Blake Monroe
Blake Monroe had compelling character work ever since her time in AEW as Mariah May. The fact that she's the champ of the mid card when she actually feels like the world champion of the brand is quite telling. She has this majestic and captivating aura to her that makes the fans listen to every word that comes out of her mouth and pay attention to every move she makes in matches and segments.
Other than her character work being worth an investment, she has also been delivering bangers in the ring, stealing the show at every NXT PLE. Her immense talents have proven that she is already main roster ready, but WWE should continue to allow her to organically flourish in the development brand. There's no need to rush something that is worth waiting for, as glamour is certainly forever.
8th: Ricky Saints
Ricky Saints accomplished an epic feat in taking down the indomitable Oba Femi to become the NXT World Champ, and he continues to take more names in former NXT Champs like Trick Williams to solidify himself as the top dog in the developmental brand. As someone who is quite experienced from his time in AEW, he knows exactly what it takes to make an indelible impact as champion.
Like Blake Monroe, his immense talents have proven that he is already main roster ready, but WWE should continue to allow him to organically flourish in the development brand. Oba Femi is already a tough champion to follow, and NXT needs someone like Ricky Saints to continue leading them and elevating the young NXT talent who are still very green and would be graced with learning from him.
9th: Jade Cargill
Jade Cargill receives a lot of criticism as champ. Although her physique and presence gives the vibes of a top star, she can be somewhat green and subpar in the ring as well as one-dimensional with her character. Quite frankly, it seems that WWE has embraced that, as her mic work has been reduced to one-liners and her in-ring work has been reduced to one-sided beatdowns in record time.
Cargill is not alone here. Superstars like Brock Lesnar and Goldberg also had the physique and presence of a top star but were also one-dimensional characters. They were subjected to similar forms of booking for a long time in their early years before they became experienced enough to have storyline-driven matches and segments, so Cargill can also become a top star despite this setback.
10th: Stephanie Vaquer
Granted, Stephanie Vaquer has some issues with the language barrier and cannot cut dicing promos, like most champions should. However, she should not be blamed for an emergency situation in which Naomi had to vacate the title due to pregnancy and the company needed someone to step up. Given the circumstances, especially for a recent NXT Call Up, Vaquer has handled herself well as champion.
She has delivered great matches across the board, even goig as far as stealing the show at WrestlePalooza with Iyo Sky. Her trajectory as champion has been dragged down a bit by the meme-like antics of Nikki Bella, but getting a victory over a Hall of Famer and former Divas Champion at Survivor Series could help solidify and add some form of legitimacy to her reign on the road to Mania.
11th: Ethan Page
As mentioned earlier, Ethan Page's recent work with U.S. Champion Chelsea Green has been commendable to the point that it is drawing more eyes to the NXT Product. The Canadian gimmick is a traditional way to draw heel heat on top of the heel heat Page was already drawing as champion in NXT, where he attempts to win by any means necessary, even when it is nefariously executed.
Just like Saints and Monroe, Page has some experience in AEW to fall back on as he rises up the ranks in the WWE. He is at the bottom tier of these champions only because he fits the stereotype of a generic heel who fans just want to see get punched in the face, He still lacks that attribute that makes him stand out from the rest of the pack. He had that problem in AEW and still has it here.
12th: AJ Styles & Dragon Lee
AJ Styles and Dragon Lee is a breath of fresh air when it comes to tag teams. WWE very rarely book teams that are storyline driven. Instead of pairing up two superstars who are similar in appearance, WWE decided to pair up these two because they had common enemies in Dirty Dom and Judgment Day. This felt like an organic pairing and makes them feel legitimate, rather than a makeshift team.
On top of that, these two are phenomenal (pun intended) in the ring. They are two of the very best to ever do it and they actually deliver the best tag team matches on television right now. To make themselves even more legitimate, they may get matching gear and they're still trying to figure out their tag team name. If it could be any more obvious, their tag team name should be: AJ Lee.
13th: Tatum Paxley
Tatum Paxley is a classic example of someone who is not ready to be NXT World Champion right now, and that's because she had an abysmal win/loss record, lackluster momentum, and thereby minimal credibility to be at the top of the card. NXT did the same thing with Jacy Jayne, and booking 101 in professional wrestling should not allow fluke victories like these to occur in the main event scene.
Of course, naysayers will say that unpredictability is fun but it still comes at a cost. It will be difficult for anyone to take a world champion seriously when they have more losses than victories before winning the title. Like was the case with Jacy Jayne and even Jinder Mahal back in 2017, this booking methodology merely takes away prestige and legitimacy from the title and the brand itself.
14th: Wyatt Sicks
It is honorable to see Wyatt Sicks pay tribute to Bray Wyatt with their tag title run, but this reign has been very boring. The only way to make this fun is for them to play psychological mind games with the other tag teams. For example, Wyatt Sicks teased dissension between Street Profits. The only problem is that it proved to be ineffective because Street Profits are still a team and still irrelevant.
Meanwhile, Wyatt Sicks did not even try to break up Melo Don't Miz, yet Carmelo Hayes and The Miz actually broke up and are now feuding in what seems to be a direction that leads all the way to Timbuktu. All WWE has shown is that the dark, magical powers of the Wyatt Sicks have proven to be futile. The sad part is that they are nothing without the titles, and the titles mean nothing as well.
Worst: Dark State
Dark State happens to be a bootlegged Nexus and/or RETRIBUTION faction that elicits chaos within the confines of NXT. and they used that buzz to win the tag team titles. As great as the idea is in theory, the application of that chaos has been lukewarm and underwhelming. This team does not have big enough names to make an impact, and their entire purpose as champions is a dud.
The only reason Dark State are champions right now is because there are no better options in NXT. NXT has the worst tag team division in the WWE, and it's not even close. WWE should consider merging the tag divisions and having one set of tag team titles for the men's division, just like they do for the women. Or else, the tag division will continue to be repetitive and put people to sleep.
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