WWE Saturday Night's Main Event Review - January 25, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley def. Nia Jax

I'm glad WWE got the most predictable match of the night out of the way first, but that isn't to say it was bad by any means. In fact, this was quite the enjoyable opener, which shouldn't be too surprising following the quality contest they had at Elimination Chamber last year. I maintain that there was no reason for this to exist other than to fill a spot on this card.

Intercontinental Champion Bron Breakker def. Sheamus

I wish WWE did a better job of building up this rematch, though I understand the idea of Sheamus possibly winning the one title that's alluded him was enough to sell this match for most fans. Once again, they had a great, hard-hitting affair. That mid-air Spear from Gunther to Sheamus on the outside right before the commercial break was a thing of beauty. I thought there was a chance Sheamus might win, but no such luck. Contrary to popular belief, this is probably the end of the road of this rivalry and Sheamus won't be winning the title at WrestleMania 41.

Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens Signed the Contract for Their Undisputed WWE Championship Match at Royal Rumble Before Shawn Michaels Attacked Owens

This was every contract signing we've ever seen in WWE, right down to the brief brawl at the end. The verbal back-and-forth between Rhodes and Owens was solid but nothing we haven't heard before. Michaels hitting a Sweet Chin Music on Owens was a cool moment (especially with this event emanating from his hometown of San Antonio), but it would've been even cooler for Owens to take him out with a Package Piledriver. For those wondering, there was no update on the "addendum" to the contract that Nick Aldis mentioned last week, which is lame.

Braun Strowman def. Jacob Fatu by Disqualification

Crowds have been hot for every face-off that Strowman and Fatu have had over the last month, so I was looking forward to this. It was well on its way to being as good as Strowman's battles with Bronson Reed late last year, but it never reached that next level before Fatu got himself disqualified by attacking the referee. Fatu barely connected with those shots to Strowman in the corner, but he looked like a total badass with the post-match assault to the point where the crowd chanted his name. Fatu's ascent is going to be a blast to watch.

Gunther def. Jey Uso to Win the World Heavyweight Championship

Uso's past losses to Gunther have been brought up enough lately that Gunther retaining the title was far from predictable and that added the suspense surrounding the nearfalls, especially down the stretch. This wasn't on par with Gunther's other title defenses, but Uso being as over as he is kept the crowd engaged throughout. It was a fun main event and Uso had a strong showing, but the finish felt rushed.

Overall Show

I found this installment of Saturday Night's Main Event to be as entertaining as the last installment. My biggest takeaway was that WWE once again played it safe with the results. None of the championships changed hands, and while I didn't expect them to, it's underwhelming for the audience to sit through two installments with no title changes (no counting Chelsea Green winning the finals of the Women's United States Championship Tournament). Otherwise, this was a thumbs-up event, but WWE needs to have more major storyline developments on future installments.

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