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“Champions are made, not born.” – Vince Lombardi
The narrative of WWE centers around champions, those competitors who distinguish themselves by winning prestigious titles.
What does the word champion really mean?
The word stems from the Latin word campus, meaning field, and campio, meaning one from the field of battle: a combatant. In the Middle Ages, the word champion was adapted to fit trials by combat to mean a warrior who fights on behalf of someone else. In “Game of Thrones,” Tyrion Lannister famously selected Bronn (not Breakker) to fight for him at his trial in the Eyrie.
By the Renaissance, trails by combat had gone out of vogue, and the meaning of champion broadened to describe:
1. one who fights for a cause (e.g., a champion of human rights), and
2. one who wins a contest (e.g., an Olympic champion).
In WWE, champions are wrestlers who win one of several available titles in combat-centered contents. Babyface champions often fight for a cause, such as justice, while heel champions fight for themselves. In a field littered with an excess of championship titles, all champions are not equal.
Some performers parlay championship reigns to become legendary figures, while others are quickly forgotten. A lifelong fan, I would struggle to recall WWF champions Stan Staiak or Ivan Koloff, or remember anything about the Great Khali’s World Heavyweight reign.
This week, we’ll look at some of WWE’s newer championship reigns to describe which performers are making the most of the spotlight, and who aren’t.
Rising Star of the Week: Tatum Paxley
In a shocking turn of events, Paxley captured the NXT Women’s Title from Jacey Jayne at Halloween Havoc. Shocking, because Tatum hadn’t won a single televised one on one match in 2025 before her title match, and even more so because she hadn’t particularly stood out as a popular or intriguing character. A background character in a lower-card faction (The Culling), Paxley was mainly known for her goth look and habit of playing with dolls.
Giving such an unproven performer the title was risky… but it’s paying off.
Following her underdog, victory Paxley has shown a new side of herself as a performer which is catching on. Her childlike joy and enthusiasm are infectious. Blind to the duplicity of her so-called friend and stablemate Izzy Dame, Paxley’s naivete is endearing. As a result, fans have truly embraced Paxley for the first time.
Does her sudden popularity have legs? It’s hard to say, but Paxley’s stock has more than doubled in just a few short weeks. She’s got the ball, and she’s running with it.
Most importantly, she seems to have dropped her obsession with dolls.
Runner-up: John Cena
In sharp contrast to his failure of a WWE Championship reign, Cena’s final title run in WWE promises to be as memorable as it will be brief.
The buildup to Cena’s final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event on Dec. 13 has been a pleasant surprise. The 16-man tournament to determine his opponent gives us fresh match-ups and novel possibilities.
Speculation on who will be in the tournament and who will win it is a fun exercise. The idea of a rising NXT talent (e.g., Oba Femi, Je’Von Evans, Trick Williams) or a returning star (e.g. Gunther) earning the opportunity to wrestle Cena in his final match strikes me as particularly exciting. However, whether Cena’s opponent wins or loses that final match seemed relatively inconsequential… until Monday.
Cena winning the Intercontinental Championship from Dominick Mysterio on Raw was not only fun TV, but it was also just the thing to give his final match real stakes. Not only does he capture the major title that had eluded him throughout his career, but he became a Grand Slam Champion in the process — a fitting farewell.
Will his opponent capture the title along with a victory over Cena, or will “The Last Real Champion” retire with it, as he threatened to do with the WWE Championship?
Suddenly, Cena’s final match matters more, and fans have an added reason to care about the winner.
Second Runner up: Kendall Grey
The new WWE Evolve Women’s Champion, Grey is a fresh-faced rookie with a lot of potential. A groundbreaking amateur wrestler who became a 10-time High School All-American and qualified for Team USA in 2018, Grey has plenty of credibility as a fighter.
Grey’s in-ring work is just as impressive. Her match against Lash Legend on a recent episode of NXT was remarkably hard-hitting and well-wrestled, arguably Legend’s best singles match to date.
With a great look and high wrestling skills, Grey’s weakness is her mic work, which is passable but unimpressive. Pairing her with the beloved Wrenn Sinclair balances that weakness. Grey plays well off the charismatic Sinclair who has enough personality for both, and this association should help her win over NXT’s discerning fans.
Grey is one to watch.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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Fading Star of the Week: Ricky Saints
Saints’s reign as NXT Champion isn’t clicking. He rates above average in all domains: look, wrestling ability, and interviews, and holds himself like a true star. Small in stature, he makes a good underdog babyface. He has cleanly defeated the two most dominant champions of the last few years in Femi and William. On paper he checks all the boxes.
Since winning gold, the former Ricky Starks’s flaws have become more evident. He has yet to explain the meaning of his catchphrase “The Revolution is televised.” His character lacks a defining trait besides that of a standard babyface. His championship matches against top talent have been inexplicably mediocre.
Worst of all, he has failed to excite the fanbase. After a phenomenal ending to his Last Man Standing Match on this week’s NXT in which he speared Williams off a barricade and through a table, the crowd understandably popped. However, instead of chanting for Saints and his successful title defense, fans chanted “NXT.”
The weakest NXT men’s champion in recent memory, Saints desperately needs to change his act or drop the title to someone ready to seize the spotlight.
First Runner-Up: Dragon Lee
Dragon Lee is a joy to watch in the ring, but lacks the charisma needed to connect with the WWE fanbase. After two years of toiling on the undercard, he won his first gold in WWE when he teamed with A.J. Styles to take the WWE World Tag Team Championship from the Judgement Day in October.
Matching Lee with the popular veteran Styles makes sense in theory but hasn’t worked well in practice. Styles is competent on the mic, but not nearly good enough to elevate Lee. The two lack any real charisma and have yet to gel as a team. Lee’s cringy attempt to name the team “Dragones con Estilo” (translation: Dragons With Style) didn’t help.
Despite some very good matches, Lee’s first WWE title reign is not helping to elevate him.
Moreover, this Mexican marvel must minimally maintain a mouthpiece to move above the midcard.
Second Runner-Up: Stephanie Vaquer
Vaquer’s run as WWE Women’s World Champion is on shaky legs. Although she continues to have excellent matches and benefits from a star presence, a striking appearance, and otherworldly poise, none of her rivalries have bene particularly memorable.
La Primera’s greatest weakness is undoubtedly her mic work, hampered severely by her limited English skills. This has been most obvious when she had to trade words with Tiffany Stratton or Asuka but even exchanges with smooth talkers like Roxanne Perez seem awkward and stilted.
Fan reactions have been largely muted, except for a brief pop when Vaquer signals the Devil’s Kiss.
One problem with her reign has been a lack of credible opponents. Perez and Raquel Rodriguez are mainstays of Raw but have not been framed as championship contenders. Nikki Bella is no better, having lost most of her singles matches since her return.
Pairing Vaquer with the unlikable Nikki Bella could get fans on her side, but the feud has started off cold, with Bella’s betrayal feeling predictable.
A seasoned, established heel like Liv Morgan might be just the ticket to elevate the Dark Angel’s championship.
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