The Road to WrestleMania is approaching with the turn of the new year. January through April are some of the most important months on the WWE calendar. It’s an exciting season for professional wrestling fans and experts to speculate.
WWE welcomes 2025 with a bang for Monday Night Raw’s Netflix debut on Jan. 6. Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa engage in Tribal Combat, John Cena begins his retirement tour and CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins finally takes place. These high-stakes storylines will likely shape WWE’s direction through WrestleMania and beyond.
With that in mind, our experts took a shot at some predictions for what we could see happen in the new year.
Solo Sikoa is left adrift after being kicked out of the New Bloodline
The Bloodline Saga is sure to take several new turns in the coming year. WWE clearly has no interest in ending its well-regarded storyline any time soon, which leaves the question of how the storyline continues to evolve with unique and interesting story developments. One thing that seems very much in play is that Sikoa eventually falls victim to his own hubristic approach to taking over as the leader of The Bloodline after Reigns lost the undisputed WWE championship to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40.
Sikoa invited instability into his life as he recruited wild, unhinged characters such as Jacob Fatu to back his play. Those wildcards could see him as an unworthy leader if he can’t prove himself better than Reigns in the ring. Would Fatu, Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa continue to follow Sikoa unquestionably if he can’t truly prove to be the actual “Tribal Leader” and “Head of the Table”? Or would the group kick Sikoa to the curb, leaving the current leader rudderless in an effort to take a more animalistic approach to their future as they look for a new leader who can get the job done. Fatu’s constant yells of “I love you, Solo” quickly turn into a more sinister twist on the term of affection as he buries the knife in Sikoa’s back? And would Reigns and the “OG Bloodline” ever welcome Sikoa back into the fold? That’s the kind of dramatic situation that has propelled the saga to this point and could continue to move it forward throughout 2025. — Brent Brookhouse
John Cena embarks on an all-star retirement tour against elite opponents
2025 is Cena’s last year as an in-ring professional wrestler. The 16-time world champion embarks on a retirement tour worthy of his status as a longtime leading man. Cena has mostly wrestled part-time since 2019 but plans to be more active in his 26th and final year. He’s already scheduled for the Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania 41. That gives Cena ample time to piece together a blockbuster 12-month run. I expect we’ll see Cena wrestle one last time against CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns. Heck, WWE could even pull off a trilogy match against The Rock. Add fresh matchups against guys like Gunther, plus a possible record-setting 17th world title run, and you have one hell of a send-off for an all-time great. — Shakiel Mahjouri
