Wrestling Inc.'s Best Of 2025: Early Awards Check-In!

Yeah, we know — there's a lot of 2025 still left to go, especially when you consider the unpredictability of the wrestling industry. But it's September now; we've rounded the corner on summer and are heading directly towards the spooky season, which means it's time to at least start thinking about the upcoming fourth annual WINC Best of 2025 Year-End Awards! More than anything, we were curious about who currently has the edge in a few different categories. 2025 has been a bit of a strange year for wrestling, and we thought it would be valuable to take a survey of our staff and see where we're at with some of these races as we prepare to kick off the year's home stretch with a double PPV dose of WWE & AEW on the 20th.

The result of that survey lies before you: our 2025 Early Awards Check-In! And without spoiling too much of anything, if these results hold, the Year-End Awards are going to look very different than they have in the past. Here at WINC, we don't present our awards by gender, but we understand why other outlets do — in the heavily gendered world of wrestling, giving the women their own awards ensures they're represented at the end of the year, and one consequence of not doing that has been that our awards haven't always had the most women included. This year, though? This year, if things keep going as they are, the women of professional wrestling aren't going to need the help.

If there was ever a sign that WWE's "Bloodline Era" is truly over, it would be someone else winning Faction of the Year. The peerless Samoan clan won the inaugural award last year — the year before, we didn't even have a Faction of the Year award, because it was obvious who would win it. That reign looks to be over though, no matter who actually wins in the end. Not a single one of our staffers voted for any incarnation of The Bloodline for the year's best faction, and it's probably just a question at this point of which dirtbag heel team will supplant them.

The favorites to this point are AEW's Don Callis Family — mostly because it's hard not to be considered front and center when you have so many members you're constantly on TV. Currently the massive stable boasts no fewer than 12 members, including Callis himself, but almost more impressive is the fact that the Family has double in size in 2025. Callis was already rolling around with Konosuke Takeshita, Kyle Fletcher, Trent Beretta, Lance Archer, and Brian Cage; in the past nine months, he's added Mark Davis, Josh Alexander, Rocky Romero, Hechicero, Kazuchika Okada, and most recently, the long-absent Wardlow. Along with expanded membership, 2025 has also brought considerable success to the faction, with Okada securing the inaugural AEW Unified Championship, Fletcher winning the TNT Championship, and Takeshita winning NJPW's prestigious G1 Climax tournament. With Fletcher about to challenge for the AEW World Championship at All Out and Callis showing no signs of slowing down his recruitment efforts, this could be the DCF's award to lose. (Written by Miles Schneiderman)

Runner-up: The Judgment Day

Others receiving first-round votes: Death Riders, Damage CTRL, The Vision

The predominant feeling ahead of WWE's second-ever all-woman Evolution show was that it felt like an afterthought — at least to WWE. As the last of four shows to air over the course of a marathon wrestling weekend, which also saw WWE put on an "NXT" PLE and "Saturday Night's Main Event," Evolution felt like a coda at best, a PLE designed to shut up the demands for it that had been ongoing since 2018 while putting the WWE women's division in the worst possible position to succeed while Beyonce played across the street. And yet, here we are; it turned out the division may have been simply too talent to put on anything less than the best show of the year.

A great deal of attention will be paid to the main event between IYO SKY and Rhea Ripley, which ended with Naomi cashing in her MITB briefcase to become women's world champion. But there was so much more to Evolution than that, starting with the absolutely incredible opener between Becky Lynch, Lyra Valkyria, and Bayley, and continuing through the NXT Women's title match, the women's tag title match, and a shockingly excellent contest between Trish Stratus and Tiffany Stratton. Evolution felt like a cut above your typical WWE PLE before the main event; afterward, it was an instant Event of the Year contender.

It might not get there in the end — another show from that same weekend came in a very close second in the early voting, and there are still a lot of events left between now and January. But just the fact that we're here, for a show forced to rely almost entirely on the in-ring talent of the women involved, is both thoroughly remarkable and highly appropriate for what 2025 has been so far. (Written by Miles Schneiderman)

Runner-up: AEW All In: Texas

Others receiving first-round votes: AEW Dynamite: Spring Breakthru, WWE WrestleMania 41, AEW Double or Nothing

Rather than drop the core of her character and lean into the ultimate babyface move that is becoming a mother, Naomi broke the mold and used the announcement to stake her lineal claim to the division she will be taking a baby-forced break from during her August 18 "WWE Raw" promo. Having captured the Women's World Championship when she cashed in her Money in the Bank briefcase, Naomi went on to make a statement and retain the title against the both of Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY at SummerSlam. 

However, questions arose when it was confirmed by WWE that she could not be cleared to defend the title as scheduled against SKY, as to whether she had been injured or whether good news for her and husband Jimmy Uso was on the arrival in some form or another. 

Naomi had the chance to confirm herself in the ring that it was the latter, and she would be having a baby Uso to an eruption of cheers from the crowd. But she did it in a way that stayed true to the villainous character she had cultivated working major storylines from prior to WrestleMania, and in a way that immediately lays the foundation for her return when she decides to. It's hard not to love any form of good news like a pregnancy announcement in its rawest form, especially for a couple that has been in the spotlight for years and has curried so much support and adulation from fans, but to tastefully tie it into the wacky world that is professional wrestling and "keep the kayfabe alive" so-to-speak makes it an all-timer, and a testament to the performer that Naomi is. (Written by Max Everett)

Runner-up: Cody Rhodes and The Rock (WWE Elimination Chamber)

Others receiving first round votes: Toni Storm and Mariah May (AEW Collision 1/25/25), Toni Storm and Mariah May (AEW Dynamite 3/5/25), Hangman Adam Page (AEW Dynamite 6/18/25), John Cena (6/20/25)

It's remarkable to think that the man who romanticized the euphoria of romance through his steamy novels turned Hollywood blockbusters, Nicholas Sparks, has gone on record to say, "Love and tragedy are linked. You can't have one without the other. And the greater the love, the greater the tragedy ... So, by definition, all love stories have to end in tragedy." For "Timeless" Toni Storm, her fairy tale love story with "The Glamour" Mariah May ended that exact way – in an unforgiven yet bloody mess. But it was May who would pay the price for her betrayal, and yet, it left a lasting impression on our WINC staff, which is why we named the Hollywood Ending as the "Match of the Year" so far this year.

Storm was exceptional to the way she treated May – allowing for her to nestle under her wisdom tree, even allowing her to drink from her fountain of knowledge. Tragically, the mother's milk turned rancid the moment May bashed Storm with her studious mentor's own iconic shoe. Left in tears as blood dripped down her face, there wasn't enough makeup to cover the howl of sadness and the physical scar May had left on Storm, or so we thought.

With murderous intentions in their eyes heading into this year's Revolution, only one woman would survive, and as Storm said heading into battle, "Mariah May, are you prepared to die? Because I am!" She would live to fight another day. Meanwhile May, was vanquished the moment she took the shoe to the head and had done to her what she did to Storm, which propelled this whole violent tango to begin with. While the match was gory, the ending was embellishing. Even Sparks couldn't write something so beautifully tragic.

There are rumors out there that May is no longer with us. Some say she tucked her tail between her legs and headed to Florida under a new alias, Blake Monroe. Others are still trying to find her. Wherever she may be, if she's with us still or not, what does ring true is that any love you share with another doesn't last forever. So what's a "Hollywood Ending" anyway? For Storm and May, it was poetic justice that proved the golden rule that love dies, but sabotage that ends in violence is everlasting. (Written by Brie Coder)

Runner-up: IYO SKY vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Naomi (WWE Evolution)

Others receiving first-round votes: Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn (WWE Elimination Chamber), Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins (WWE WrestleMania 41 Night 1), IYO SKY vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Bianca Belair (WWE WrestleMania 41 Night 2), Mascara Dorada vs. Bandido (CMLL Martes Populares 6/17/25), Hangman Adam Page vs. Jon Moxley (AEW All In: Texas), CM Punk vs. GUNTHER (WWE SummerSlam Night 1), Lexis King vs. Myles Borne ("WWE NXT" 8/26/25)

She is crude, rude, tattooed, yet never booed. But "God doesn't' judge. That's her job." She's "Timeless" Toni Storm, and gosh, all of us here at WINC adore her. Picking up the "Talker of Early 2025" award, is well deserving, as Storm's arsenal of flirty threats has a lot more weight to them than anyone else's words on their best days. Her mastery of breaking down her opponents by the carefully chosen words she spews has captivated men and women (young and old), children, and even Classical Hollywood enthusiasts alike.

Take your pick on which of her promos knocked your socks off, but the formula remains the same: she knows him to create an imbalance of confidence to her opponents. When they run back her words, egos get bruised, insecurities set in, and lastly, battles end with Storm standing tall and marvelous with the AEW Women's World Championship tucked under her arm (or bosom, if she were writing this) every time. Sure what happens in the ring should be the be-all and end-all in any contest, but no one comes out the same psychologically after wrestling her (ask Athena or Mercedes Mone, who took their most significant losses in company history to the "Timeless" one recently), and that's the magic she creates every time she clutches a microphone or slides in between the ropes of the ring.

While we would love to recite some of the promos she has given so far this year, she is not just a trophy on a shelf, nor another notch in someone else's belt; she is the entire blueprint, foundation, and beams of the brick house where the trophies and belts lay, and not some other mother, you know what. She is women's wrestling, and if you so dare dispute that, she will "eat you alive."

She may be a "manic, neurotic, erotic, sexually questionable, consistently sweating, bottom heavy, transatlantic, wh**re," but the spotlight didn't make her, darling. Her mannerisms did. (Written by Brie Coder)

Runner-up: Drew McIntyre

Others receiving first-round votes: Hangman Adam Page, Ethan Page, John Cena

What a year it's been for IYO SKY, winning the Women's World Championship from Rhea Ripley in March and running away with it as the firecracker to chaotically clinical triple threats at WrestleMania, Evolution, and SummerSlam. Coming into 2025 it would have been fair to question whether SKY would have the year she has had, trying and failing to capture gold both by herself and alongside Damage CTRL after losing the WWE Women's Championship to Bayley at WrestleMania 40, and getting an opportunity at Ripley rather out of the blue.

Looming over that bout was the presumed bout between Elimination Chamber winner Bianca Belair and Ripley for the title at WretleMania 41, and that factored into her eventual title win as Belair's distraction allowed SKY to win the title on the night after a really well-worked contest. That fed into the triple threat between Belair, Ripley, and SKY for the title at WrestleMania, with all three ladies leaving it all in the ring and then some, but once again it was SKY emerging victorious.

SKY followed that bout up with two non-title singles matches on "WWE Raw" against Stephanie Vaquer and Roxanne Perez, and while the first one ended in a no-contest one could not fairly say they weren't good contests. Evolution played host to another singles meeting between Ripley and SKY with the title on the line, continuing with the story that Ripley has never managed to overcome her, and once again they tore the house down in the name of being the best. With Naomi having cashed in her Money in the Bank contract that night to steal the title from SKY in a technical triple threat, a second chapter of the trio's quest for gold was booked for SummerSlam.

Yet again, SKY was a stand-out in the match with two of her fellow elite-class wrestlers, and although she again hadn't emerged the winner she logged yet another excellent performance. It doesn't feel like she can have a bad match and she makes everyone she works with seem that little bit better than they are any other time, and it shows in the trust she has been given throughout the year, going from the challenger/gatekeeper role in the upper midcard to established main eventer within the space of months, and potentially in for another Women's title reign when she faces Stephanie Vaquer at Wrestlepalooza. (Written by Max Everett)

Runner-up: Hangman Adam Page

Others receiving first-round votes: GUNTHER, Konosuke Takeshita, Bandido, Mistico, Sareee