Biggest Winners And Losers Of The Week — 9/8/2026

It's been another big week in the world of professional wrestling, and you know what that means — it's time for the Wrestling Inc. staff to name some winners and losers!

Technically due to Labor Day, it's been eight days since the last one of these, not seven, but that's okay! It just means we got more time to digest things like WWE Sunday Night's Main Event — which saw the men's United States Championship change hands as well as a massive return from Bronson Reed — and the edition of "WWE Raw" that followed! We also got some fresh episodes of AEW TV, which included the "Dynamite" debut of the former New Day, Kofi and Austin Creed!

Who does the WINC staff see standing tall after the past week of wrestling, and who looks a little worse for wear? That's what we're here to find out! Here are your WINC winners and losers for the week of 9/8/2026!

We knew from last week that the New Level were winners after making their AEW debut by winning the trios titles alongside Swerve Strickland at All In, but it wasn't until this week that we learned the extent to which WWE — and the tag team division specifically — are losers for letting them go.

Kofi and Austin Creed made their "AEW Dynamite" debuts this past Wednesday, putting their newly won gold on the line against the Rascalz. While it wasn't exactly a tag team match, the talking point after the fact was simple: Kofi and Creed can not only still go, but they can go hard, matching the fast-paced style AEW has become known for and showing off some innovative tag team offense. From the eye test alone, it seems pretty obvious that WWE was holding these guys back, and in the process holding back the division Kofi and Creed once reigned over as dominant champions.

Add to that the fact that AEW now appears poised to debut their own version of the famed TLC match, this one involving the Young Bucks and FTR alongside originators Adam Copeland and Christian Cage, and the WWE tag division seems even more stuck in the mud. AEW is about to recreate the tag team showcase that spearheaded the division 25 years ago; WWE has the MFTs. It's pretty clear which division is in a healthier state.

Written by Miles Schneiderman

Bronson Reed had been showing off his new, impressive physique on social media prior to his return at Sunday Night's Main Event, but finally seeing him on TV again really showed just how much work the "Big" man put in during his rehabilitation from a torn biceps he suffered back in February. It's hard enough to rehab an injury, especially one that reportedly took him out of big plans surrounding the Elimination Chamber, but coming back in better shape than you've ever been before is something else entirely. He looks great and appears to be moving really well, all good signs for what could be on the horizon for him.

Reed returned to immediately make an impact, nailing Oba Femi with a chair to help out Bron Breakker in his match. In reports leading up to his return, it was revealed that he was likely to be positioned as a top heel within WWE, and during the beatdown of Femi following the match at SNME, Reed hit him with four Tsunamis, signaling that could very well be his direction moving forward.

He stood tall alongside the rest of The Vision at the event, after it had been speculated he could have potentially taken out both competitors to align himself with Paul Heyman as the "Future of WWE." Reed took to social media after the show to solidify that he is in fact, for now, at least, once again part of The Vision, which he said was now "whole." On a relatively heatless Sunday Night's Main Event, Reed's return was one of maybe two big surprises, which made it feel even more special.

On Monday's edition of "WWE Raw," after The Vision cut a promo and then beat down Alpha Academy's Otis, Reed once again took out Femi alongside Breakker, and hit him with two more Tsunamis for good measure. It cemented that Reed getting the upper hand over Femi the night before wasn't a fluke, which was a good look for him.

With Reed's improved physique and the reports he's set to head to the top of the heel scene, it appears things are only onward and upward for "Big" Bronson Reed. There are plenty of storyline opportunities for him, and getting involved with Breakker's feud with Femi makes things interesting. His return was the shot in the arm The Vision, and the red brand as a whole, desperately needed.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Baron Corbin returned to WWE after nearly two years away in July, after the company chose not to renew his contract at the end of 2024. He had himself a big moment at WWE SummerSlam, when he defeated Trick Williams for the United States Championship, but since that moment, things haven't been too hot for "The Nomad" — Corbin's booking at Sunday Night's Main Event made many fans on social media question just why the former MLW Tag Team Champion returned to the company in the first place.

Corbin's booking history on the main roster in WWE has never been the greatest, as he was once blamed by The Authority, on-screen, as the reason why ratings were in the toilet, and his matches on Sunday were almost reminiscent of that time period, though to a less extreme level. The star was booked in a match against hip-hop artist, and manager of Williams, Lil Yachty. If Yachty could survive five minutes in the ring with Corbin, Williams would get another shot at the United States title.

Instead of having Yachty play a chicken s*** and just run around the ring and arena to avoid the champion, WWE instead booked Corbin to look stupid. After hitting the star with the End of Days, a move that famously, only one person has ever kicked out of, instead of pinning Yachty, Corbin went under the ring to grab and set up a table at an embarrassingly slow pace. He set up to send Yachty through the table, but the clock ran out, and it was revealed Williams would be receiving his title match then and there.

Despite Corbin's best efforts, he was obviously frazzled by it all, and not even a title shot to Williams' head behind the referee's back could keep him down. Williams dodged the End of Days into a Trick Shot, and reclaimed the United States Championship. The title change was equal parts surprising and not, as WWE had almost telegraphed it if you were watching and listening close enough. Corbin continued to carry around the silly fuzzy custom title belt that Williams introduced, even after declaring it was "getting a hair cut."

With the top title picture on the blue brand packed with the likes of Kevin Owens, GUNTHER, Finn Balor, and Sami Zayn all vying for CM Punk's Undisputed WWE Championship, it's highly unlikely Corbin is set to move up the card. The US title scene isn't a bad secondary place to be whatsoever, but with fans consistently clamoring for Carmelo Hayes in the US title picture alongside Williams, it's unlikely Corbin recaptures the gold anytime soon.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Sol Ruca has qualified for the Women's Money In The Bank Match, and I want you all to sit with that for a moment and consider how perfect it is.

Ruca has been on a rocket-ride up the rankings of WWE, and now she's entering a match that is tailor-made for her kind of high-flying, reckless style. Like Jeff Hardy before her, I'm not sure how she competes in a ladder match without walking away the standout of the match, barring some kind of tragedy. It's a simply electric pairing of style and match, and it's hard not to mark it as one of the big wins of the week.

WWE could've made Ruca, and her fans, wait, maybe until a Last Chance match where she makes it in...or she could be one of the first names in the match, and essentially being tasked with selling the match simply on the fact that "Sol Ruca's First Money In The Bank Match" really does sound like a big deal when you just write it out like that.

I'm not going to say "the sky's the limit," because that's tacky and cliche, but it's so perfect that I will lampshade it like this, because the sky really is the limit for Sol Ruca.

Written by Ross Berman