WWE Elimination Chamber 2025 results, winners, grades: John Cena turns heel on Cody Rhodes, joins The Rock

It finally happened. After more than two decades, John Cena turned his back on the crowd. The 16-time world champion left Cody Rhodes in a bloody heap, shockingly siding with The Rock after winning the men’s Elimination Chamber match on Saturday.

It’s been 22 years since Cena has been anything but WWE’s ultimate good guy. For more than a decade, fans have called for a change in demeanor. On Saturday, Cena finally pulled the trigger in his last year as an in-ring performer.

Undisputed WWE champion Rhodes and Cena will headline WrestleMania 41. What appeared to be a dream match between two of WWE’s most enduring heroes was flipped upside down. After Rhodes refused to side with The Rock, Cena brutally beatdown his WrestleMania foe.

The WWE Elimination Chamber event also produced a match of the year candidate between Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, and revealed one half of the women’s world title match at WrestleMania.

CBS Sports was with you the whole way through the event, providing updates and highlights as the action went down in the live blog below.

Bianca Belair wins women’s Elimination Chamber match after emotional start

Things started with a major shock. Jade Cargill’s music hit moments before Naomi and Morgan were set to begin. Cargill stared down a petrified Morgan before lunging unexpectedly at Naomi. Cargill viciously beatdown Naomi as Bianca Belair begged for peace between her tag team partners while locked in her pod. Cargill booted Naomi into a Chamber pod before squishing her head between a sliding door as Naomi attempted to crawl out of the Chamber. Cargill stormed off as Naomi was stretchered away, effectively eliminating her from the match.

A distraught Belair next entered the fray. She rushed over to check on Naomi but was blindsided by Morgan. The two active participants wrestled back-and-forth until Perez left her pod. The two-time NXT champion hit the ground running, keeping pace with her more experienced opponents. Bayley rushed at Perez once her door opened. Bayley repeatedly slammed Perez’s head against the pod until she crumbled. Bayley was on quite the roll until Perez hit her with a powerbomb to the steel floor followed by a frog splash. Bliss was the last woman to enter the chamber, sauntering into the ring in a trance. Bliss’ composure transformed to rage as she started taking out her opponents one by one.

Then the eliminations picked up. Perez nearly eliminated Bayley with a cross face. The “Role Model” cleverly rolled from the ring to the fence to help grate Perez’s fingers off. Back in the ring, Morgan caught Bayley off-guard with Oblivion for the night’s first pinfall. Morgan fled atop a pod as Belair gave chase. “The EST of WWE” thwacked Morgan off the pod with a hair whip before diving onto her three remaining opponents. Belair’s hair whip left a nasty red gash across Morgan’s stomach. Bliss got the worst of a Tower of Doom superplex but soon scored the night’s third elimination. An impressive sequence of signature moves saw Perez eat a codebreaker from Morgan while attempting Pop Rox on Belair. Perez landed directly in Bliss’ flight path as the five-time champion scored the pin with Twisted Bliss.

Bliss spiked Belair with a Sister Abigail DDT before getting pinned by Morgan’s surprise roll up. Morgan tried to clean up Bliss’ leftovers but Belair’s fire raged on. Belair survived the immediate pin attempt, a hilarious spot where Morgan used Belair’s braid to ricochet her between the ropes and chain link fence repeatedly, and a second rope codebreaker. Belair’s renowned strength was again showcased as she swung Morgan’s head between the pod and fence followed by a powerbomb. The finish came after another strong sequence of counters. Morgan countered the KOD into a codebreaker before Belair countered Oblivion into a match-winning KOD.

Talk about starting and finishing strong. Cargill’s mauling of Naomi will be a major talking point this weekend. The middle portion of the match felt clunky, but things gelled beautifully once the final four started exchanging big moves. Post-match, Belair faced off with women’s world champion Ripley and title challenger Iyo Sky. A first-time main roster match between Belair and Ripley is long overdue, and a rematch of Belair and Sky’s acclaimed 2023 Backlash match sounds great too. Belair def. Morgan, Bliss, Perez, Bayley and Naomi to win the women’s Elimination Chamber match. Grade: A-

Tiffany Stratton, Trish Stratus best Nia Jax, Candace LeRae

Jax’s physical dominance was on full display. WWE Hall of Famer Stratus — competing in her first tag team or singles match in two years — got the worst of the abuse. Jax ragdolled the Canadian legend around the ring, kindly allowing LeRae to get shots in too. The Toronto crowd called for “Tiffy Time,” but Jax mocked them by delivering a disrespectful stinkface to Stratus. A desperate maneuver by Stratus finally led to the hot tag. The WWE women’s champion hit the ring like a wrecking ball. Stratton executed a beautiful handspring back elbow to LeRae and heaved Jax with a spinebuster. Stratton’s feats of strength continued as she delivered an impressive suplex to her former ally.

Stratus wasn’t about to be outdone by her teammate. Stratus, 49, performed a picture perfect stalled handspring head scissors to LeRae in the corner before hitting Jax with a top rope Statusfaction bulldog. LeRae broke up the pin with a springboard moonsault but inadvertently landed on Jax. Stratton put the final nail in Jax’s coffin with the Prettiest Moonsault Ever. A well-executed match. Jax drew heat well, Stratus performed well and Stratton picked up a major win before WrestleMania. Stratton and Stratus def. Jax and LeRae via pinfall. Grade: B+

Kevin Owens beats Sami Zayn in unsanctioned thriller, a vengeful Randy Orton returns

You could tell things were tense even if you entered the Elimination Chamber blind. WWE dimmed the lights for the unsanctioned match. Both superstars wore black, as did the referee. The lifelong friends threw punches as soon as the bell rang. Their fist-fight was the match’s family-friendly moment. A steel chair, hockey stick and table were introduced within minutes. Owens’ actions were visceral. He wrenched the hockey stick against Zayn’s teeth while biting his face.

The fight spilled into the crowd as fans cheered on their fellow Canadians. After being choked by Owens, Zayn went completely off the rails. The fan-favorite walloped Owens with a trash can before back suplexing him through two separate tables. Zayn’s unhinged attack elicited loud “This is awesome!” chants. Owens caught his breath after surprising Zayn with a ring bell and television monitor to the cranium. The rivals returned to the ring but only briefly. Owens and Zayn fought for dominance atop the corner rope. Owens suddenly slipped underneath Zayn and shoved his estranged best friend. Zayn front flipped as he crashed through two stacked tables ringside. Zayn, discombobulated, clutched onto the neck that Owens’ damaged weeks ago with a package piledriver. “The Prizefighter” further targeted the neck, unfolding a steel chair before bending it under the weight of a fisherman’s brainbuster delivered to Zayn. Somehow, Zayn kicked out and flattened the chair completely with a Half Nelson suplex.

Owens had the match won after landing the stunner, but had deja vu from his Saturday Night’s Main Event match with Cody Rhodes. The referee, unconscious after eating an inadvertent blow, could not count the fall. A second referee rushed to the ring but Zayn kicked out at two. An enraged Owens nearly took the second ref’s head off with a clothesline as a third arrived to replace him. Zayn’s bad luck with tables continued after Owens planted him with a top rope fisherman’s buster through another table. Owens crawled over and draped his arm over Zayn, but Zayn just barely got his shoulder up to avoid the pin. Zayn caught a vengeful Owens off guard with a Helluva Kick. Still, Owens kicked out at two.

As if things couldn’t get more unhinged, Zayn pulled a barbed wire wrapped steel chair from underneath the ring. Zayn twice smashed the chair across Owens’ back before propping it up. A simple drop toe hold sent Owens face first into the chair. Owens cried in agony but Zayn had no remorse. Zayn laid the barbed wire chair across two other chairs to execute a nasty Blue Thunder Bomb. Shockingly, Owens kicked out again. Owens found reprieve with a pop-up bowerbomb before attempting to decapitate Zayn. Owens wrapped a chair over Zayn’s head before driving him throat first into two ring posts. An apron powerbomb followed. Multiple producers fruitlessly intervened as Owens landed another apron powerbomb. The second powerbomb was enough to settle matters as Owens rolled Zayn into the ring for the three count.

Post-match, Owens tried to deliver a career-ending blow but was foiled by a returning Randy Orton. “The Legend Killer” had been absent for months after Owens hospitalized him with a package piledriver. Orton attempted to end Owens’ career with a punt, but WWE producers intervened at the last second. Orton took out his frustration by RKOing several security guards. This was the most violent match WWE has produced in years. No one could be trusted to deliver this like Owens and Zayn. The two have incredible chemistry. They produced a match with quality action, insane spots and plenty of drama. Orton’s return got a big pop and set the stage for the former tag partners to battle at WrestleMania.Owens def. Zayn via pinfall. Grade: A+

John Cena survives the Chamber, punches ticket to Cody Rhodes match at WrestleMania

Drew McIntyre started the match with one of his many rivals, Seth Rollins. The superstars brawled as their mutual enemy CM Punk egged them on. The most brutal moment of their early aggressions saw McIntyre crush Rollins’ throat against an exposed turnbuckle. Damian Priest was the first superstar to exit the pod. The action picked up as the three superstars went to battle. Priest got the worst of a miniature Tower of Doom. Paul entered the fray hot, flattening McIntyre with a springboard crossbody. Paul boasted a little too long as Priest emerged behind him. Priest walloped Paul from pod to pod as the Toronto crowd cheered loudly. The match’s first awesome spot saw Priest deliver an impressive Old School hurricanrana on McIntyre.

The crowd went wild as John Cena’s pod opened. The legend cleared the field with his greatest hits, including multiple Attitude Adjustments. The fans were particularly gleeful when Cena hoisted Paul on his shoulders. Cena’s hot streak was cut short by a McIntyre Claymore Kick but the Scotsman’s good luck was about to run out. McIntyre was eliminated first after Priest surprised him with a crucifix pin. An irrate McIntyre cracked Priest with a Claymore Kick, setting up Paul for a frog splash off a Chamber pod to eliminate Priest.

CM Punk entered the match last, immediately dropping Paul. The crowd came unglued as they realized Cena and Punk were the only superstars upright. The legendary rivals said they missed each other as they squared up. Unfortunately for fans, their face off was interrupted by a bitter Rollins. Rollins kicked Punk in the head before telling Cena to stay out of his business. Cena and Rollins exchanged punches until Paul laid them out with a shaky, flipping double clothesline. Queue Punk, who delighted the crowd by dropping Paul with a GTS and pinning him.

Punk and Cena found common ground, eliciting The Hart Foundation with a Hart Attack combo. Punk and Cena hugged before trading blows. The former world champions exchanged signature moves: Cena countered the GTS into an STF before Punk countered into Anaconda Vice. Cena’s strength has not abandoned him at 47 years old. The 16-time world champion caught Punk’s top rope cross body, rolled through and hit an Attitude Adjustment for the two-count.

Cena couldn’t build off his success as Rollins returned and tossed Cena through a pod. Cena’s absence allowed Rollins and Punk to tango. Both men attempted their signature moves. Rollins got the better of it, hitting Punk with a buckle bomb and stop. Rollins attempted a second stop for the middle rope but Cena intervened. Punk nailed Rollins with a GTS that walked Rollins into an Attitude Adjustment. Punk leapt for the cover and eliminated Rollins. Cena reached out to shake Punk’s hand but was pulled directly into a GTS. Cena kicked out at the nick of time. Karma delivered an Attitude Adjustment to Punk but he also kicked out with a moment to spare. Rollins might not have won the match but found a measure of vengeance. Rollins hit Punk with a stomp to the cage floor. Cena leapt at the opportunity presented by latching on an STF that rendered Punk unconscious.

Cena will now headline WrestleMania 41 with undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes. A very good Chamber match that developed multiple WrestleMania storylines. The action could have been better, but Cena and Punk delivered so much great fan service. The main event did not live up to the insanity of Owens vs. Zayn, creating some burnout for the viewer experience. Cena def. Punk, Rollins, Paul, Priest and McIntyre. Grade: A-

John Cena sides with The Rock, leaves Cody Rhodes a bloody mess

Segment: Cena and Rhodes shook hands after the main event concluded. Their pleasantries were cut short by The Rock, accompanied by rapper Travis Scott. The Rock demanded Rhodes’ soul in exchange for an immortal legacy. The Rock said if Rhodes’ declines, his dreams would die. Rhodes said he wanted it all but couldn’t give The Rock his soul because he gave it to the fans long ago. Rhodes loudly proclaimed, “Go f— yourself!” to The Rock as the crowd erupted. Shockingly, Cena kicked Rhodes in the groin before delivering an Attitude Adjustment. The beatdown continued with a barrage of Rolex-assisted punches and a microphone to the head. Cena, frowning, hoisted the undisputed WWE championship up before cracking it over Cena’s head. Cena proceeded to strangle a bloodied Rhodes and hold him in place as The Rock lashed him with a weight belt. After a decade-plus of calling for Cena to turn heel, the WWE finally pulled the trigger in the most emphatic way possible. Grade: A+