WWE Crown Jewel 2025 predictions, card, start time, matches, expert picks, date for event in Australia

On Saturday, WWE Crown Jewel takes place outside Saudi Arabia for the first time since the event’s inception. This year’s event will be held in Perth, Australia, though it will operate under the same format as last year’s Crown Jewel.

That means two headline matches featuring WWE’s top champions. On the men’s side, undisputed WWE champion Cody Rhodes will take on world heavyweight champion Seth Rollins. For the women, world champion Iyo Sky will face WWE women’s champion Tiffany Stratton. The winners of those matches will win the ceremonial Crown Jewel championship, taking home a ring for their victory.

There are some other huge matches set for the card, which will take place at 8 a.m. on Saturday, including one of John Cena’s final matches on his retirement tour as he takes on an old rival in AJ Styles. Roman Reigns will also be in action, facing Bronson Reed in an Australian Street Fight.

With so many big matches set for the event, let’s take a look at what the CBS Sports pro wrestling experts think will happen when the action goes down in Perth.

Men’s Crown Jewel Championship — Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins: The Crown Jewel stipulation is tailor-made for Rhodes to lose. It’s meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Rhodes solidified himself as a top draw by repeatedly beating Rollins upon his return to WWE. It’s about time Rollins got one over on “The American Nightmare.” On Raw, CM Punk teased that he respects Rhodes too much to get involved in his business, suggesting The Vision’s numbers game could get the better of the son of a son of a plumber. Pick: Seth Rollins wins — Shakiel Mahjouri

Maybe I lean too heavily into what would be most interesting rather than what WWE is likely to do. Rhodes having Rollins’ number and causing a crisis of confidence for The Vision’s leader is interesting; Rollins winning with the assistance of Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker is not. Similarly, Rollins winning on his own doesn’t really do much for how the story of The Vision is being constructed. Paul Heyman already sent a message to Rollins that a loss was unacceptable and would make him question the decision to back Rollins over Roman Reigns. Would Breakker be content to sit behind a man who can’t get the job done against Rhodes? The most interesting option is for Rhodes to win, so that’s what WWE should do. Pick: Cody Rhodes wins — Brent Brookhouse

Women’s Crown Jewel Championship — Tiffany Stratton vs. Stephanie Vaquer: Vaquer is a fresh champion who needs to continue building credibility as a main event-level star. Stratton has had a good run with her title, so a loss isn’t particularly damaging in the same way it would be for Vaquer. That makes for some pretty simple math that just says to give Vaquer the victory. Pick: Stephanie Vaquer wins — Brookhouse (also Mahjouri)

John Cena vs. AJ Styles: Cena vs. Styles is the most deserving farewell tour match requiring the least storyline build. They had shockingly great matches at the height of their rivalry. That’s enough to warrant one last tango. It’s just a shame most of Cena’s retirement tour has been half-baked. Cena’s loss to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza really deflated fans. It’s unlikely he takes another clean loss with his final match fast approaching. Styles, who recently said he’d retire next year, doesn’t have much to gain by beating Cena. All anyone wants to see is one more solid outing from one of the most surprising hit feuds in WWE history. Pick: John Cena wins — Mahjouri (also Brookhouse)

Roman Reigns vs. Bronson Reed: Reigns matches are so rare that it makes the results fairly predictable. Reed has been around to give Reigns someone he can defeat to stay around the title picture without actually being in it. It’s hard to imagine Reed being given a win over Reigns. What purpose would that serve? To set up a third Reigns vs. Reed match? That doesn’t seem like a good way to use Reigns moving forward. That should mean a win for Reigns so he can move on to Breakker. Pick: Roman Reigns wins — Brookhouse (also Mahjouri)

Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky vs. The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka & Kairi Sane): Ripley and Sky are bigger stars than The Kabuki Warriors. Plain and simple. It doesn’t seem WWE has much planned long-term for the villainous duo, at least not enough to give them a win over two of the women’s division’s biggest stars. This match is mostly an excuse to get Ripley in front of her home fans. Expect “Mami” to pick up a big win for her fellow Aussies. Pick: Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky win — Mahjouri (also Brookhouse)