Some wrestling matches are just wrestling matches, you don't need to know anything ahead of time and can just jump in. Most of the time, though, at least a little bit of context is required, especially for big event matches that are often the culmination of weeks, months, or even years of storytelling. Sometimes a match involves so many moving parts that it's difficult to keep track of everything and then The Rock shows up and maybes everything even crazier.
The 2025 men's EliminationChamber match involves five former world champions Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre,Seth Rollins,CM Punk, and JohnCena, on his retirement tour and media megastar LoganPaul. It's a star-studded field, with the winner punching their ticket to the main event of WrestleMania Night 2, presumably where they will try to end the Undisputed WWE Championship reign of Cody Rhodes one year after it began. Beyond just the question of who gets to challenge Cody, there are a wide variety of potential storylines that could come into play during the Chamber, and it's while likely that the WrestleMania 41 card will look a lot clearer onSaturday night than it did onSaturday morning, that doesn't make it any easier to keep an eye on the various 'Mania matches WWE has been teasing for the past several weeks.That's why Wrestling Inc. is here to provide anyone who needs it with a primer on all the angles swirling around the men's Chamber match, including wrestlers who aren't even currently part of it.
How deep does the bad blood run between recent rivals like Punk,Rollins, and McIntyre? How did Cena get here without qualifying, and what would it mean to fulfill his promise to main event "The Show of Shows" one last time? What does The Rock have to do with any of this?As we continue barreling down the Road toWrestleMania, this is The Story So Far.
Damian Priest came onto "WWE SmackDown" during the most recent transfer window, and he came in hot, scoring a victory in an Elimination Chamber Qualifying Triple Threat match against Braun Strowman and Jacob Fatu just under a month after his arrival onto the blue brand. With his ticket to Toronto now stamped, the former "Seor Money in the Bank" and one-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion has plenty to prove heading into Saturday's event.
While this is his second Elimination Chamber appearance, Priest is one of the newer faces heading into Toronto, lacking many of the other participants' long histories with each other.One exception to this, however, is Priest's rumoredWrestleMania opponent, Drew McIntyre. Priest and McIntyre's tensions began during Priest's reign as "Seor Money in the Bank," when his looming presence casted a shadow over McIntyre's fight for Seth Rollins' World Heavyweight Championship. Priest ultimately spoiled McIntyre's WrestleMania victory, as an opportune Money in the Bank cash-in (combined with the scheming of another Chamber participant, CM Punk) resulted in only a minutes-long WWE World Heavyweight Championship reign for "The Scottish Psychopath." McIntyre later tried to reclaim the title in his home nation at June 2024's WWE Clash at the Castle, but Priest successfully retained, again thanks to Punk.
Should Priest shock the world and outlast five other men in the Elimination Chamber, he will earn the right to face WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes in Vegas, at WrestleMania 41. While Priest is definitely a dark horse going into Saturday's Chamber festivities, he and current champion Rhodes have already shared a few interactions ahead of Priest's match-up. Rhodes interfered with the Bloodline's antics during Priest's Elimination Chamber qualifying match on the February 14 episode of "SmackDown," which allowed Priest to secure the victory and his spot in the Elimination Chamber. While Rhodes did not expressly work in Priest's best interest he was mainly there to fight Solo Sikoa Rhodes and Priest did share a backstage momentwhere Priest noted that both of them walked out of WrestleMania 40 as champions. Priest told Rhodes that he respected him and was gunning for the WWE Universal Championship after the Elimination Chamber, to which Rhodes expressed that he "wouldn't have it any other way."
Written byAngeline Phu
Drew McIntyre heads into the Elimination Chamber match hoping to earn his second consecutive win in the demonic structure, having won the men's Chamber last year to earn his place at WrestleMania. Awaiting him inside the structure will be Seth Rollins (the man he beat for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at last year's Mania) CM Punk (the man who then attacked him afterward), and Damian Priest (the man who then cashed in Money in the Bank and took the title away again). McIntyre and Punk seemed to conclude their feud inside Hell in a Cell at Bad Blood last year, with McIntyre losing that bout and Punk declaring his intent to move on, but it's hard to imagine the animosity between them having dissipated between then and Saturday. The same can be said of Priest, who managed to hold off McIntyre's championship ambitions last year and who eliminated McIntyre from the 2025 men's Royal Rumble match earlier this month,McIntyre was reportedly upset about how the spot went, given that it was meant to kick off a Mania program, but there's been no follow-up to the elimination on "SmackDown" thus far.
When Rollins was getting ready for his match against Punk in January, McIntyre flirted with the idea of them teaming up to take on their common foes. Rollins has until this point chosen not to align with McIntyre, but locked within the Chamber, it's an idea that could be revisited. Still, alliances seldom last long in these kinds of matches, and Rollins holds the statistical momentum over McIntyre, having pinned him in their last match in January.
Following his loss to Punk at Bad Blood, McIntyre returned and later moved to "WWE SmackDown" with the expressed intent to wipe out the Original Bloodline and those who stand with them. Thus far, he has taken out Jey and Jimmy Uso, as well as Sami Zayn, for their part in teaming with Roman Reigns at Survivor Series. Notably, WWE Champion Cody Rhodes also stood with Reigns at Bad Blood, a move that shattered his friendship with Kevin Owens and which will only add an incentive for McIntyre to book his place at WrestleMania.
Written by MaxEverett
Logan Paul may be at a disadvantage in this year's Elimination Chamber in the sense he's the only competitor to have never held world championship gold, but he's not inexperienced within the structure. He competed in his first Chamber match last year, and despite taking a brutal beating from Kevin Owens throughout the matchand ultimately coming up short, he eventually got himself to WrestleMania, where he defeated Owens and Randy Orton to retain the United States Championship.
"The Maverick" defeated Rey Mysterio in the main event of "WWE Raw" with a Paul-verizer back on February 10 to earn himself a spot in the match. He's since continued to feud with CM Punk who he eliminated in the Royal Rumble match ahead of the Chamber, going face-to-face with the "Straight Edge Superstar" on the most recent episode of "Raw," which ended with Paul slapping Punk.
Paul also has a potential storyline with the legendary John Cena going in to the Chamber match. Both were in the final three of the Rumble, and Paul was eliminated by the "Leader of the Cenation." Paul took to his YouTube channel following the event to express how betrayed he felt by Cena. He said he grew up idolizing Cena, only for him to throw him over the top rope like he was "f***ing trash." While Cena hasn't responded to Paul, he did say in the press conference after the Rumble that he was happy to let the five other competitors in the Elimination Chamber trash talk him while he was away filming a movie.
Written byDaisyRuth
Seth "Freaking" Rollins is headed to Elimination Chamber, and he's bringing plenty of baggage with him. Rollins' road to Elimination Chamber began on the February 17 episode of "WWE Raw," where he bested Finn Balor in a qualifying match to claim the last open spot in the Chamber. With his place in the Chamber secured, Rollins will meet a few very familiar faces in the chamber the most pertinent of those being Drew McIntyre and historically-detested man, CM Punk.
While Rollins has plenty of animosity towards McIntyre and Punk as individuals, their stories have all been entangled with each other. Their interwoven paths ultimately collided at SummerSlam 2024, when Rollins was named the guest referee for Punk's SummerSlam match against McIntyre. During the match, Punk got aggressive toward Rollins (who has been vocal about his distaste for Punk's return to WWE since it happened in late 2023) and when Rollins scooped up Punk's infamous wife-and-dog friendship bracelet as a part of his referee duties, Punk responded with a GTS. Punk's aggression towards Rollins eventually allowed McIntyre to steal the win and cost Punk his first SummerSlam match in 11 years. Rollins and Punk revived their animosities at the tail end of 2024, with Rollins taking to the microphone multiple times to remind Punk of his previous anti-WWE sentiments; the finally locked up on the Netflix debut of "Raw," where Punk scored a victory over "The Visionary" in the show's main event. Since then, Rollins and Punk's feud has gotten even more personal, with stories of Rollins' past attempts to train under Punk becoming a key talking point during their recent promo exchanges. During the 2025 men's Royal Rumble match, Rollins attacked both Punk and Roman Reigns following their back-to-back-to-back eliminations; he also tried hard to motivate SamiZayn to defeat Punk inan Elimination Chamber qualifier on "WWE Raw."
While Rollins' main target has been Punk in recent months, there's still tension between Rollins and Drew McIntyre; they feuded for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship leading into WrestleMania 40, where McIntyre bested Rollins for the title before unceremoniously losing it only a few minutes later to a Money in the Bank cash-in from Damian Priest). Since then, Rollins and McIntyre have been connected by their shared resentment for Punk and Reigns, though they have yet to act on any sort of alliance. Rollins has some history with Paul and some ancienthistory with Cena, as well, though he was most recently in the ring with Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes on the "Raw" before Elimination Chamber.
Written by Angeline Phu
Time is ticking on CM Punk's career-long dream of wrestling in the main event of WrestleMania, and the Elimination Chamber is potentially his last chance to do so this year. Within the structure, he will renew his acquaintance with rivals Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins, having beaten them at Bad Blood last year and the Netflix premiere of "WWE Raw" this year, respectively. Punk has said he intends to move on from these personal vendettas to focus on his title goals, but now Logan Paul has reared his head as another potential rival. Punk and Paul shared the ring on Monday, the latter leaving the former with an ax to grind with an impromptu slap and retreat. Punk told the social media star to run while he can, because inside the Chamber there will be no place to hide.
Punk vs.Paul is a potential WrestleMania match if Punk loses, but if he wins, it's Punk vs.Rhodes.The pair exchanged memorable words ahead of RoyalRumble, making it clear even before Jey Uso won the men'sRumble match and picked GUN THER as his opponent that he wanted to face Rhodes in the main event;Rhodes also madeit clear he wanted to face Punk and prove he was no longer the best in the world. Standing in Punk's way, however, is perhaps his greatest rival, John Cena, who Punk defeated for the WWE Championship in a legendary match at Money in the Bank 2011. Punk has been vocal about the fact that he's specifically coming for Cena in the Chamber match, particularly after Cena was given free entry into the contest while the other five participants had to qualify.
There is also the looming question of the favor owed to Punk by Roman Reigns' "Wise Man" Paul Heyman, as a result of their team-up at Survivor Series last year, and what that may entail should he win or lose in the Chamber match. He did himself no favors to that arrangement when he eliminated Reigns from the men's Rumble, but if the offer is still valid, there may still be a pathway to the main event of WrestleMania even if Punk falls in the Chamber.
Written byMax Everett
While John Cena has a few old rivals in the Chamber in the form of Seth Rollins and CM Punk, his story in Toronto is less about any one person than it is about his own personal legacy. When he announced his retirement tour at Money in the Bank in July 2024, he didn't seem adamant about winning a record-breaking 17th world championship, but following his Royal Rumble loss to Jey Uso, he certainly is now. Cena didn't have to qualify for the Elimination Chamber before leaving the country to film a movie, ruffling the feathers of competitors like CM Punk and Drew McIntyre, but rather declared for the match at the press conference following the Rumble. Taking no questions, Cena somberly said he believes what's best for business is him competing in the main event of WrestleMania, and what's best is also him winning a 17th championship, which he said he is confident he'll do.
"I'm saying that because after 23 years of loyal service to this company, I feel that opportunity is earned," he said.
The "Leader of the Cenation" is no stranger to Elimination Chamber matches; he's competed in seven total (though not since 2018) and has won three (though not since 2011).Cena is also still looking for his first televised singles victory since April 2018 despite making numerous appearances over the last seven years, he's picked up victories only in tag team matches. Cena's last singles match was a loss to Solo Sikoa in Saudi Arabia at Crown Jewel in 2023; before that, he lost to then-United States Champion Austin Theory at WrestleMania 39. The story he's telling in his final year in WWE seems to be about aging, about losing your edge, and about what it takes to get back to the top at the end of a historic career. Recent reports that WWE plans to pit Cena against Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania seem to indicate a Chamber win and quick return to the highest echelons of WWE are in his future, though many fans have wondered if, given Cena will be in WWE throughDecember,the story might not take a little longer to play out.
Written byDaisyRuth
As though we didn't have enough drama heading into the men's EliminationChamber match, The Rock had to show up on "WWE SmackDown" last week and drop a massive new twist in our laps.
The moment Jey Uso claimed WWE World Heavyweight Champion GUNTHER as his target following his 2025 RoyalRumble victory, Undisputed WWE ChampionCodyRhodes was marked as the champion to be challenged by the winner of the men's Chamber. It's a crowded field and Rhodes has history of varying richness with all six participants, so there were a lot of places to go no matter who came out the victor though fans still hoping for last year's teased match between Rhodes and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson were seemingly left disappointed.
Fast forward to last Friday, and all that has changed. It's not just about who wins the Chamber anymore now it's about Rhodes' soul, which The Rock openly asked for during his appearance on "SmackDown," offering Rhodes wealth and power beyond his wildest dreams in exchange for being "The Rock's champion." It's not clear where any of this is going or how it fits into WrestleMania; all we know is that Rhodes and Rock are set for a segment on Elimination Chamber during whichRhodes will either accept or reject Rock's proposal.If he accepts, does that mean he turns heel, the better to serve as a foil for the likes of Punk orCena? If he doesn't, does Rock attach himself to the Chamber winner, backing whoever that might be up at WrestleMania? Would a rejected Rock go so far as to enter the Chamber himself, replacing one of the announced participants and setting up the Rock vs.Rhodes match we thought we were getting, then thought we weren't? The spectrum of possibility is as broad as Rock's character, which seems to swing back and forth between babyface legend, company representative, movie star, and "The FinalBoss." His forcible entry into the 'Mania picture may not have made things any less complicated, but they certainly made things more interesting.
Written by Miles Schneiderman
