WWE Survivor Series 2025 rolled into Petco Park in San Diego with the kind of loaded men’s WarGames match that feels more like fantasy booking than reality: CM Punk and Cody Rhodes sharing a cage with Roman Reigns and the Usos, facing a wrecking crew of Brock Lesnar, Logan Paul, Drew McIntyre, Bronson Reed and Bron Breakker. For longtime fans, it was part reunion, part dream match, and part “how is all of this even happening in one ring?”.

Below is a results-focused, spoiler-heavy breakdown of the men’s WarGames bout—complete with winners, live grades, reaction, highlights and what this all means heading into the next WWE premium live events.

WWE Survivor Series WarGames promotional image featuring top Superstars
Official Survivor Series–style promotional art, setting the tone for a stacked WarGames card. (Image via Bleacher Report / WME Sports)

Setting the Stage: Why This WarGames Match Mattered

Survivor Series has quietly evolved over the last few years. Once the “Big Four” pay-per-view defined by brand warfare and elimination tags, it’s now a WarGames showcase, with the double-cage stipulation acting as a payoff mechanism for the company’s most heated feuds. Bringing that structure outdoors to Petco Park gave WWE a stadium-sized sandbox to play in.

The men’s WarGames lineup read like a modern WWE power ranking:

  • On the babyface side: Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso, CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, and Roman Reigns—a volatile mash-up of Bloodline history and top-tier babyfaces.
  • On the heel side: Drew McIntyre, Bronson Reed, Brock Lesnar, Bron Breakker, and Logan Paul—five very different kinds of monster, from celebrity champion to next-gen powerhouse.

That combination turned WarGames into more than a simple “faces vs. heels” story. It was an intersection of several long-running arcs: Punk’s in-ring redemption quest, Cody’s ongoing main-event ascent, the fractured Bloodline universe, Logan Paul’s unexpected legitimacy as United States Champion, and WWE’s clear investment in future cornerstones like Breakker.

“You put that many main-eventers in a cage and the hardest part isn’t the match—it’s making sure everybody’s story comes through.” — a former WWE producer speaking to Bleacher Report earlier this year about modern WarGames booking.
Wrestling ring inside an arena with dramatic lighting
WarGames brings an old-school cage-match aura to WWE’s modern stadium presentation. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Men’s WarGames Teams, Result and Quick Take

Participants

Team Babyface: Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso, CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns

Team Heel: Drew McIntyre, Bronson Reed, Brock Lesnar, Bron Breakker, Logan Paul

Result

For the first time since 2022, the heel side walked out of WarGames with the win, capitalizing on internal tension among the babyfaces and some well-timed interference-style chaos inside the cage. The finish leaned into Logan Paul’s opportunistic persona and Brock Lesnar’s aura as the ultimate closer.

Live Grade: A-

The match delivered on spectacle and storytelling, with only a slightly overstuffed closing stretch and occasionally messy pacing keeping it from the full “A+ classic” territory.

Professional wrestling cage match concept image
The WarGames double cage changes the rhythm of a match, building anticipation with each staggered entrance. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Storytelling Inside the Cage: Bloodline Fallout and Punk’s Road Back

The hook of this WarGames wasn’t just “superstars in a cage.” It was the uneasy alliance on the babyface side. Roman Reigns, once the unstoppable Tribal Chief, now had to coexist with Cody Rhodes—the man who ended his legendary WrestleMania title run—and the twin brothers he had emotionally (and occasionally physically) shattered over the last few years.

Layer in CM Punk, who came back to WWE with a chip on his shoulder and a point to prove, and you had a team that looked elite on paper but carried more baggage than a post–Royal Rumble press conference.

  • Jimmy and Jey Uso relived old Bloodline trauma, torn between backing Roman and forging their own path.
  • Roman Reigns played the reluctant general, trying to steer chaos but no longer holding the Undisputed title leverage he once did.
  • Cody Rhodes was the conscience of the team, but his need to prove himself as “the guy” sometimes clashed with Roman’s instincts.
  • CM Punk leaned into the veteran tactician role, selling the emotional weight of every decision inside the cage.
“WarGames works best when the babyfaces can’t quite get on the same page. That’s the drama. If they’re too united, you lose the tension.” — a note often echoed by wrestling analyst voices on podcasts and shows like Fightful.

The heels played the opposite: a brutal, business-only collection. Brock Lesnar wasn’t there to make friends; Drew McIntyre carried the chip of being once again just shy of top billing; Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed reveled in the credibility rub; Logan Paul slotted in as the smug closer, picking his spots like a veteran heel despite still being relatively new to the business.

Stadium shows add another layer: the crowd reaction becomes part of the storytelling, especially in multi-man main events. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Biggest Highlights and Turning Points

WarGames matches are built on moments. Survivor Series 2025 stacked them up, especially once all ten men were officially in the match and “The Match Beyond” truly began.

  1. Staggered Entrances That Actually Told a Story
    Instead of just sending in random participants, WWE used the order to emphasize feuds: one side gaining a temporary 2-on-1 advantage, only for an old rival to enter next and even the score. Each arrival popped the crowd, which is how WarGames is supposed to feel.
  2. Bron Breakker’s Coming-Out Party
    Breakker’s power spots—spearing opponents from ring to ring, deadlifting larger opponents—signaled how highly the company views him. Having him hang credibly with Lesnar and Reigns in quick bursts was no accident.
  3. CM Punk’s Veteran Babyface Performance
    Punk doesn’t need to hit wild dives off the cage to steal the show. Instead, he leaned into selling, timing and crowd control, anchoring sequences that kept the match from spiraling into pure stunt-fest territory.
  4. Logan Paul’s Shameless Opportunism
    True to form, Logan played the classic WWE heel: avoiding the heavy lifting early, hitting highlight-reel offense with his athleticism, then trying to swoop in on tired babyfaces in the closing minutes.
  5. A Finish That Protected Future Matches
    The heel win didn’t feel like a burial of the babyfaces so much as a plot device. Protection was layered throughout—no one top star took an especially clean, definitive fall, leaving multiple singles feuds on the table.
Spotlight shining over a wrestling-style ring during a big event
The best WarGames spots balance spectacle with character work, so big moments still feel like they belong to specific wrestlers. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Booking Analysis: Why a Heel WarGames Win Was the Right Call

Letting the heels win WarGames for the first time in a few years might sound counterintuitive, especially when you’ve got crowd darlings like Rhodes, Punk and the Usos all on the same side. But from a long-term booking perspective, it made sense.

  • It keeps Cody and Punk chasing. Chasing is almost always more compelling than dominance for babyfaces, particularly in WWE’s modern storytelling rhythm.
  • It legitimizes Logan Paul and Bron Breakker. Being attached to a winning WarGames team, especially against this lineup, gives both men “big match” credibility.
  • It preserves Roman’s mystique without putting a belt on him. Even in defeat, careful framing around Roman allows his presence to still feel special.
  • It offers Drew McIntyre another chip on his shoulder. Whether he leans more bitter heel or conflicted tweener going forward, this result fuels that persona.
“WWE’s hottest periods have often come when the heels feel slightly ahead of the game, forcing babyfaces to get creative in response.” — Longtime wrestling historian commentary echoed across outlets like ESPN’s WWE coverage.

From a meta perspective, the match also continued WWE’s recent trend of treating Survivor Series as a “chapter ender” heading into Royal Rumble season. The heels winning creates natural stakes: can the babyfaces regroup in time for the road to WrestleMania?


Strengths, Weaknesses and Live Grade Breakdown

What Worked

  • Star Power: This is as close to an “all-killer” modern WWE main event as it gets, mixing legends, main-eventers and future cornerstones.
  • Character-Driven Spots: Actions in the cage generally made sense for who was doing them—Punk strategizing, Logan cherry-picking, Breakker bulldozing.
  • Clear Long-Term Hooks: The finish and post-match body language set up several logical singles and tag programs without over-explaining anything.

What Fell Short

  • Pacing Bloat: At times, the match flirted with going too long, especially once all ten men were in and the sequences started to blur together.
  • Over-Reliance on Finisher Trains: The closing stretch leaned heavily on the “everyone-hits-a-move” trope, which can dilute individual finishers’ impact.
  • Limited Breathing Room for Reed: Bronson Reed looked destructive when featured, but he occasionally got lost in the shuffle amid bigger-name feuds.

Final Live Grade for the Men’s WarGames Match: A-
A chaotic, engaging, occasionally overcrowded main event that still did its primary job: entertain the live crowd, create highlight packages for months, and fuel future stories.

Scoreboard and lighting rig in a stadium setting
In the streaming era, live grades and instant reaction have become part of how WWE events are consumed, not just watched. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Where Survivor Series 2025 Fits in WWE’s Modern Era

From a historical standpoint, Survivor Series 2025 continues the show’s transformation from “brand vs. brand” curiosity into a core storytelling device. WarGames is no longer a novelty; it’s the canvas WWE uses to pay off or escalate its top feuds before the calendar flips to Rumble season.

This particular men’s match will likely be remembered for three things:

  • Showcasing how far Logan Paul has come as a performer.
  • Planting deeper seeds in the ever-expanding Bloodline saga.
  • Positioning Bron Breakker and other rising talent as legitimate main-event players.

In terms of rewatch value, the men’s WarGames match sits comfortably alongside recent WWE stadium main events: not perfect, but packed with enough star interactions and big-moment energy to justify a revisit on replay, especially for fans following Punk, Cody or the Bloodline arcs closely.

Wide shot of a stadium event with fireworks and lighting
WWE’s shift toward more stadium shows means matches like WarGames have to play both to the cheap seats and the camera. (Representative imagery via Pexels)

Survivor Series 2025, including the full men’s WarGames match, is available for replay on Peacock (WWE hub) in the United States and on the WWE Network internationally.

With the heels on top and tensions simmering among the babyfaces, the obvious next chapter is the 2026 Royal Rumble picture. Expect these WarGames fallout threads to weave into Rumble qualifying matches, surprise alliances, and at least one “can they coexist?” tag scenario on Raw or SmackDown.

If Survivor Series was the detonator, the road to WrestleMania is where the real explosion happens.