Everybody who comes to Cageside Seats has an opinion about what’s going on in pro wrestling — Wrestler Rankings are where YOU let us know YOURS.
Cast a vote in the comments. Give us the five performers
you think entertained or impressed the most in the last week, and feel free to talk about why.
We also have the outcome of last week’s voting, the results of which make up our annual competition for the Cageside Cup, given to our Performer of the Year.
This week, we’re voting on nationally televised and internet streaming pro wrestling shows that took place Jan. 25-31, 2026: Raw, NXT, Evolve, Dynamite, Impact, ROH on HonorClub, SmackDown, Collision, Royal Rumble, CMLL and AAA’s weekend shows, and everything else I’m no doubt forgetting.
But first, here’s the outcome of last week’s voting, and how those results changed our annual competition for the Cageside Cup.
What a difference a week makes…
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- Becoming #1 contender to the WWE title felt a lot better than what he did this Saturday night, I bet.
- The Phenomenal One’s brief WWE retirement tour landed him in second, followed by the old rival he danced with for perhaps that last time on Jan. 23’s SmackDown.
- A successful SNME Women’s Tag title defense kept the champs together, the way they like it, in fourth. The MFTs who won the WWE Tag belts the night before shared eighth.
- Only one of the women who became a #1 contender to the Women’s Tag belts placed, in seventh — right behind the man in the Lemon Pepper Steppers who was very over while SmackDown was in the UK and Europe.
- You awarded the last Rankings point to the newest member of Fatal Attraction.
The CCWR: 2025-26, Week 39
1. Sami Zayn
2. AJ Styles
3. Shinsuke Nakamura
4. (tie) IYO SKY
4. (tie) Rhea Ripley
6. Trick Williams
7. Kiana James
8. (tie) Solo Sikoa
8. (tie) Tama Tonga
10. Laney Reid
Points in our weekly Rankings determine the ongoing annual one — which will determine who wins the Cageside Cup next April. Full details on rules and scoring HERE.
Where last week’s winner moved into the Top 10, displacing Bron Breakker like a masked man and The Ruler did to him in the Men’s Royal Rumble…
The Cageside Cup Performer of the Year Standings – through the Week ending Jan. 24
1. Toni Storm – 121.5
2. John Cena – 67.5
3. Gunther – 63
4. Stephanie Vaquer – 61.5
5. Hangman Page – 56
6. Seth Rollins – 52
7. CM Punk – 51
8. Naomi – 49
9. Sami Zayn – 41.25
10. Dominik Mysterio – 41.08
Ready to do it again? You can always check the “how to” here if you need to, or ask a question in the comments. The main things you need to know are you have five spots on your ballot, you can’t put the same person in two of them, but you can split a single or multiple spots between multiple wrestlers. Now…
Let’s have those ballots! We’ll take it from there, and see you back here in a week for the results and another vote!
