Full 2024 King And Queen Of The Ring Predictions Including Cody Rhodes, Logan Paul And Gunther

King Of The Ring is back, both literally and symbolically. Since its inaugural tournament in 1985, the event has been held sporadically, sometimes happening in back-to-back years and sometimes not happening for upwards of a half decade. That inconsistency has also extended to the winners, as WWE has given the honor to all-time legends like Bret Hart, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Macho Man Randy Savage, Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle and Triple H, while also crowning popular mid-card performers like Billy Gunn, William Regal, Xavier Woods, Baron Corbin, Mabel and Tito Santana.

Over the last decade or so, the tournament has seemingly trended more in the mid-card direction, but Triple H looks like he’s changing that. This year’s version was stacked with popular performers in both the men’s and women’s draws including Gunther, Randy Orton, AJ Styles, LA Knight, Rey Mysterio, Sheamus, Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill, Nia Jax, Iyo Sky and Tiffany Stratton. Many of the matches were also given extended TV time and video packages were consistently put together to really try and magnify the importance.

As a result, the crown now feel as elevated as it did during its glory days, and the finals are arguably the most anticipated they’ve been in a long time. Throw in three other fun matches, all with championship gold on the line, and 2024’s King And Queen Of The Ring feels much bigger than I ever would have guessed. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia should be in for a treat.

Before we get into the predictions, here’s a look at how things have gone for me in this soothsayer game…

Gunther Vs Either Randy Orton Or Tama Tonga For The King Of The Ring Crown

A small part of me was worried Jey Uso might beat Gunther in order to set up some kind of Old Bloodline vs New Bloodline showdown, but with both Roman Reigns and The Rock out for an extended period of time, I think WWE is content to slow play that conflict and instead just worry about building up Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa. They’ve done that through some dominating wins for Tama in the early round KOTR matches, but I’m skeptical they’re going to let him beat Randy Orton.

Regardless, though, I think this is Gunther’s day. It was widely assumed that whenever he lost his Intercontinental Championship, he’d immediately be elevated to the main event scene. That hasn’t happened though. Triple H, Bruce Prichard and the other writers are instead having him focus on rebuilding King Of The Ring’s prior glory. Clearly, they want to let Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre and CM Punk continue telling their own story, which makes complete sense given they’re cooking. That necessitated a side quest for Gunther, and if he wins King Of The Ring, it’ll help him emerge looking even stronger than before.

Now, I’m not 100%. It’s possible they could give the victory to Orton, given KOTR is one of the few things he hasn’t accomplished in his career. It would certainly be a nice moment for fans, but I’d put the chances of that at less than 20%.

Predicted Winner: Gunther

Lyra Valkyria Vs Bianca Belair Or Nia Jax For The Queen Of The Ring Crown

Most fans were left shocked when Lyra Valkyria defeated Iyo Sky in the semi-finals. She’s only been on the main roster for about a month, and while she was very well-liked by fans during her time in NXT, she didn’t exactly hit the main roster with Bron Breakker hype. Clearly they want to push her hard and see how far she can run though. I get it. She brings a new energy the women’s division has been lacking.

That being said, Queen Of The Ring feels like a big overreach here. Her mic skills need improvement and whatever is going on between her and Becky hasn’t had much buzz to it at all. Many members of the crowd grumbled and seemed audibly annoyed when she beat Iyo Sky, and I just think there are too many good women right now to see her rewarded so quickly. It’s hard to predict a winner though because I don’t know who is going to win between Bianca Belair and Nia Jax.

Bianca is obviously one of the biggest stars in the entire company and would do the most to elevate Queen Of The Ring, but Nia is also due for some kind of big moment, given she’s had a fantastic run since returning. I could see some kind of goofy disqualification victory for her over Bianca, similar to what happened with Jade on SmackDown last week. I’ll update this after we figure out for sure who will be in the finals, but for now…

Predicted Winner: Nia Jax

Chad Gable Vs Sami Zayn (Champion) Vs Bronson Reed For The Intercontinental Championship

My feelings on this match have changed quite a bit over the last several weeks. Initially, I was convinced Chad Gable was going to win. He had a ton of momentum after his heel turn, and this seemed like a great way to solidify this idea in his mind that he needed to be ruthless in order to move forward, but I don’t think that’s the story they’re telling anymore. Instead, I think Chad Gable’s plans are going to be thwarted by Otis, who is going to let him down in a key moment and/ or even betray him.

I think that will lead to him disbanding The Alpha Academy officially and instead joining forces with The Creed Brothers to form a new stable of elite amateur wrestlers. They’ll be what Otis, Tozawa and Maxxine can’t, and that'll be the catalyst for both Gable and The Creed Brothers to rise higher than they have at any point in their careers.

So, that leaves Bronson Reed and Sami Zayn. I like Bronson a lot. He’s really good in the ring and rapidly improving on the microphone. I think he’s going to win some singles championships in his future, but I just don’t think he’s been built up enough here to justify winning. This feels like the Sami Zayn and Chad Gable story, which is why I think Zayn is going to win again, which will drive Gable to evolve his character again.

Predicted Winner: Sami Zayn

Becky Lynch (Champion) Vs Liv Morgan For The Women’s World Championship

Under normal conditions, Becky Lynch would be a huge favorite against Liv Morgan. She’s obviously a first ballot Hall of Famer who has main evented WrestleMania, and Liv Morgan, while extremely popular, hasn’t had quite that same level of success, apart from a shorter title run after cashing in Money In The Bank on Ronda Rousey. Lynch has also only held the title for a several weeks so there’s no obvious necessity for change.

These aren’t normal circumstances though. Becky Lynch’s contract is reportedly up not long after the PPV. In addition, Morgan is the one who injured Rhea Ripley, which means there’s a strong likelihood these two will feud as soon as Rhea gets back. There have also been heavy hints on recent Raw episodes that Morgan may be having an affair with the injured Dominik Mysterio, which has the potential to be an all-time fantastic storyline.

I get the concerns some fans have about Liv Morgan. She needs to sound more authentic on the microphone. She’s very small compared to the bigger women on the roster. All of that is valid, but she also has a star quality about her. Her visual look and entrance are terrific. She’s very skilled and capable in the ring. Now is the time to throw her in the deep end and see if she can swim because the storyline is there, and a certain segment of the fanbase is really behind her.

Predicted Winner: Liv Morgan

Cody Rhodes (Champion) Vs Logan Paul For The Undisputed WWE Championship

There was some doubt in my mind when it seemed like Logan Paul’s United States Championship was going to be on the line too, but now that that’s off the table, it’s hard to imagine Cody Rhodes losing the belt here. I suppose it’s possible he could get disqualified or something weird like that, but I’d be shocked if he didn’t win this match. He needs to establish himself as a steady champion, and a loss isn’t going to hurt Logan Paul since I’m sure he’ll figure out a way to explain it away anyway.

Of everything on the card, this almost certainly has the most obvious outcome, but it could also wind up being the best actual match. Logan Paul has been doing nothing but putting on bangers since he showed up in WWE, and Cody Rhodes is still one of the best in-ring workers the company has, particularly in long matches. This thing is going to cook, and best case scenario for Logan Paul, he comes out of it with all of us thinking maybe someday he could be WWE’s top guy.

Predicted Winner: Cody Rhodes

You can catch The 2024 King And Queen Of The Ring live Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday May 25th. It'll stream for free with a Peacock subscription in The United States.