The Ringer Wrestling Show

Latest Episodes:

Is Sami Zayn the Next WWE Champion? Saturday Night’s Main Event Recap. Jan 26, 2026

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Following Sami Zayn's victory in the Fatal 4-Way on 'Saturday Night's Main Event,' which of the four competitors is most likely to become a world champion next (0:30)? David and Kaz kick off the show by discussing the possibility of Sami Zayn becoming the WWE champion at Royal Rumble (3:10).
Then they discuss:

Trick Williams’s performance in the Fatal 4-Way match (15:09)
Jacob Fatu’s transformation and his match with Cody Rhodes (20:54)
AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura take it back to Strong Style (31:00)
Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky defend their tag titles against Liv Morgan and Roxanne Perez (38:37)
Who is the wild card to win the Royal Rumble (45:50)?

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.
Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, and Brian H. Waters
Producer: Brian H. Waters
Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Did The Rock Ruin John Cena’s Retirement Tour? Plus, Building New Stars in Wrestling. Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

David and Kaz fire up the mics and discuss whether or not the Rock ruined John Cena’s retirement tour by filming ‘The Smashing Machine’ (8:19). Then, they discuss a few things from Season 2 of 'WWE Unreal' (20:25). They also discuss the following:

The debate whether or not AEW is building new stars (35:00)
Lainey Reid and Ricky Sosa grab the attention of wrestling fans everywhere (1:02:21)
David’s rant of the week: Wrestlers should never wear plaid on television (1:14:34)
Saturday Night’s Main Event preview (1:22:9)

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.

Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, and Brian H. Waters

Producer: Brian H. Waters

Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Finn Balor is Going to be OK Jan 20, 2026

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: After 'Monday Night Raw,' is Finn Balor still going to be OK (0:30)?

David and Kaz return after the holiday with a big announcement from Kaz (2:32). Then they discuss the following from WWE Raw :

Finn Balor fails to win the World Heavyweight Title (15:00)
Giving CM Punk flowers for his current run as world champion (23:23)
Royal Rumble predictions (42:35)
'WWE Unreal' Season 2 (53:23)
TNA debut on AMC (58:00)

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.

Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, Ben Cruz, and Brian H. Waters

Producer: Brian H. Waters

Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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NXT’s Big Reset, Big AEW and WWE Free Agent Signings, and TNA Thursday Night Impact Returns! Jan 15, 2026

Show notes

THE LONGEST COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: If wrestlers had shoe deals, who is the top superstar you’d be going after (0:30)?

David and Kaz kick off the show with the latest in pro wrestling free agency:

Powerhouse Hobbs is WWE bound (14:01)

The Rascalz are AEW bound (28:11).

Then they discuss NXT’s reset:

Keanu Carver shows up and cleans house (34:30)

Ethan Page and Shawn Michaels comparisons (47:43)

Last, they recap AEW Dynamite (50:09).

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.

Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, Ben Cruz, and Brian H. Waters

Producer: Brian H. Waters

Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Drew McIntyre Wins WWE Championship. Will Finn Balor Become World Champion Next Week? Jan 13, 2026

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Would it be better for Bron Breakker or Jacob Fatu to be mad at you (1:03)?
The band is back together. David, Kaz, Ben, and Brian kick off the show by resuming their conversation about pro wrestling’s Trae Young comparison (4:20). Then they fantasy book a Survivor Series: WarGames match featuring USA vs. the world (10:50).
Then David and Kaz recap the following from the weekend:

Je’Von Evans's first match as part of the 'Raw' roster (15:33)
Drew McIntyre defeats Cody Rhodes for the WWE Championship (25:38)
Finn Balor’s chances of defeating CM Punk for the World Heavyweight title (39:11)
The women’s tag team division (56:00)
Which NBA star could get a YEET entrance (1:06:29)?
Oba Femi left the NXT title in the ring (1:12:27)

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.
Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, Ben Cruz, and Brian H. Waters
Producer: Brian H. Waters
Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Shoemaker Plays Catch-Up With Everything He Missed in Pro Wrestling Jan 08, 2026

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: For $600, would you rather have a bad Ric Flair cameo or nosebleed seats at the Elimination Chamber (1:00)?

Shoes is back, and he is joined by Ben and Brian. He has a few more cold open questions, including:

A bad Ric Flair cameo or an immaculate AI ’80s Ric Flair promo (3:32)?
Bigger loss: EC3 leaving NWA or Brock Lesnar retiring from wrestling events (6:19)?
Who is the wrestling Trae Young (7:38)?

Then they discuss the following:

Bron Breakker’s path to the main event of WrestleMania (14:37)
Oba Femi vacating the NXT title (21:53)
Trick Williams and Matt Cardona join 'SmackDown,' Je’Von Evans joins 'Raw,' and Jordynne Grace is still deciding (27:34)
Ricky Saints is now the guy in NXT (34:43)
Andrade and Jake Doyle debut in AEW (36:00)
Jon Moxley’s babyface turn (42:05)
MJF’s reign as AEW World Champion (45:12)
CM Punk’s comments about fans complaining (53:23)
Why Damian Priest is too cool to be a babyface (59:19)

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.

Hosts: David Shoemaker, Ben Cruz, and Brian H. Waters

Producer: Brian H. Waters

Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Was the One-Year Anniversary of ‘WWE Raw’ on Netflix Too "Strange"? Jan 06, 2026

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: What is your pro wrestling New Year’s resolution?

Ben and Brian fill in for David and Kaz and kick off the show by discussing the one-year anniversary of ‘WWE Raw’ on Netflix, which had a ‘Stranger Things’ theme. They talk about the following:

Brian’s experience in the arena vs. Ben’s experience watching on Netflix (3:00)
How WWE incorporated ‘Stranger Things’ (8:23)
CM Punk retains the world title against Bron Breakker (13:56)
Is the Vision lackluster without Seth Rollins (20:09)?
Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky win the women’s tag team titles (25:45)
Becky Lynch beats Maxxine Dupri for the Women’s Intercontinental Championship (33:34)
Fans are upset that Chris Jericho did not appear on ‘WWE Raw’ (40:29)

Trick Williams and Matt Cardona debuting on 'SmackDown' (50:00)
Drew McIntyre challenging Cody Rhodes to a Three Stages of Hell match (54:39)
MJF becoming AEW world champion and Willow Nightingale winning two titles, including dethroning Mercedes Moné (58:21)

Then they recap a few things we missed over the break, including:
Be sure to check out our videos on BlueSky, TikTok, Instagram Threads, and X.

Hosts: Ben Cruz and Brian H. Waters
Producer: Brian H. Waters
Additional Production Support: Ben Cruz

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Best of 2025 Mailbag. Plus, Gunther Talks the Heat Behind Retiring John Cena. Dec 18, 2025

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: When is the last time you tapped out like John Cena (1:05)? David is joined by Ben and Brian and they kick off the show to discuss wrestling after Cena. Then they get open the mailbag and look at your responses for some end-of-year awards, which include best hair, best entrance, most not-for-me angle, best pivot, and more (25:01).Then, they welcome the man who brought so many tears to adults and children when he retired Cena: the Ring General, Gunther (1:37:40). He discusses the following:

His trolling posts on social media after his win (1:38:30)
The tension backstage the before Saturday Night’s Main Event (1:4916)
How he is loving the boos (1:52:00)
His interaction with AJ Styles backstage (1:54:23)

Read David’s piece on The Ringer reflecting on John Cena’s career.
Be sure to check out our videos on BlueSky, TikTok, Instagram Threads, and X.
Hosts: David Shoemaker, Kazeem Famuyide, Ben Cruz and Brian H. Waters
Guest: Gunther
Producer: Brian H. Waters

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Reviewing John Cena’s Last Match and Saturday Night’s Main Event Dec 15, 2025

Show notes

COLD OPEN QUESTION OF THE WEEK: If you were John Cena, who would you have wanted to put over in your last match?

David and Kaz spend today’s show diving into every angle of John Cena’s retirement at Saturday Night’s Main Event this past weekend. They give their initial reactions to Cena tapping out to Gunther and the fan response to one of the biggest stars in wrestling history calling it a career.

Plus, they discuss the following:

Gunther as Cena’s final opponent (12:20)
Who from NXT gained the most from SNME (34:31)?
Gunther’s best WrestleMania opponent (43:56)
How SNME affects John Cena’s GOAT status (58:35)
Whether Saturday was Triple Hs "Mr. McMahon” moment (1:12:39)

Be sure to check out our videos on⁠ BlueSky⁠,⁠ TikTok⁠,⁠ Instagram Threads⁠, and⁠ X⁠.

Hosts: David Shoemaker and Kazeem Famuyide

Producer: Bruce Baldwin

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Oba Femi Joins to Talk Saturday Night’s Main Event, Plus Favorite John Cena Moments Dec 12, 2025

Show notes

On the eve of John Cena’s last match, David, Kaz, and Brian discuss his legacy and the hype meter for his final match with Gunther at Saturday Night’s Main Event (5:18)

Then they discuss the following:

Cody Rhodes vs. Oba Femi (39:15)
Bayley vs. Sol Ruca (48:00)
World Tag Team Champions AJ Styles & Dragon Lee vs. Je'Von Evans & Leon Slater (52:20)
Who is the Masked Man in WWE (56:12)?
Kyle Fletcher vs. SpeedBall Mike Bailey (1:03:20)
LA Knight gets destroyed on 'Raw' (1:13:34)