WWE's 2026 Queen of the Ring Tournament is Set Following a Huge Title Change

WWE hosted their Clash in Italy event, but prior to the event, many talents were annoucing their intentions for this year's King and Queen of the Ring Tournaments. King of the Ring's been around forever, but regarding Queen of the Ring, we wouldn't see that unfold until 2021. Every Queen of the Ring tournament featured sixteen women vying for the crown, with the finals usually taking place at a big PLE (Premium Live Event).

2021's inaugural Queen of the Ring tournament was won by Zelina Vega, who went on to become one half of the Women's Tag Team Champions with Carmella right afterwards. We wouldn't see Queen of the Ring resurface until 2024, and that year, it was Nia Jax capturing the crown, while last year's tournament was won by Jade Cargill. Beginning in 2024, the victorious Queen of the Ring would earn a shot at her brand's top title.

Before I talk more about the Queen of the Ring tournament, I have to discuss a huge moment at Clash in Italy:

Clash in Italy saw, among other things, Sol Ruca defeat Becky Lynch to capture the Women's Intercontinental Championship; her first title on the main roster. Sol Ruca made her main roster debut on the day after WrestleMania, coming off an NXT run that saw her simultaneously hold the NXT Women's North American Championship and the Women's Speed Championship at the same time. Mostly, she was coming off the end of her longtime partnership with Zaria, whose bitterness and insane jealousy caused her to turn against her partner.

Sol found herself antagonized by Becky Lynch from the get-go, leading to a non-title match at Saturday Night's Main Event on May 23, which Sol won via DQ. It was SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis who made the title rematch, which saw Becky, yet again, try to harass referee Jessika Carr instead of focus on the task at hand, and that ended up being her downfall. This was a well earned accomplishment for Sol Ruca, and it puts the Women's IC Title back in its original role: the role of elevating up and comers.

As for the Queen of the Ring Tournament, this year (the fourth edition of the tournament), will kick off on Monday's Raw with the first Quarterfinal match. The format will follow the same format that last year's tournament had. Three rounds; a Quarterfinal round consisting of four four-way matches, followed by one-on-one Semifinal matches, and the Final. So basically, it'll go from the Sweet 16 straight to the Final Four. Imagine if the NBA and Stanley Cup Playoffs did that. Speaking of, June is the perfect month for this, because it's championship month. The NBA, NHL, and UFL will crown champions in June, and WWE having their King and Queen of the Ring tournaments occur in June is absolutely fitting.

As for one of the Quarterfinal matches:

What's wrong with this picture? See that thing that Liv Morgan's holding in her right hand? That's the Women's World Championship. Yet despite being the reigning Women's World Champion, Liv is in this tournament. I would say it's an error, but the match is advertised for Raw. They could have easily put either Ivy Nile or Maxxine Dupri in that match. It wouldn't have mattered; Chelsea's definitely going to win this Quarterfinal match, but still, Liv's appearance is a waste of a spot.

As for Sol Ruca, she's in the tournament, but she'll face Lyra Valkyria, Charlotte Flair, and Jade Cargill in her Quarterfinal match. That's heavy duty competition. The finals of both tournaments will take place at the Night of Champions event on June 27, so here's how I see it all being spread out. Quarterfinal matches should take place on the next two Raws (June 1 & 8) and the next two SmackDowns (June 5 & 12). As for the Semifinals, one could occur on the June 15 Raw, while the other would occur on the June 19 SmackDown. That would leave June 22 and June 26 for builds to the Final at Night of Champions.

I am very ready for the Queen of the Ring Tournament, as well as the aftermath of Sol winning the Women's IC Title! The month of June will be so immensely stacked!