WWE Crown Jewel 2026 predictions: Match card breakdown with expert picks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

World champions collide at WWE Crown Jewel, but there's more than a ceremonial title at stake for Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn. They are set to unearth years of Bloodline baggage in Saturday's main event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Reigns and Zayn, Raw and SmackDown's respective world champions, were in a very different place nearly four years ago. In February 2023, Zayn, the underdog fighting in his backyard, nearly dethroned Reigns for the undisputed WWE world heavyweight championship. He fell short of that career-defining moment. Zayn eventually won two world titles and can tie up one more loose end by finally beating Reigns.

That's not the only Crown Jewel championship set for this weekend. Women's world champion Liv Morgan and WWE women's champion Chelsea Green clash for the women's crown. Similar to Zayn, Green had never won a world title before this year. She shocked the world by winning the interim WWE women's title in a ladder match before graduating to full-time champion. Morgan is one win away from becoming the only person, man or woman, to win a Crown Jewel title twice.

There are only two other matches scheduled to take place on Saturday. Most notably, it's expected to be the end of the long-running feud between Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton. The two have been going at it off and on since WrestleMania season in April after Orton delivered a vicious punt to Rhodes at the conclusion of the match. Now, the two look to settle their differences in a Last Man Standing match. 

Plus, The Vision -- Bron Breakker and Austin Theory -- make their first defense of the tag team titles when they take on Penta and Je'Von Evans. Of note, Penta currently holds the Money in the Bank briefcase and could be an interesting angle to the main event later in the night.

With so much action set for Saturday, the CBS Sports wrestling experts sat down to make their picks for who will emerge victorious at Crown Jewel.

WWE Crown Jewel Championship -- World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns vs. Undisputed WWE Champion Sami Zayn: Run 100 simulations and Zayn beats Reigns once. This is the one. There was genuine fan appetite for Zayn, who'd reached new heights after splitting from The Bloodline, to dethrone Reigns at Elimination Chamber in 2023. Invigorated by his hometown crowd in Montreal, Zayn nearly delivered. But WWE was never pivoting from having Rhodes beat Reigns at WrestleMania two months later. Zayn will avenge that loss this weekend, receiving a hero's welcome in Riyadh, albeit a more muted version of the one he got in Montreal. Reigns' world heavyweight title isn't on the line, so he can afford to lose. It won't come without a lot of interference from The 946, who are actively feuding with The Bloodline and seem on track for a WarGames match with Reigns' family, but Zayn will get it done.  Pick: Sami Zayn wins -- Shakiel Mahjouri (also Brent Brookhouse)

WWE Women's Crown Jewel Championship -- Women's World Champion Liv Morgan vs. WWE Women's Champion Chelsea Green: Green's run has been positioned as a "fluke" reign that is more short-term than anything. That would make a Green win here fun, but it also seems unlikely. Morgan has The Judgement Day to help push her over the top while making Green look like a scrappy underdog who just got overwhelmed by "the numbers game." Morgan benefits more from the win from a character standpoint, so she likely gets it done here. Pick: Liv Morgan wins -- Brookhouse (also Mahjouri)

Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton (Last Man Standing Match): I had hoped that WWE would move on from Rhodes vs. Orton after Sunday Night's Main Event. The company even teased an undisputed WWE title program between Orton and Zayn before going back to the well. It's unlikely that Rhodes loses to his mentor a second time, especially after attempting to give him more edge with the punt. The Last Man Standing stipulation implies finality, so expect Rhodes to carry winning momentum into a new feud. Pick: Cody Rhodes wins -- Mahjouri (also Brookhouse)

World Tag Team Championship -- The Vision (Bron Breakker & Austin Theory) (c) vs. Penta & Je'Von Evans: Breakker and Theory won the belts on July 6 and have not defended the belts a single time on television or at a premium live event. That's a terrible but true fact that shows how little regard the current WWE climate has for tag team wrestling. While Penta has the Money in the Bank briefcase, it seems we're a little ways away from him cashing in his contract, with Roman Reigns dealing with Sami Zayn as well as 946. It can't hurt to give him a tag title run as a way to keep him busy and continue building momentum. If you're not going to use the tag belts as an actual meaningful championship, you can at least use them as a hood ornament for a wrestler you're pushing as a potential future world champion. Pick: Penta & Je'Von Evans win the titles -- Brookhouse (also Mahjouri)

WWE Crown Jewel 2026 predictions and expert picks

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