WWE Queen of the Ring bracket 2024 in full as Nia Jax takes the crown
X — Official WWEThe 2024 Queen of the Ring is the first of its kind, as the WWE has only held one female-driven tournament compared to nearly two dozen King of the Ring events.
In 2021, the company created a single-elimination tournament consisting of eight of the best female wrestlers in the WWE — four from Monday Night Raw and four from Friday Night SmackDown.
At that time, the tournament was known simply as the “Queen’s Crown,” and former NXT star and current LWO member Zelina Vega won.
Vega defeated Toni Storm in the first round before pinning Carmella in a brisk two-and-a-half-minute match. She then beat Doudrop in the finals at the 2021 Crown Jewel card.
After a brief hiatus, the tournament returned in 2024, with WWE rebranding it to Queen of the Ring to match the legendary men’s King of the Ring event.
Vega was unable to defend her crown after the medical team didn’t clear her in time for the event, meaning the WWE will crown a new ‘Queen’ of the company soon.
The two tournaments serve as the co-headliners to the King and Queen of the Ring PLE, along with the Cody Rhodes vs Logan Paul championship bout. Which superstars are still vying for the 2024 crown?
Queen of the Ring Bracket
First Round (Raw)
Matchup | Result |
Shayna Baszler vs Maxxine Dupri | Baszler via submission |
Iyo Sky vs Natalya | Sky via pinfall |
Dakota Kai vs Lyra Valkyria | Valkyria via pinfall |
Ivy Nile vs Zoey Stark | Stark via pinfall |
Shayna Baszler didn’t break a sweat against Maxxine Dupri in the opening round, while Iyo Sky took care of Natalya in a battle of former world champions.
Then, two former NXT superstars, Dakota Kai and Lyra Valkyria, took center stage. The match was fun while it lasted, but Valkyria only needed a few minutes to seize victory.
Zoey Stark won the final first-round matchup by pinning Ivy Nile and setting up a quarterfinal showdown between Stark and Valkyria.
Quarterfinals (Raw)
Matchup | Result |
Shayna Baszler vs Iyo Sky | Sky via pinfall |
Lyra Valkyria vs Zoey Stark | Valkyria via pinfall |
Sky once again had her hand raised, this time beating Baszler in one of the better matches of the night. This victory brought the former WWE women’s champion one step closer to becoming ‘Queen Iyo.’
Valkyria, a budding star on the main roster, has proven that she’s a future champion in the making. Beating Stark via pinfall set up a heated battle to determine the Raw representative at King and Queen of the Ring.
Semi-Finals (Raw)
Matchup | Result |
Iyo Sky vs Lyra Valkyria | Valkyria via pinfall |
The red brand saw the conclusion to its half of the Queen of the Ring bracket when Sky and Valkyria came face to face on the May 20 episode of Raw.
It looked like Sky would come out on top throughout much of the match, but Valkyria quickly flipped the script down the stretch.
The bruiser threw Sky around like a ragdoll before hitting a finishing move and putting a stamp on her ascension up the WWE women’s rankings.
First Round (SmackDown)
Matchup | Result |
Naomi vs Nia Jax | Jax via pinfall |
Jade Cargill vs Piper Niven | Cargill via pinfall |
Michin vs Tiffany Stratton | Stratton via pinfall |
Bianca Belair vs Candice LeRae | Belair via pinfall |
Nia Jax, in typical Nia Jax fashion, bullied her opponent by using unprecedented size and power to render Naomi defenseless.
Although slimmer in stature, Jade Cargill possesses the same brand of dominance. She wasted little time dispatching Piper Niven in the opening round.
Tiffany Stratton is amongst the fastest-rising prospects in the business, and she carried that momentum into the Queen of the Ring tournament with a first-round pin vs. Michin.
The final of the four winners in round one comes by way of Bianca Belair. The ‘EST’ breezed past Candice LeRae and set her sights on Stratton the following week.
Quarterfinals (SmackDown)
Matchup | Result |
Nia Jax vs Jade Cargill | Jax via disqualification |
Tiffany Stratton vs Bianca Belair | Belair via pinfall |
Sensing that she was in trouble after Cargill got off to a hot start, Jax tricked the prototype into getting disqualified before ‘The Irresistible Force’ terrorized Jade’s daughter in the crowd.
Later in the night, Belair thwarted Stratton’s upset attempt by fighting through a substantial knee injury to still hit the ‘KOD’ and secure a three-count from the referee.
Semi-Finals (SmackDown)
Matchup | Result |
Nia Jax vs Bianca Belair | Jax via pinfall |
With Jax’s villainous move on Cargill — Belair’s tag team champion partner — the script wrote itself for a semi-final showdown between the two on the May 24 episode of SmackDown.
Jax, after terrorizing Cargill’s daughter during the previous round, has blossomed into one of the best heels in the entire WWE.
Jax dominated the injured Belair for much of the match. Although the ‘EST’ left everything she had in the ring, it wasn’t enough to muster a victory against the ‘Irresistible Force.’
Instead, Jax completed her sweep of the tag team champions and set up a direct path to the Queen of the Ring crown if she can defeat Valkyria in the final round of the tournament.
Queen of the Ring Finals
Matchup | Result |
Lyra Valkyria (Raw) vs Winner of Nia Jax vs Bianca Belair (SmackDown) | Jax via pinfall |
Valkyria got a chance to solidify herself as a household name at the King and Queen of the Ring PLE. She entered Saudi Arabia as a considerable underdog against Nia Jax in the final round of the women’s tournament.
Early in the contest, Jax decimated the former NXT champion, exhibiting her unprecedented strength. The ‘Irresistible Force’ bullied her opponent throughout, but Valkyria didn’t go away without a fight.
She turned the tables by hitting multiple DDT’s, even drawing a near three-count on Jax. Unfortunately for Valkyria, that flurry presented her best chance at winning the match.
While attempting to ‘Powerbomb’ Jax off the second rope, Valkyria couldn’t get the 270-pounder in the air. Instead, she fell victim to an ‘Annihilator.’
Jax sealed the victory as Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque stepped into the squared circle to anoint the new Queen of the Ring.
After soaking in the moment for a brief second, Jax immediately declared that she will add the WWE Women’s Championship to her Queen of the Ring crown at SummerSlam.
Per Levesque’s orders, the winner of the Queen of the Ring tournament is guaranteed a title shot at the Aug. 3 SummerSlam PLE. That means Jax will face current champion Bayley, unless someone takes her strap before then.