By Ben Rosen
TAMPA, Fla. — John Cena will compete in his final WWE match on Dec. 13 at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., during the Saturday Night’s Main Event show, which will air exclusively on Peacock. This will mark the end of Cena’s yearlong retirement tour and his storied wrestling career.
For one last time, “The Time Is Now” will come on, and Cena will make his trademark entrance with a motivational speech to cameraman Stu. The crowd will acknowledge the presence of the greatest wrestler of all time for the last time.
Based on Cena’s remaining scheduled appearances, he will be facing a mystery opponent, likely in an open challenge format, for his final match. Cena has already made his final Friday Night SmackDown appearance. Furthermore, the last Monday Night Raw that Cena is scheduled for is on Nov. 17 in New York.
It is reasonable to assume that this final opponent will be someone that Cena has not faced in a one-on-one matchup during his retirement tour. That would rule out some big names such as Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, and Randy Orton. There are still top dogs for Cena to face, though.
One option is to have Cena face a rising star — such as Dominik Mysterio, Bron Breakker, or even Carmelo Hayes — and elevate someone on his way out. Alternatively, Cena could face a familiar foe and rehash an old rivalry for one final time.
The latter option is the more intriguing route to go. While having Cena put over a new star is not out of the question, there are some veterans that he has not faced yet during this run that he should.
Of the potential opponents in that group, AJ Styles has a compelling case to be Cena’s last opponent. When Styles first arrived in WWE in 2016, he and Cena had one of the greatest rivalries of the century. Styles and Cena one last time would be very intriguing.
However, WWE does not seem to be lining up Styles to be the last opponent for Cena. Regardless, it will be a big match, and it will presumably be the main event of the show. Styles should be the pick, but there are other interesting stories out there if they choose other options.
They could choose to go for the shock factor and have Cena face The Rock for the third time. If it is indeed an open challenge, then this would create quite a moment for WWE. Two legends in a match to break their 1-1 record. However, Rock would actually have to show up for this to happen.
By process of elimination, to some extent, there is one clear choice for Cena’s final opponent. A fellow babyface, who is a former rival of Cena’s, would allow for a handshake for the ages at the end. This would create a full circle moment as well.
There is one former rival of Cena that stands out among the rest to be his final opponent. Two men who were babyfaces that were rejected by the crowd at points in their careers. Two men who have been the face of WWE. That mystery opponent? Roman Reigns.
It would be a fitting end to Cena’s career to face Reigns. During a previous feud in 2017, Cena told Reigns in a promo that he still wrestled because people like Reigns were bad at their jobs. Cena exposed Reigns on the microphone, telling Reigns what a promo is that night.
Then, Reigns was despised by the crowd. Now Reigns is beloved. Then, Reigns was the “Big Dog” and hated by the crowd. Now, Reigns is “The Tribal Chief” and a megastar who is one of the best of this era. Reigns ending Cena’s career would be long-term storytelling at its finest.
While Reigns and Cena did face off at SummerSlam in 2021, there was a different vibe to the match. That was during the peak of Reigns’ 1,316-day world title reign as a heel. There was no post-match handshake or embrace.
This is also a different Reigns than Cena has faced before. Reigns is now a babyface that is accepted by the crowd and has evolved as a character. There would be more of a mutual respect and admiration than in previous feuds. It would be two legends facing off for one last time
A back-and-forth match between the two, where Cena empties the tank and gives everything he has left, but Reigns ultimately prevails. Cena puts Reigns over and rides off into the sunset, and Reigns solidifies himself as a wrestling Mount Rushmore candidate and a fan favorite.
Cena then gets the microphone and gives his retirement speech. Regardless of who the match is against, the crowd in the arena and the audience at home should soak it all in. No one will likely ever match Cena as the greatest wrestler of all time. Thank you, Cena.
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John Cena is entering the first match in his retirement tour. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.