John Cena's Farewell Odyssey: An In-Depth Review of His Final Year in WWE

One of the most defining figures in modern professional wrestling, John Cena, is poised to conclude his active in-ring career on Saturday, culminating a year-long retirement tour marked by significant narrative shifts and varied match quality. Cena, a 16-time world champion and arguably the most iconic figure of the 21st-century WWE landscape, will step into the ring for his final contest against Gunther on Saturday Night’s Main Event. This comprehensive period has witnessed Cena achieving new career milestones while navigating a complex narrative arc that saw him transition between his long-established babyface persona and an unexpected heel turn, ultimately returning to the light. The journey has encompassed critically acclaimed bouts and segments that drew mixed reactions, offering fans a full spectrum of the "John Cena Experience" as his storied career approached its end.

The initial phase of Cena’s retirement tour began with a pivotal objective: surpassing Ric Flair’s record of 16 recognized world championships, a milestone Cena had previously tied. This pursuit led him to the Royal Rumble, a traditional precursor to WrestleMania, where a victory would secure a world title match at the pinnacle event. The match ultimately boiled down to Cena and the surging Jey Uso, a competitor who had gained significant fan support through his compelling storyline with Roman Reigns. In a surprising development, Uso eliminated Cena, denying him the direct path to WrestleMania 41.

Following this setback, a visibly disappointed Cena articulated a new strategy, asserting that his participation in the WrestleMania main event was "best for business" and that he would earn that distinction by entering the Elimination Chamber. This declaration was accompanied by a controversial claim of entitlement, where Cena stated that "23 years of loyal service to this company" exempted him from qualifying for the multi-person steel structure match, a requirement for the other five participants. This stance marked a subtle but notable deviation from his traditional "never give up" ethos.

Cena successfully secured his WrestleMania berth inside the Elimination Chamber. The match culminated in a one-on-one scenario between Cena and long-time rival CM Punk. The decisive moment arrived when an already eliminated Seth Rollins re-entered the structure, stomping Punk’s head into the unforgiving steel grating. Capitalizing on Rollins’ interference, Cena unheroically applied the STF submission hold to secure the victory, a moment that foreshadowed a more significant character shift.

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The full impact of this shift materialized shortly thereafter, as Cena executed a dramatic heel turn at the urging of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. This culminated in a brutal assault on Cody Rhodes, unexpectedly joined by musical artist Travis Scott. The segment immediately went viral across social media platforms, generating widespread media attention and fulfilling WWE’s objective of creating a shock moment.

However, the narrative follow-through for Cena’s heel turn proved challenging. At WrestleMania 41, Cena faced Rhodes in a 25-minute championship encounter for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Cena’s victory, which secured his record-breaking 17th world title, was facilitated by interference from Scott, with The Rock notably absent from the event. Cena subsequently attempted to explain his actions by claiming he was in an "abusive relationship" with the fans and intended to "ruin wrestling for them" by being the "last real champion." This rationale struggled to resonate with audiences, particularly as Cena continued to wear merchandise promoting his retirement tour, creating a disconnect between his character’s words and actions. The absence of The Rock and Scott after the initial viral moment further diluted the impact of the heel turn.

In a subsequent interview, Cena provided insight into the creative process behind the turn, stating, "No, that stuff you see on [WWE] Unreal is real. ‘We need to make Chamber big, so let’s do something that’ll shock everybody. Hey man, we got this idea.’ ‘No problem, I’ll do the best I can.’" This quote suggested the primary motivation was to generate a single, impactful moment rather than to initiate a long-term character arc.

With the heel persona struggling to gain traction, WWE opted to revisit established rivalries to maintain audience engagement. This strategy commenced with Cena defending his newly acquired championship against Randy Orton at Backlash. The rivalry between Cena and Orton, stretching back to their parallel ascensions in the early 2000s, is one of the most prolific in WWE history, characterized by numerous main event encounters and shared prominence at the top of the card. The Backlash match, while competently executed, did not reach the heights of their previous classics, with Cena ultimately retaining his championship.

A brief, comedic program with R-Truth followed, initiated when Truth confronted Cena at a Backlash press conference, leading to Cena putting him through a table. This storyline leaned into years of comedic interactions and Truth’s long-standing, albeit delusional, claim of Cena being his childhood hero. Cena defeated Truth at Saturday Night’s Main Event in May, but lost their June rematch on SmackDown via disqualification. These two matches, totaling just over 10 minutes, provided a light-hearted diversion during a period where Cena’s heel run was still finding its footing.

Another classic Cena rivalry was reignited for Night of Champions, where he faced CM Punk. The build to this match saw Cena’s heel character resonate more effectively, as he drew upon the genuine grievances and history between the two competitors, including a recreation of Punk’s iconic "pipebomb" promo from their 2011 program. In 2011, Punk, then WWE Champion, threatened to leave the company with the title, a scenario Cena was able to invert in 2025 given their reversed positions. The match itself was widely regarded as one of the strongest of Cena’s retirement tour, showcasing the undeniable in-ring chemistry between the two. However, the contest was ultimately overwhelmed by excessive external interference from Seth Rollins, Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed, Penta, and Sami Zayn, detracting from the narrative strength of the core rivalry.

Following the Punk program, Cena was once again paired with Cody Rhodes ahead of SummerSlam. On the final SmackDown broadcast before the event, Cena confronted Rhodes and executed an abrupt babyface turn. Lacking significant narrative motivation, Cena simply declared he had "lost his way" and proclaimed, "August 1, 2025, the day John Cena came back to WWE." This marked the end of his heel run, positioning Cena to conclude his career as the heroic figure he had embodied for nearly two decades.

As anticipated, Cody Rhodes successfully reclaimed the Undisputed WWE Championship from Cena at SummerSlam. Their match, contested under "street fight" rules, was generally considered superior to their WrestleMania encounter, benefiting from the added drama and stipulation-based action. Cena, adhering to his recent babyface turn, shook Rhodes’ hand after the match, a gesture of respect that was immediately overshadowed by the shocking and controversial return of Brock Lesnar, who brutally attacked Cena, setting up a new program.

Before a direct confrontation with Lesnar could materialize, Cena engaged in a brief program with Logan Paul. This period, occurring after the most dramatic shifts of his farewell tour, saw Cena display a noticeable sense of enjoyment in his performances. In his victory over the social media influencer-turned-wrestler at Clash in Paris, Cena incorporated several moves outside his traditional repertoire, showcasing a surprising versatility.

Cena and Lesnar eventually faced off at Wrestlepalooza in a highly anticipated rematch that inevitably drew comparisons to their SummerSlam 2014 encounter, where Lesnar delivered 16 German suplexes in a dominant victory. Lesnar once again largely dominated Cena, though the match was widely seen as a disappointment, with ESPN, whose streaming deal with WWE commenced with the event, grading it a C-. CBS Sports similarly assessed the match with a C.

The true in-ring highlight of Cena’s retirement tour arrived in October at Crown Jewel. With minimal prior build beyond a social media exchange, Cena met AJ Styles in Australia. The two veterans, renowned for their exceptional in-ring chemistry from past encounters (e.g., SummerSlam 2016, Royal Rumble 2017), delivered a match that transcended typical WWE structure. The bout featured numerous callbacks to moments throughout their respective careers and incorporated moves associated with many of their past rivals, functioning more akin to a technically proficient independent circuit match from the 2010s than a standard 2025 WWE contest.

Following his acclaimed match with Styles, Cena entered the final stretch of his appearances, with one significant career achievement remaining. In his penultimate WWE ring appearance in Boston, Cena was challenged by Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio. This impromptu challenge led to an immediate title match, where Cena secured the victory, capturing the only major championship he had never held in WWE. With the Intercontinental Championship now on his resume, Cena joined an exclusive list of WWE Grand Slam Champions, an honor bestowed upon those who have held a world championship, a tag team championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the United States Championship.

Cena’s reign as Intercontinental Champion was brief. After teaming with Sheamus and Rey Mysterio to defeat The Judgment Day on his final Raw, Cena faced Dominik Mysterio in a rematch at Survivor Series. The contest was marred by significant outside interference, culminating in the unexpected return of Liv Morgan, which ultimately allowed Mysterio to regain the Intercontinental Championship.

All that remains for Cena is his final match on Saturday night against Gunther. Gunther, widely recognized for his record-breaking Intercontinental Championship reign and his reputation as one of WWE’s most physically imposing and technically sound performers, earned the honor of being Cena’s final opponent by battling through the "Last Time Is Now" tournament bracket.

Assessing the overall success of Cena’s retirement tour presents a complex challenge. Critically, the booking exhibited inconsistencies at several points. The initial heel turn on Cody Rhodes generated considerable buzz, yet the subsequent lack of narrative follow-through and the absence of The Rock rendered it largely meaningless, forcing Cena into repetitive promos that failed to logically align with his character’s broader career narrative. The subsequent, abrupt babyface turn also lacked clear motivation, appearing to be a corrective measure likely designed to facilitate Brock Lesnar’s return and subsequent attack without Cena being positioned as a villain.

Furthermore, several of Cena’s matches early in the year were met with mixed reception. They were occasionally criticized for being overly long or unnecessarily overbooked, with Cena at times appearing to struggle with the physical demands of extended 25-minute contests.

However, as the tour progressed, Cena demonstrated a renewed in-ring sharpness. He produced compelling matches with CM Punk and, most notably, delivered one of the best performances of his career against AJ Styles. These standout performances served as powerful reminders of Cena’s enduring talent and his ability to elevate his opponents. Despite the narrative missteps and variable match quality, when the elements converged effectively, Cena’s final year underscored his indelible legacy as one of WWE’s most significant and accomplished performers. In that respect, the tour, despite its imperfections, ultimately reaffirmed Cena’s status in professional wrestling history.