Is WWE Wasting the 17-Time Champion’s Retirement Tour?
John Cena’s 2025 retirement tour has been a rollercoaster of emotions. From winning his record-breaking 17th world title to turning heel for the first time in 20 years, Cena has left it all in the ring to ensure fans can enjoy his final year in the WWE. Unfortunately, this retirement tour hasn’t been without its fair share of controversies. There have been a lot of fans and critics who’ve wondered if Cena’s last run has actually delivered as promised, with many claiming that some of Cena’s opponents and storylines have fallen flat. With only a few months left until Cena’s retirement match, the fans hope that WWE can book Cena’s final months on a satisfactory level.
Cena announced his retirement at Money in the Bank 2024, where he stated that he would show up for all of 2025 and give it his all until the end of the year. This brought a lot of sadness and excitement to the WWE universe, with many wondering who Cena would compete against and if he could claim his 17th world title. At the start of 2025, Cena declared for the Royal Rumble match and vowed to win it. Cena would last until the final two competitors, where he would be eliminated by Jey Uso. This loss brought a lot of attention, as fans now wondered if Cena would actually compete for a world title at any point during his retirement tour.
Cena then declared himself for the Elimination Chamber, where the winner would become the number one contender for Cody Rhodes’ Undisputed WWE Championship. Cena would win the match, and in a shocking turn of events, Cena would align with The Rock and attack Cody Rhodes, cementing his heel turn and his intentions to win the WWE Championship at all costs. While many thought this would mean a character revamp for Cena, WWE made the decision to keep his theme song and only have his name in white font displayed on the titantron. Many fans felt disappointed that Cena’s character was basically the same thing, even though his demeanor and entrance were darker.
Fan outrage got worse as The Rock, the person whom Cena sold his soul to, never showed up again following his heel turn. At WrestleMania, it would be Travis Scott who would help Cena claim his 17th World Championship. With a lackluster main event, it was evident that Cena’s heel turn was more of a last-minute decision rather than a planned long-term story. Cena would continue his heel run against Randy Orton, a superstar who’s had a long and storied rivalry with Cena.
At Backlash, Cena would successfully retain his title against Orton after an R-Truth distraction allowed Cena to hit a low blow to Orton. The match was full of shenanigans and ended with a run-in, something that would be very evident in many of Cena’s matches during his heel run. R-Truth would become Cena’s next opponent after Cena attacked him, and their match was set at Saturday Night’s Main Event in a non-title match. Cena would pick up the win with a low blow, the third straight match that Cena used the same finish to win his matches. Cena’s matches started to become repetitive, and in the next WWE event, Cena would team with Logan Paul against Cody Rhodes and Jey Uso in the main event. This was deemed another controversial decision in Cena’s retirement tour, as fans questioned why Cena was even teaming with Logan Paul in a tag team match that didn’t further any stories. Rhodes and Uso would pick up the win after Cena was attacked by R-Truth, who had made a surprising return following his release from the company a week before.
Cena’s next opponent was CM Punk, and this had fans very excited, as their 2011 rivalry is considered one of the best in company history. What should’ve been another instant classic ended with multiple run-ins and Cena picking up the win after Seth Rollins stomped CM Punk. Another title defense and another finish without a clean ending. Fans began turning on the booking of Cena’s character, as they were expecting more from him and not a watered-down heel version of himself. This would change, however, when Rhodes would earn the opportunity to compete against Cena at SummerSlam.
A day before SummerSlam, Cena would suddenly turn face. His titantron was now in color, and Cena began to appreciate the crowd more instead of verbally attacking them. This was another odd decision, as it felt as if Cena’s entire heel run was swept under the rug. Cena’s only explanation as to why he turned face was that Cody’s attack on him made him see the light again. It was evident that without any appearances from The Rock or Travis Scott, there was no clear direction for where Cena’s character was going. Months of booking had just been ignored, and it was time to push Cena into a new direction.
Now that Cena was a face, it was time to put his retirement tour back on track. Cena would drop the Undisputed WWE Championship to Rhodes in an amazing Street Fight at SummerSlam 2025. Fans were very happy that even in his final year in WWE, Cena was still capable of producing great matches. What should’ve felt like the return of a hero suddenly went downhill once Brock Lesnar’s theme hit. Lesnar, who had been absent from WWE since 2023, attacked Cena to end the show. It was evident that Cena vs. Lesnar was set to become one of Cena’s last opponents. This garnered many conversations from fans who believed that Cena’s last matches shouldn’t be wasted against opponents no one really wanted to see. This was more evident when Logan Paul was announced as Cena’s opponent for Clash in Paris. Cena and Paul’s only interaction was at Money in the Bank, and it made no sense for Cena to waste a match against a part-time wrestler and full-time YouTuber.
Triple H claims that Cena has hand-picked his opponents. Cena contradicts this statement by saying that it is WWE who is deciding his final opponents. Whatever the situation may be, it’s very clear that Cena’s last run has not felt planned over time and instead has been booked in the heat of the moment. Fans want Cena to fight the very best and deliver amazing matches before he rides off into the sunset, and it will only happen if WWE creative can deliver for Cena.
