Seems like John Cena isn't in control of his WWE retirement tour

The G.O.A.T. is set to retire on December 13.

WWE’s one and only 17-time World Champion, John Cena, is set to hang up his wrestling boots at the end of 2025. Cena kicked off his retirement tour during the Raw Netflix debut in January and will wrestle in his final match on December 13.

The 17-time World Champion will partake in his final match at the December 13 edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, D.C. His final opponent will be decided based on an ongoing tournament, where sixteen stars will try to advance in order to face the G.O.A.T.

The quarterfinals for the ‘Last Time Is Now Tournament‘ will kick off next Monday. Anyway, as Cena embarks on his final run, let us analyze if he has been or is in control of his retirement tour.

The weird heel turn

Cena, for the first time in his illustrious career, joined the dark side and turned heel, attacking Cody Rhodes to align with The Rock. However, the heel turn fell flat due to poor creative decisions and the absence of The Rock who, despite being the mastermind of the plan, was absent from programming.

Cena tried to carry the storyline, cutting good promos, but was unable to save the heel turn in the absence of The Rock. WWE, after multiple tries, decided to pull the plug and turn Cena face ahead of SummerSlam. Despite no reasoning behind the turn, fans still cheered Cena, but the lack of Creative vision was visible.

Match vs Brock Lesnar

At Wrestlepalooza, Cena battled Brock Lesnar, who essentially squashed Cena to pick up a win in his in-ring return after two years. However, this match made no sense, even the storyline, and after a massive fan backlash. WWE CCO Triple H implied Cena wanted a match with Lesnar.

However, John Cena has publicly denied this, stating he never chooses his opponents and that he “plays the hand he’s dealt.” WWE also opted to waste his limited appearances in lengthy segments, which proved to be a bad decision.

Despite two appearances left on his retirement tour, multiple big names have expressed their desire to get a chance to face Cena. Fans, too, have asked for multiple names, having history with Cena, to face him one final time. However, WWE opted to book Cena in two matches involving Logan Paul, and then wasted a big PLE match against Brock Lesnar, which benefited no one.

Is John Cena now back in control?

It now seems like either WWE has started to listen to the fans or Cena is somewhat in control of his retirement tour. While stars like Zack Ryder, Sheamus, Rey Mysterio, and Dolph Ziggler did not get the chance to face Cena one final time, one way or the other, they became part of the farewell tour.

Likewise, Cena’s showdown with AJ Styles at Crown Jewel 2025, one of the best matches of their careers, followed by his bout with Dominik Mysterio and his Intercontinental Title win to complete the Grand Slam, feels like either a course correction by WWE or Cena taking more control of his creative direction.

Cena has also revealed that Triple H and WWE wanted the upcoming SNME to be a two-hour tribute to Cena. But he instead proposed the idea of giving rising stars a chance on the show, which will have a massive viewership.

The upcoming SNME will feature WWE main roster stars against standout talent from NXT in a series of exhibition matches. Cena noted that wrestlers typically end their in-ring careers by losing to help elevate someone else, but he felt there was more potential in how that tradition could be handled.

Such decisions point to Cena taking the initiative to make his final match even more special for fans who will tune in. Fans are now waiting to see who wins the tournament to get the chance to face Cena in his final match.

Cena is currently set to defend the Intercontinental title against Dominik Mysterio in a rematch at the 2025 edition of Survivor Series, which is set for Saturday, November 29, 2025, at Petco Park in San Diego, California.

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