“I Would Do This Forever”: John Cena’s Heartbreaking Admission About WWE Retirement
John Cena has admitted that his WWE retirement isn’t happening on his own terms. The 17-time world champion is set to wrestle his final match against Gunther at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 13, after which he will officially hang up his boots.
In his last run with the company, Cena surpassed Ric Flair’s record for the most world title reigns and turned heel, before capturing the Intercontinental Championship to finally complete the WWE Grand Slam. With his 25-year WWE career coming to an end at the age of 48, Cena said that, given a choice, he would have continued wrestling for the rest of his life. However, he stressed that he had vowed to the WWE Universe that he would never damage the product or leave fans with a negative impression.
“I’m not going out on my own terms. If I could do this in infinity, I would do it,” Cena said, explaining that he had promised fans he would walk away once he started to slow down. He admitted he could probably push for more matches, but questioned the cost, saying it would hurt his own health, harm the overall product, and risk leaving fans feeling disappointed or sad.
‘Kind of closing a chapter of an Era’
Across his farewell stretch, Cena shared the ring with top names like Cody Rhodes and Dominik Mysterio, performers widely seen as central to WWE’s future. He said his final bout will both shine a spotlight on the next generation and symbolically close a major chapter in sports entertainment.
“We can take the eyes that care about showing up to our show and expose them to the future and what’s next. Yes, it’s my last match, but collectively we’re all just kind of closing a chapter of an era in sports entertainment,” he said.
Cena is one of the last remaining headliners from WWE’s Ruthless Aggression era and has captured every championship the company has had on offer during his storied run.