John Cena has made it clear that he will not change his retirement plans.
On December 13th, John Cena will have his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, DC. Although the date has been known for months, many fans still hope and believe that the current Intercontinental Champion is secretly planning to continue to WrestleMania 42.
During an appearance on the Raw Recap podcast, Cena was asked whether the praise for his recent matches has made him rethink plans. The star denied this, saying that having a definitive end date is helping him reach that finish line.
“No. I think the thing that’s helping me push myself across the finish line is there is no tomorrow. So, I’ve always given everything I have.”
Reflecting on the last few months of his career, Cena admitted that, despite having been a top star in WWE for the better part of two decades, he was still learning. He added that working with newer wrestlers during his retirement run has helped to keep things fresh. However, although he’s enjoying that aspect of his latest run, it hasn’t changed his mind about retiring on December 13th.
“I’m always working with talent that I’ve worked with before, that I’ve had new opponents to work with so they’re bringing new ideas. I’m working with new talent. It’s great in that regard that there is that curiosity to still learn. I don’t think that I’ll ever be extinguished, but I do have to listen to my health and there’s not one piece that it’s like, hey, it should go past December 13th.
“All I’m Trying To Do Is Just Give It Everything I Got.” – John Cena
Turning to the WrestleMania speculation, John Cena explained that while many stars have retired on the Grandest Stage of Them All in the past, he is ending his story on his terms.
“I know there’s a lot of speculation — there was at one point, of like, ‘Oh, they’re just gonna run him through to WrestleMania’ because that’s the end of everyone’s story. That’s just the end of everyone’s story because that’s the way everybody did it before me.
“I told everybody 15 months ago that I was gonna do this. I told them I was gonna do a year, and I’m gonna do a year and after this, it’s done. I don’t say that as a bad thing. I say that as a collective, that I’ve (been) allowed to do this for 23 years, at a very high output, and to hear the, ‘You’re having some of the best matches of your career’ in the fourth generation of installments that I’ve heard that. It validates that I’m not the only one who’s exhausted.
“Every time I come through the curtain, I think everybody feels emotionally, like, man, he gave us all he had, and I think — or at least I hope — after the 13th of December, people understand that that’s all I’m trying to do is just give it everything I got.”
While he isn’t planning to compete at the Showcase of the Immortals, John Cena could be a big part of WrestleMania weekend, with reports claiming he will headline the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2026.
H/T to Fightful for the above transcription.
