Eventually, one of the returns John Cena makes to various arenas as a WWE attraction will be his last. It’s a thought that at least crossed his mind Monday night at the TD Center in his hometown of Boston.
Cena, who last appeared on WWE TV on the final SmackDown show of 2022, seemed more emotional than usual when he made his entrance on the March 6 edition of Raw. This morning, he took to social media to give some insight into why that was the case.
Last night was the first time I entered the arena and had the thought that it might be the last time. I’ll never be able to put into words how much I love the #WWEUniverse https://t.co/FR5T3r1tld
— John Cena (@JohnCena) March 7, 2023
The 45-year-old Cena has been a WWE mainstay for two decades, famously having at least one televised match for exactly 20 years. But as his age continues to creep up and his Hollywood roles proliferate, he’s much closer to the end of his in-ring career than the beginning.
That’s something he apparently didn’t let himself ponder until recently. But as last night’s show proved, he’s still one of the absolute best talkers in the business — his heartfelt promo absolutely gutted poor Austin Theory, which should only increase anticipation for their showdown at WrestleMania — and he’ll undoubtedly be able to provide value for WWE in that role alone down the road if he so chooses.
Cena also gave the so-called rub to Cody Rhodes on his way out, introducing the man who will challenge Roman Reigns in the main event (one of two, anyway) at WrestleMania 39. Crowd reactions to Rhodes suggest he doesn’t really need it, but it was still a great gesture on Cena’s part that felt like another passing of the torch similar to the Undertaker-Bray Wyatt moment at Raw XXX.
Those kinds of things show how much Cena loves and cares about the pro wrestling industry, and why it will miss him as much as he clearly will miss it when he decides the time has come to call it a career. Here’s hoping he’s not quite done yet.