WWE Saturday Night's Main Event: John Cena's Final Match

[Rob Lowe]

Was a bit weird that the commentary team didnt reference Cena's smile. They usually bang you over the head with any kind of plot point or emotion you are supposed to feel.

Remember when Cena would finally lose a match/belt and then be on RAW the next night with a big smirk to show how unbothered he was? It would be hilarious if he didnt clear the smile with anyone, a little selfish smirk on the way out after everyone praised his selflessness the whole night.

I think it was supposed to convey that he knew he was finished, but his half-hearted tap out looked like he was throwing the match. It wasnt well done.

Good luck finding out the truth though. Trips will never admit being wrong and everyone else is a media trained droid so they're useless too.

Also:

- The soul snatcher is one of the most contrived finishers ive ever seen. Got a big pop though, so ill just pull a Cornette face by myself.

- Cena just leaving his peers and the crowd with his head down wearing his little socks was weird.

- Hendry and Truth posing together did make me laugh so im not a complete miserable bastard.

Edited December 14, 2025 by Rob Lowe

[Hannibal Scorch]

@gmoney it was in multiple outlets but big ones as well. Clearly they know they would run with it and get some extra push. Same as when they said Santana no showed TNA after getting beat for the title.

[gmoney]

10 minutes ago, Hannibal Scorch said:

@gmoney it was in multiple outlets but big ones as well. Clearly they know they would run with it and get some extra push. Same as when they said Santana no showed TNA after getting beat for the title.

You've done the opposite of name and shame!

[wandshogun09]

2 hours ago, SuperBacon said:

Everyone goes out on their back

Not Bret. He went out on his front in the Sharpshooter, with that little rat bastard Earl Hebner calling for the bell.

Only seen the ending of the Cena match and clips of Triple H getting shat on and Jesse Ventura being Jesse Ventura. I love that he basically wore a medley of his mad outfits and grew the beard out.

[NeverYield]

What needs to happen now is something meaningful with Gunther 

You cant make the guy who never gives up, give up, and then just absolutely flop his next movements, but with the way things are lately I don't have much faith in their booking.

In theory now Gunther should go on a dominating run but we will see. 

[Hannibal Scorch]

18 minutes ago, gmoney said:

You've done the opposite of name and shame!

Brian Alvarez and WON was where he stared to spread from

[SuperBacon]

21 minutes ago, wandshogun09 said:

Not Bret. He went out on his front in the Sharpshooter, with that little rat bastard Earl Hebner calling for the bell.

Earl in the writers room: 

[wandshogun09]

9 minutes ago, SuperBacon said:

Earl in the writers room: 

Looking over at the Anvil and saying he looks like he’s lost weight. 

[WrestlingForFun]

31 minutes ago, NeverYield said:

What needs to happen now is something meaningful with Gunther 

You cant make the guy who never gives up, give up, and then just absolutely flop his next movements, but with the way things are lately I don't have much faith in their booking.

In theory now Gunther should go on a dominating run but we will see. 

To be fair he’s lost about 3 matches ever … not sure how much more dominant he can be. 

[Infinity Land]

40 minutes ago, wandshogun09 said:

Not Bret. He went out on his front in the Sharpshooter, with that little rat bastard Earl Hebner calling for the bell.

History has been rewritten.

I can see why a WWE audience would want SuperCena for one last time. Stars of the past are often treated as threats no matter how much time has past. See Austin over Owens. Cena winning one last time was maybe the way to go. Gunther would be fine with the loss and he's not likely to gain more from the win.

[Pinc]

Not gonna lie the smile could have been great but not in a fucking sleeper at the point of tapping out.

If he’d stopped and grinned before the hold was applied it could have worked, like Flair telling Michaels to superkick him with tears in his eyes. Breaking character to smile as you’re being choked just makes Gunther look a fanny.

[Olly1984]

Echo the sentiments that he should have just passed out instead of tapping, makes the weird smile just before passing out more powerful. But Papa H knows best😂😂😂. Anyone realise as well that AJ legit forgot to bring his tag title out with him and had to have it brought out, ref couldn't even hold the belts up before ringing the bell!! 

[Handsome Tex Hardcastle]

I thought for the most part, the match itself and the send off afterwards just about met the occasion, but it didnt go further than that. Id have really liked to have felt something and been taken on a bit of a rollercoaster. Thats probably beyond them at this stage but I felt more emotional after watching fan edits on social media. 

Part of me thinks I shouldn't be feeling short changed after this retirement run. A year long saga culminating in a dedicated event should be more than enough for anyone, and the concept was more than fitting. Few things irk me more in Wrestling than when they have the rare opportunity to do something truly great and under deliver. The whole thing felt like this retirement was an elaborate swerve, and they were saving the good stuff for the "real" one. There was a complete lack of ambition, and I got the sense they saw booking this as more of a daunting burden than an opportunity. What struck me most about last night was just an absence of star power, or at least more people with a meaningful history with Cena. It felt a bit like Pat Butcher turning up in Albert Square and having a bunch of scenes with characters who have no idea who she is. Maybe there arent that many people, but I was looking at that lot last night and I couldn't help thinking "Christ, Is this it?". 

Ive increasingly felt over the past year that this event could be it for me. The hypercommercialisation has been far more off-putting than I could have imagined. Sponsorship in Wrestling used to leave me with a warm, comforting sense of aspirational Americana. I liked hearing that the broadcast was being "Brought to you" by Chef Boyardee or "Powered by" Castrol GTX. It made me want to pack up and become an American consumer.  Now it just feels representative of the type of revenue maximisation thats making everything expensive and shit, from Footlong subs to Las Vegas. Its probably been going on for longer than I realise, but ive never found it as jarring as I have recently and its sadly become genuinely difficult to watch. 

[waters44]

The wrestling historians can correct me (looking at you Pat) but presumably this whole notion of staring at the lights for your last match is there so you don’t kill off the territory when you leave. It’s just not needed anymore

Can you imagine HHH going back in time and speaking to Watts, or Crockett or Gagne? “Alright lads, the business is in great shape and we’ve kept the tradition of losing when you retire. We have killed kayfabe and are live streaming the writers room but at least the old guys pass the torch to the slightly less old guys”

Cena should have won and had that moment of the crowd going mad for it celebrating with him. The company is just after moments now after all, and Jesus they got one, but loud chants of Bullshit to the boss is not the one they wanted.

People will say that would have hurt Gunther… well maybe it would maybe it wouldn’t, but you also have the option of not booking one of your best heels in the match! Chuck Miz in there or something, no one would have cared either way. 

The most interesting thing going forward is how HHH copes with this. That laugh when he hugged Cena at the end was definitely a man pretending he’s not upset. I think we’re lucky his heart will explode if he wrestles because I could picture a Mr Levesque coming out at the Rumble wearing black jeans and covered in baby oil and have years of him everywhere, in the ring and out

[uklaw]

I read it at about 04:30am and haven’t seen much about it since, but according to an account or two in the the arena, when the show ended, most of the roster (who had emerged from the entrance) were ushered out to the side, with Triple H, Stephanie and The Undertaker the only people leaving via the entrance and gorilla.
 

It may have merely been logistics, but of course there has been speculation (on Twitter among fans) that Vince was snuck into Gorilla to greet Cena when he [Cena] got there.

Edited December 14, 2025 by uklaw