As the long-awaited clash between John Cena and Brock Lesnar approaches, the reigning Undisputed WWE Champion has given his prediction. Cody Rhodes, one of the few to have battled both men, offered his perspective on their meeting this Saturday at Wrestlepalooza.
Speaking on ESPN’s Get Up, Rhodes assessed the matchup that marks Lesnar’s first WWE appearance in more than two years. Rhodes himself last faced Lesnar at SummerSlam 2023, where he emerged victorious. Despite Lesnar’s decorated background, Rhodes leaned toward Cena as the favorite.
“It’s a very special match-up in terms of Brock Lesnar, former UFC Heavyweight Champion, won the NCAA, which is the hardest tournament in all of folkstyle wrestling. But then there’s John Cena. And John Cena is the ultimate red light guy, can do things that nobody can do. So, I’m giving John Cena the edge, but these guys won’t be here forever. This is a special moment in time. I’m excited to see it myself.”
While Rhodes will watch that bout as a spectator, he enters Wrestlepalooza with a defense of his own, putting the WWE Championship on the line against Drew McIntyre in a high-stakes main event.
Elsewhere, another of WWE’s champions made headlines this week with a candid acknowledgment of his future. World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins disclosed that he has only “a couple years” left on his WWE contract.
Current WWE Champion Reveals When He Intends To Retire
A fixture in the company for more than fifteen years, Rollins opened up on the Nightcap show about wanting more time with his young daughter. Nearing 40 and with more than 2,000 matches to his name, he admitted his full-time in-ring career is nearing its conclusion.
“I don’t know if I wanna do it into my 50s. I’ve got a couple years left on my contract with WWE,” Rollins said. “My daughter’s 4-and-a-half, she’s almost 5, and I wouldn’t mind spending some extra time with her in a few years.”
Rollins credited sports science for extending his run but reflected most on the life wrestling has afforded him.
“I love this business, I’ve given my entire life to it, it’s given me a great life,” he added. “I met my wife through this business, I have my daughter because I met my wife through this business… I’ve built a little mini empire out of this industry, so I imagine in some capacity I will stay involved one way or another for as long as I can.”
The admission comes during a title reign still defined by the “Ruse of the Century.” After weeks of selling a knee injury, Rollins revealed his full health at SummerSlam, cashing in Money in the Bank to take the World Heavyweight Championship from CM Punk. That deception continues to fuel their rivalry, which reaches another chapter at Wrestlepalooza, where Rollins teams with his wife, Becky Lynch, against Punk and AJ Lee in a mixed tag match.