Former WWE star details John Cena's memorable 20th-anniversary return
Mustafa Ali reveals unprecedented crowd reaction during John Cena’s 20th-anniversary RAW appearance, highlighting the superstar’s enduring impact.
Former WWE superstar Mustafa Ali shares unique perspective on witnessing Cena’s emotional RAW celebration during his memorable June 2022 appearance.
John Cena’s 20th-anniversary celebration on June 27, 2022, brought together numerous WWE superstars to honor his legacy. The event featured backstage interactions with Rey Mysterio, Chad Gable, R-Truth, and Shinsuke Nakamura before Vince McMahon introduced Cena to the crowd.
During a recent appearance on Chris Van Vliet’s INSIGHT podcast, Mustafa Ali provided a firsthand account of the atmosphere during Cena’s entrance. Ali, who stood on the entrance ramp alongside other roster members, recalled the unique energy of the moment.
The former WWE star shared his experience of feeling the physical impact of the crowd’s reaction:
The only time I’ve experienced an arena shaking is when John Cena made his return. I felt the building shake. It was the episode of RAW [June 27, 2022] where he was walking backstage and shaking everyone’s hand, and then he was talking to Stu off camera, and they [WWE] had us all loaded on the entrance way.
Ali emphasized the unprecedented nature of the crowd response:
So if you go back and watch that clip, John comes out, the whole roster is on the entrance ramp; he comes out, and the building is shaking. I’ve never experienced this in my life.
Potential historic achievement awaits John Cena at Royal Rumble 2025
The celebration of Cena’s past achievements could soon be overshadowed by a historic milestone. The 16-time world champion has an opportunity to break Ric Flair’s shared record at Royal Rumble 2025, nearly 3,000 days after his last WWE Championship victory at the 2017 event.
Cena’s return on RAW’s Netflix premiere could set the stage for a championship opportunity against Gunther on February 1.
The potential clash would pit the veteran against one of WWE’s most dominant current champions, with the possibility of establishing a new record in professional wrestling history.