The narrative surrounding John Cena’s retirement tour has centered on a key premise about his opponents. While Triple H has repeatedly stated that Cena has a “dream list,” Cena himself insists he does not choose who he faces. A new social media post on Tuesday escalated this discrepancy, putting both AJ Styles and WWE management in the spotlight.
In a direct post on X, Cena challenged the official company line and openly campaigned for a match against his longtime rival.
“I do not choose my opponents, but I (even through tough times) ALWAYS listen to the fans. @AJStylesOrg are you listening? Better yet @TripleH….. are YOU listening??? #CenaVsStyles”
This public call-out contradicts the narrative from WWE’s Chief Content Officer, who has framed Cena’s final run as the legend hand-picking his challengers. It also follows Cena’s earlier online post from Monday, when he asked fans for opinions on a potential match with “The Phenomenal One.”
AJ Styles has yet to respond. On the most recent episode of Raw, he set up a tag team match for next week alongside Dragon Lee against Los Americanos, without addressing Cena’s message.
A potential final encounter would serve as a high-stakes tie-breaker in their rivalry, with the two tied 2-2 in singles matches. Styles defeated Cena at Money in the Bank and SummerSlam in 2016. Cena evened the score by winning the WWE Championship from Styles at Royal Rumble 2017 and later beating him on SmackDown in February 2018. Cena even acknowledged in a promo before his Clash in Paris match against Logan Paul that he might not get another chance to face Styles before retiring.
Cena is coming off a decisive loss to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza, where he was taken out by multiple F5s. With his next appearance scheduled for Crown Jewel in Australia on October 11, the window for this fan-demanded match is closing quickly.