The final chapter of John Cena’s retirement tour will not feature a rematch with Brock Lesnar. Bryan Alvarez of Wrestling Observer Live reported this weekend that the rivalry between the two icons is officially over.
Their clash at the inaugural WrestlePalooza was their last. “Well, as of this weekend, I am told that this is it. There isn’t gonna be another Brock Lesnar and John Cena match. That was their last match,” Alvarez stated.
The report also ended speculation that Lesnar would be the 17-time World Champion’s final opponent. While Cena still has five advertised appearances left, WrestleVotes has pinpointed his final match for Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 13 in Washington, DC.
This conclusion follows a match where Lesnar, wrestling for the first time in over two years, completely demolished Cena. The Beast Incarnate had promised a destructive outcome beforehand, vowing, “If John Cena wants his retirement with an exclamation point on it, I’m gonna retire John Cena.”
The one-sided bout, which Fightful Select reported was moved from the main event to the opener in a late creative change, reportedly had a different planned outcome. Earlier reports suggested Cena was originally booked to win before a last-minute reversal.
Lesnar’s pre-match promo was filled with vitriol, dismissing Cena’s legacy:
“You want me to sit here and f—king put John Cena over for 25 years and talk about how great he is? I’m not your guy. If Brock Lesnar would have stayed in WWE, you would not know the name John Cena today… In your yellow f—king calf s—t stained f—king t-shirts and whatever you wanna wear out there – I ain’t buying it.”
Alvarez summed up the confusion among fans: “And Brock is not his final opponent. So… I don’t know what to say now. Why would you do a match like that unless Cena is going to climb that mountain afterwards? Apparently, that was not the plan—they just killed him.”
With no retribution ahead, the brutal loss stands as an abrupt and unceremonious end to one of WWE’s major rivalries.