John Cena doubles down on WWE retirement: ‘100 percent done’ after December 13
As December 13 nears, John Cena is having no second thoughts about stepping away from the ring.
Cena’s final match is now just over a week away. It will be held in Washington, D.C. on the December 13 edition of WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event, with Cena set to take on either Gunther or LA Knight. To promote the show, Cena made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live last night. He reiterated that he is “100 percent done” as an in-ring competitor after this match.
“23 years of performing in WWE, and we’re down to our last date. It’s been a crazy year where I announced this like 15 months in advance that I’m going to retire,” Cena said. “This has really never been done in WWE history. WWE Superstars don’t necessarily retire, they always kind of hang on for one more match. I am absolutely 100 percent done. The 13th of December on Peacock is my last in-ring performance.”
Cena said announcing his retirement so far in advance was important to him because he wanted to have this retirement tour and give fans closure. He hopes people can come to grips with the fact that he really is done in the ring after this retirement match.
We’ll find out the identity of Cena’s final opponent when Gunther and Knight face off on SmackDown this Friday in the Last Time is Now Tournament finals. Cena told Kimmel that, as would be expected, he thinks his match will be the main event of the SNME card. The lineup will also include main roster vs. NXT exhibition bouts, which was Cena’s idea to help spotlight some of WWE’s up-and-coming prospects.
“You’re going to see some, technically, minor leaguers step up to the plate and see if they can make an impact,” Cena said. “So I think that’s kind of cool. Like, on the way out, to give most of the programming to the future of the business. I’m really excited about that.”
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.