John Cena shares what William Regal told him after his final match
John Cena shared what William Regal told him backstage after his final match in a recent interview.
During an appearance on the No Contest Wrestling podcast, Cena spoke about his long-standing admiration for Regal and advice Regal gave him early in his career.
“I really idolized William Regal, that European, Fit Finley, that catch-as-catch-can style,” Cena said.
Cena recalled asking Regal for feedback on a dark match he had when he was first starting out with WWE and Regal’s response.
“I asked him, ‘Did you see my match?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘How was it?’ His feedback was, ‘Lad, if you get yourself a pair of boots, at least you’ll look like a proper wrestler.’”
At the time, Cena said he took Regal’s comments at face value, feeling that he only needed to purchase wrestling boots.
“I was like, ‘Yo, I just got to get boots!’ Invest in yourself is what I took away from it.”
“In the callback of all callbacks, the night I retired, he literally came up to me and said, ‘Even without boots, you’re still a proper wrestler.’”
“The day was real busy, but all he needed was one sentence. You never know what the effect something like one sentence can have. That was like a 25 year callback.”
Cena’s comments come a little over two months into his retirement, following his submission loss to Gunther in his final match at the December 13, 2025, episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event. The second season of his Roku Channel series What Drives You with John Cena premiered on January 16, 2026, and consisted of four episodes. Cena is also set to appear in the comedy film Little Brother alongside Eric Andre, which is scheduled for release later this year.
Cena’s full appearance on The No Contest Wrestling podcast is available below. The video is cued to his comments about Regal.
Ian Carey is a writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, whose work has been featured in NOW Magazine, The Huffington Post, and more. A lifelong wrestling aficionado born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he has covered the industry for a decade and a half. He joined the f4wonline.com team in 2019.