The never-seen 17-time WWE World Champion John Cena is closing in on the end of his career.
It feels strange to say it, but there are only six appearances left before ‘The Greatest Of All Time’ says goodbye to the squared circle forever.
His next big match, post WrestlePalooza this weekend, is going to be at Crown Jewel in Australia next month.
The question is – with all due respect to Bill Goldberg – who is next?
After a failed heel run for Cena, WWE should bank on nostalgia and big-time matches to make the final stages of Cena’s career a banger.
Here are eight stars Cena could face Down Under at WWE Crown Jewel.
8. The Miz
Although The Miz is not quite as high on the WWE pecking order these days, the two-time Grand Slam Champion’s career and Cena’s are tied together like almost no other.
His initial feud with John Cena put The Miz on the map as a singles star, and his infamous Hate Cena shirt became a top merch seller at the time.
On top of that, years later, The Miz fought John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania 27 for the WWE Championship.
It would be fitting to revisit this rivalry one more time before it is all over.
Especially to remind everyone that with Cena’s retirement, Miz becomes one of the last big superstars of that era.
One thing is for sure:
When Cena is gone, Miz is going to miss him the most…
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7. Dominik Mysterio
Many fans have a dream: John Cena becomes a Grand Slam Champion.
Funnily enough, the so-called ‘Greatest Of All Time’ has yet to win it all in WWE.
Kofi Kingston, Kevin Owens, Finn Balor, Kurt Angle and many more have done it. But the 17-time World Champion John Cena was never able to do it.
In order to become a Grand Slam Champion, the only championship that is missing is the WWE Intercontinental Championship, a title currently held by Dominik Mysterio.
Plus, imagine a Cena/Dirty Dom feud for a second! Doesn’t that sound incredibly intriguing?
Definitely a match that could become great with the right build.
And Dominik could not be the only potential Mysterio on Cena’s list for Crown Jewel…
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6. Rey Mysterio
The currently injured Rey Mysterio is reportedly on his way back to WWE.
The San Diego native, unfortunately, got injured the night before WrestleMania weekend with a groin injury.
Having him return against John Cena would see two of the greatest babyfaces in WWE history square off one more time. A real battle of the greats and the ‘Crown Jewel’ of a face-to-face contest.
The most prominent time where these two entered a 1-on-1 battle was their clash on Raw in 2011, where Cena snatched the WWE Title freshly out of Rey’s hands after Mr 619 just won the belt in a one-night tournament.
Something the storyline towards Crown Jewel could be based on, because the unfairness of the matter was never quite resolved.
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5. Wade Barrett
Perhaps one of the biggest surprise opponents WWE could come up with.
Since Wade Barrett has been missing on commentary for a few occasions, maybe he is getting himself in shape for one more clash against John Cena?
Seeing Bad News Barrett in a WWE ring again would be absolutely amazing. He never officially retired, and there is no known injury that would hold him back from going at it one final time.
Of course, the five-time Intercontinental Champion has been excelling at commentary; but it might be time to bring back the Winds of Change one more time.
Imagine WWE would bring back the entire Nexus for this match, turning this fight into a Lumberjack Match to hide Barrett’s potential ring-rust and give Cena fans a great nostalgia moment?
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4. Sheamus
If it’s not the League Of Nations’ Wade Barrett, maybe it can be Sheamus. After his feud with Rusev, Sheamus is looking for a new quest.
Much like Cena, Sheamus is also chasing that one WWE Intercontinental Championship run. Additionally, Sheamus’ career might not have taken the turn it did if it wasn’t for Cena.
Who remembers that fateful night at WWE TLC in 2009, when newcomer Sheamus defeated John Cena for the WWE Championship in a tables match?
Now, all those years later, having Sheamus and John Cena battling each other one more time would be nothing short of a full-circle moment for both men.
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3. AJ Styles
Whenever AJ Styles is done dealing with the Americanos and some fractions of the Judgement Day, maybe it’s time for The Phenomenal One to fry some bigger fish.
The AJ Styles vs. John Cena matches are considered by many to be the greatest matches of John Cena’s career.
So let us not waste any more time and get it done at Crown Jewel. Lucky number 7. This time for one final time. Greatest Of All Time vs. The Phenomenal One.
This one just writes itself.
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2. JBL
In 2024, JBL suddenly made appearances at several indy shows, busting out the occasional Clothesline From Hell.
Maybe the WWE Hall of Famer has one more match in him: Against his greatest rival, John Cena.
It is hard to imagine either one’s career without the other. Only Big Show, CM Punk, Randy Orton and Edge rival JBL for the title of being Cena’s greatest enemy.
Whether JBL is ring-ready or not, we do not know. But it would be a shame if Cena rides into the sunset without these two locking horns one more time.
The only reason John Bradshaw Layfield should ever want to come out of retirement is indeed to try to end John Cena’s career prematurely.
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1. Gunther
Now here we go.
Gunther is indeed not one of John Cena’s greatest rivals, because they have never faced each other before.
The Austrian has been out with an injury recently but should be back in time for Australia.
Big Match John thrives best against big evil entities, and Gunther is just that.
It just might be Cena’s greatest possible dream match left on the table.
So why wait – put the two former World Champions against each other and let ‘Der Ring General’ chop the hell out of John Cena.
It would be fantastic to have Cena explain his purple chest to movie producers the next day anyway.
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