As John Cena gears up for a major retirement tour in 2025, one of the biggest questions surrounding this final run is his status as a 16-time world champion, which is currently tied with Ric Flair for the most in WWE history.
Would Paul “Triple H” Levesque consider giving “The Champ” one final run with the belt, making him the unquestioned GOAT of WWE and a true legend of the industry? Or would it make more sense to allow him to win the Intercontinental Championship instead, making him a Grand Slam Champion instead while still being tied for the top honor with the “Nature Boy?”
Discussing the prospects of being knocked down a spot on the all-time leader board in an appearance on Busted Open Radio, Flair let it be known that he would accept the booking decision, even if there's another performer he would prefer to see break his record instead.
“You want the honest-to-God truth? I think so much personally of John Cena. He’s just one of those really great guys, in my opinion. And I’ve known a few,” John Cena explained on Busted Open Radio via Cageside Seats.
“In a perfect world, it would be my daughter, which I think would be the biggest thing that could ever happen. I told her one time, and she got upset — not upset but she didn’t like the comparison, I said, ‘You’d be as famous as Serena Williams if you broke that record that’s been there for so long.’
“She didn’t like the comparison, but she’s as good an athlete as there is alive today. But if they do it with John, I have no problem. I’d be the first one to hit the ring and shake his hand.”
Alright, to Flair's credit, it's sort of hard to argue with his take on this one, as who wouldn't want their family member to earn such an incredible achievement? Still, it is nice to learn that he would still embrace Cena if that was the call from the higher-ups, as that shows a great amount of respect for the men calling the shots and for the business as a whole. WWE would be wise, however, to keep Flair as far away from the ring in that moment as possible, as there's a chance he could try to throw Cena into a Figure Eight to shake things up a la his reported desire to turn heel on Sting at the end of his final AEW match.
Matt Hardy wants to see John Cena break Ric Flair's record
Discussing John Cena's announced retirement from professional wrestling on his Extreme Life podcast, Matt Hardy celebrated “The Face That Runs the Place” for having an incredible career in the squared circle, noting that the timing feels right for one last hurrah.
“I think John retiring is probably a good call for him because I think he wants to move forward and do more things on the Hollywood front and in the acting front and whatnot. I think, by kind of setting a timetable on it, 2025 over the course of that year is when he’s going to do his retirement, I think he’ll have a run of very interesting matches, very interesting feuds, and there will be people that he’ll elevate along that path, and they’ll make it emotional,” Matt Hardy explained via Fightful. “They’ll find a way to tie into the storytelling where it seems real emotional and you’re gonna miss him. You’re going to bereave him whenever he’s gone. But I think over the course of that time, he’ll do great. I think he’ll elevate people. He’ll get people emotionally connected to him in his journey and what he’s doing. Then I think he’ll leave WWE, and you’ll still him back as a figure on TV, interacting but not wrestling as much, and he will fully focus everything on Hollywood and acting.”
Asked if he would like to see Cena win World Championship number 17, Hardy said yes, noting that when you have a career like “The Champ's,” you deserve that kind of celebration on the way out of the door.
“I wouldn’t mind that. I wouldn’t mind that at all. I think he is such a WWE loyalist, I wouldn’t mind that. He would be a great guy to get that honor. When you look back at him, and it’s all said and done, he spent his entire career at WWE and for WWE, and he really is one of the more loyal employees that has ever worked at WWE. So yeah, I wouldn’t mind that at all,” Matt Hardy explained.
“I think there is something that could be valuable from a run with John Cena. I just think if people get so emotionally connected to him in this journey, like, ‘Oh my god, we don’t want it to be over,’ and he gets into a title match, I feel like he could win, and then he doesn’t need a long reign, obviously. You give him a month where he has this, ‘Oh my god, John Cena,’ we’re getting the best of John Cena, and then you have him put over someone clean and make them, and they’re beating this legend, the GOAT, who has had more reigns than anybody else. I think there could he something to that of value.”
Will Cena get that final moment in the sun? Frankly, it sure feels like WWE might want to take things in that direction, as the public response to such a GOAT-making achievement might just be too positive to get cute with in what will mark the final professional wrestling run of one of the greatest home-grown stars in WWE history.
