John Cena Retires: End of Era in WWE After Defeat to Gunther

The professional wrestling legend, John Cena, ended his 24-year career in WWE at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., by submitting, something he hadn’t done in over two decades. Cena was submitted to Gunther, a two-time WWE heavyweight champion, on “Saturday Night’s Main Event”. The high-caliber final encounter kept the audience on the edge of their seats, yearning for a Cena victory. The Cena surrender marked the end of his stage, deciding to retire on his own terms. John Cena signed with WWE in 2001, under the name The Prototype. He debuted on “SmackDown” with his real name, losing to Kurt Angle on June 27, 2002. Initially, Cena struggled as a singles wrestler, until he adopted the “Doctor of Thuganomics” persona, which included performing raps in his promos. Over time, Cena became one of the most beloved wrestlers and won 17 world championships, the most recognized by WWE. He participated in the main event of WrestleMania on six occasions and is considered one of the most outstanding professional wrestlers. After sporadic appearances as a part-time wrestler between 2017 and 2024, Cena announced at the WWE Money in the Bank Premium Live Event on July 6, 2024, his retirement from the ring at the end of 2025. His farewell tour formally began at the Royal Rumble in January, where he was eliminated by Jey Uso. He surprised the wrestling world by turning “heel” for the first time since 2003 at Elimination Chamber on March 1st. Finally, he won his seventeenth world championship by defeating Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship at WrestleMania in April. The “heel” turn was short-lived, as Cena dropped the character and the title to Rhodes at SummerSlam in August.

After battling Brock Lesnar, AJ Styles, and Sami Zayn, a tournament was announced to determine Cena’s final opponent at “Saturday Night’s Main Event”. Cena won and lost the Intercontinental Championship to Dominik Mysterio while awaiting the conclusion of the tournament, becoming a Grand Slam champion. Gunther won the tournament and submitted Cena with a hold, in a match of almost 25 minutes. In the final stretch, Gunther relentlessly kept Cena in the hold while the fans showed their support for their hero. However, Cena finally surrendered while the fans watched in disbelief, some shedding tears. The WWE locker room members came out to celebrate Cena, and the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, CM Punk, and the WWE Undisputed Champion, Cody Rhodes, handed their belts to Cena to salute the retiring wrestler. Paul “Triple H” Levesque presented a video to Cena. Instead of giving a speech, Cena left his wristbands and shoes in the ring, walked up the entrance ramp, turned around, and gave a final salute to the camera and the fans.