John Cena no longer wrestles on a full-time basis, and his long-term future with WWE is a frequently discussed topic.
Cena turns 44 years of age next month. Like The Rock and Batista, the 16-time World Champion found tremendous success in the movie industry after shifting away from a full-time wrestling schedule.
Two months ago, Cena announced that he won't be part of WrestleMania 37 weekend in Tampa Bay, Florida. He's filming the Peacemaker HBO Max series in Vancouver, British Columbia, and quarantine rules and scheduling conflicts will prevent him from attending the "Show of Shows" this year.
It's anybody's guess when we'll see Cena back in WWE, but there's no reason to worry about a possible retirement in the immediate future.
Cena's father, John Cena Sr., explained on the UnSKripted podcast (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), that the future Hall of Famer will be back in some capacity down the road.
"I think that John Cena will always be connected with the WWE or professional wrestling in some form or manner," Cena Sr. said. "Managing, backstage, NXT, whatever. He’ll always be part of that business. I think you see already, and it’s just me, less and less the other side that he’s doing now. Doesn’t mean he’s finished. I hope nobody believes he’s finished because my prediction…only my prediction, I have not spoken to him…he will be back."
You can listen to the full interview below:
Cena's last WWE match took place against Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 36 last year. The two squared off in a cinematic "Firefly Fun House" match, with Wyatt scoring the pinfall victory.
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Dating back to the start of 2019, Cena has only wrestled in three matches. However, he made appearances at WrestleMania 35 and at the Raw Reunion special on July 22, 2019.
Cena Will Be Back
Cena may not appear at WrestleMania 37 in 10 days, and we probably won't see him on WWE programming for a while. But he definitely doesn't seem keen on ever leaving the business.
In October 2019, Cena stated that he doesn't think he'll ever retire, noting that WWE is his "family." He also acknowledged that he's not as strong in the ring these days. His days as a full-time performer may be long gone, but Cena still has several quality matches left in him. It's just a matter of when we'll see him again, not if.
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