Booking John Cena's Perfect Opponent For His Final WWE Royal Rumble

The John Cena 2025 retirement tour has several pitstops it must take and a handful of must-have feuds and matches, too. One of those stops, obviously, is the Royal Rumble. And it should go without saying, but one of those opponents must be a guy by the name of CM Punk.

So why not combine the two to get this retirement tour started right? If the two aren't going to do it at a WrestleMania (which they probably won't), the timing of such a historic reconnection would make all sorts of sense for early 2025. Cena is, after all, claiming that is will be the last time he competes at a Royal Rumble. Unless he's going for a top title or in the Rumble match itself, his schedule looks pretty free right now.



Likewise, Punk is sort of in between feuds right now after what was, at least presumably, the end of his spiteful battle with Drew McIntyre. Neither guy really figures to be involved in chasing main roster titles so soon. Cody Rhodes's belt around his waist will likely stay there and mostly center on Roman Reigns, The Rock, and the Bloodline through WrestleMania.

Gunther's top title probably will not come off his waist, if at all, until Mania. There is simply a lull in the schedule right now, too. Punk could use a one-off feud over these winter months before 'Mania season begins.

It's hard to imagine anything but him really getting into another bitter, real-life blending feud with Seth Rollins before they go on to main event Night 1 of 'Mania. And for Cena, he's got all year, and especially toward the end, to put over young talent and eventually go out on his back. A 'Mania feud with the likes of say, Randy Orton, would make loads of sense.

There will be plenty of time for Cena on standard broadcasts and even after 'Mania to have wished-for encounters with the likes of Austin Theory, Bronn Breakker and others. Right now, though, it's about ramping things up for historic feuds with 'Mania season on approach. So, a now-until-Rumble war of words and brief altercation between Punk and Cena? Yes, please.

This doesn't have to be difficult, either. Have the two old foes brush shoulders and Punk hit him with a variation of it's funny I'm here and you're not to plant the seeds and away we go. The majority of pro wrestling fans don't need schooled on the history between these two.

Way back when, WWE was in the throes of the Super Cena era when Punk rose to stardom, paving the way for WWE to forcibly change its ways in regards to indie guys who didn't necessarily fit that Cena mold. Then, the historic feud that culimated in Punk winning the title at Money in the Bank, blending in his real-life possible departure due to a lack of a contract and eventual return as the Cult of Personality. How things have changed since then, right? Punk really did leave, was gone from the sport entirely for far too long, resurfaced in AEW, left and returned.

Cena faded with age, understandably, then became one of the better wrestlers-turned-actors in Hollywood this side of Batista. To say the dynamic is interesting and the two would have some pretty compelling things to say to each other in front of audiences would be a gross understatement. It's a no-lose situation, especially during these quiet winter months, which resemble something of an "offseason" for WWE.

The sheer unpredictability of it would make weekly programming must-see material and even spice up special events like, say, the upcoming Saturday Night's Main Event in mid-December. This type of prolonged teaser before a match at Royal Rumble would give Cena plenty of runway to get back in ring shape for the encounter, too. And even then, it doesn't need to be an all-timer of a physical bout, not when their past encounters were historical in nature for the sheer storytelling via elite in-ring psychology from both.

As the rumble looms closer, many ideas and feuds will enter the discourse in the coming weeks and months. But Punk vs. Cena is inevitable and doesn't have any true competition, especially with the calendar and surrounding stories and feuds in the company currently slotted on what should be a historic 2025 pro wrestling calendar.

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