At WrestleMania 41, John Cena reached his goal. He defeated Cody Rhodes and secured his 17th world title, surpassing Ric Flair at the top of the list. As he prepares for retirement, his time in WWE is winding down. Randy Orton has emerged as the first man to challenge Cena. The two are set to face off at WWE Backlash in what will be their last time sharing the ring together.
If Cena finds a way to get past Orton, here are three other men who should challenge for Cena’s title at some point before December 31.
3. R-Truth
So yes, this is a comedic entry, but one that makes sense when you think about it. R-Truth has been John Cena’s biggest fan. Cena is his childhood hero if you ignore the fact that Truth is the older of the two. But there’s a story that could be told here and one that would end in violent fashion for Truth.
All WWE has to do is create a backstage scenario in which Cena gets annoyed with Truth and makes the match to make an example out of him. From there, have Cena assault Truth in a brutal fashion, akin to what Brodie Lee did to Cody Rhodes years ago. Cena should leave Truth in a bloody mess to make it clear that he’s here to ruin professional wrestling for everyone.
2. CM Punk
CM Punk and John Cena have an important history together. In many ways, their feud from a decade ago was the one that put CM Punk on the map in a way he probably wouldn’t have achieved.
Now, they are in completely different roles. Imagine the story that Punk is the one attempting to “protect” professional wrestling from someone like Cena. It is a complete juxtaposition to where they started years ago. WWE would have to find a way to add a stipulation to the match because neither man can work the pace that they did before, but stipulation matches are an area where WWE thrives.
1. AJ Styles
AJ Styles coined one of the best catchphrases during that time. Everyone wanted to see him “beat up John Cena.” Fans may not have cheered back then, but they would give him their full support this time around.
Cena versus Styles would be a great feud after the Orton match at Backlash. Styles still has the ability to work a great in-ring match, and he could carry Cena through much of it. It would be a fun one, but not one that Styles would win. Planning this toward the start of Q4 would open the door for Cena’s final angle where he finally drops the title.