John Cena reveals who he was supposed to face at WWE Crown Jewel 2025

John Cena's retirement tour was full of ups and downs, with great moments such as winning his seventeenth world championship or his unexpected heel turn, and moments that didn't work out, like his crushing defeat against Brock Lesnar and his run as a heel.

However, his tour did leave us with some of his best matches in recent years. Particularly noteworthy was his magical encounter with AJ Styles at WWE Crown Jewel. A match that fans demanded, that the wrestlers themselves supported, and that the company decided to schedule. Now Cena has revealed the name of the wrestler he would have faced at the Australia event if it weren't for this change of plans.

"I tried to plan it as a year of creative experiences, but you have to be able to adapt. You don't have Rock, you don't have Travis (Scott). 'Let's do this and that'. AJ (Styles) was supposed to face Drew (McIntyre). We adapted. You want to have a moment that feels good because they were listening to the data. They do. It's real. You have the Brock moment and people are upset. You have the AJ moment and things are going great. You have this streak of three appearances with Dom, which is fun. Then, The Ring General," Cena said on No-Contest Wrestling.

The match between Cena and Styles was not only the best match of that night, but also the highest-rated match of the entire retirement tour of the seventeen-time world champion. Both men put on a great show full of nods and tributes to fellow professionals, including an emotional gesture in honor of the late Bray Wyatt in which the fans also participated.