WWE news: John Cena needs to headline Saturday Night’s Main Event
Conflicting reports on social media have WWE fans questioning whether John Cena will main event Saturday Night’s Main Event for his last match.
The current rumour is that Cena would open the show rather than headline, and the ramifications could be costly.
Here, Sports News Blitz writer Mosaddek Abu discusses why this decision could backfire.
Lose audience interest
If Cena vs Gunther opens the show, rather than letting them build anticipation for the match, the WWE would risk viewers tuning out.
Compare it to Bad Blood 2024, CM Punk vs Drew McIntyre opened the show with a violent Hell In A Cell Match, and the crowd was red-hot, but only just for that match, though.
Their energy and excitement didn’t carry over to the other matches that were a part of that card.
Gunther vs John Cena is going to be an emotionally draining, intense match and could very well be one of the best of 2025, with the crowd eating up all of it - but then you can’t expect them to keep that same energy for the whole night.
Bad look on NXT
The importance of this night to the NXT superstars competing on Saturday Night should be considered.
It’s their chance to shine in front of a large audience that will be there at the Capital One Arena, not to mention the number of viewers tuning in over on Peacock in America and YouTube internationally.
So it puts those NXT stars on the back foot. The crowd will still be interested at a certain level, but it isn’t a guarantee that they’d be appealing to new sets of eyes.
This night is about them.
Cena’s final show is going to attract outside interest for those who are new to WWE or are perhaps coming back in just for this last time to watch Cena call it a day.
It’s a huge chance to show off the NXT brand, present themselves as the future of WWE, create new fans, and make their own moment.
John Cena needs to main event in his final match
Considering December 13 has been labelled as Cena’s last night as an in-ring wrestler, and this will be his final match ever, why would you have him open the show?
Regardless of whether Cena wins or loses against Gunther, the match should be the main event; it’s the guy who was the face of the company for over two decades.
On his last night, he is meant to be celebrated, praised and appreciated for all he has done for 23 years.
This is what fans are tuning in to see, one last main event for “Big Match John” as he prepares to do battle against one of the best in-ring workers on the roster today.
The anticipation needs to build, with small video tributes of Cena playing throughout the night, with the NXT superstars also getting their moment to shine.
But on Cena’s last night, a show that’s billed as the final farewell, it’s appropriate that he has the final sendoff that he’s earned from a 23-year career.
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