At the Elimination Chamber PLE, WWE gave us one of the most shocking moments in its history when the ultimate babyface, John Cena, turned heel, attacking WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and aligning himself with The Rock. It was a huge angle that has not just the wrestling community but the whole world of pop culture buzzing. John Cena and The Rock are two of the most famous men on the planet and Cody Rhodes is the face of WWE. Whatever is planned next, the main event of WrestleMania 41 and the next month leading up to it is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated we’ve seen in a long time. There’s just one huge problem: it doesn’t look like John Cena and the Final Boss are actually going to be around for much of it.
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Fans Have Been Begging For A John Cena Heel Turn For Decades
WWE Gave Fans What They Wanted But With A Twist
- John Cena was over as the heelish Doctor of Thuganomics.
- Vince McMahon wouldn’t turn the face of WWE heel.
- Having John Cena sell his soul to The Rock is an intriguing story.
WWE fans have wanted John Cena to turn to the dark side for the last twenty years. Cena first found stardom in WWE when his generic character started rapping and became the Doctor of Thuganomics. Cena was pure evil in how he verbally destroyed his opponents, but he was so cool and his raps so captivating that fans started to cheer him. That was great, leading to Cena becoming a babyface and very quickly the face of the whole company, but with such a heavy weight on his shoulders, Vince McMahon would never turn him heel, no matter how loudly crowds booed.
2025 was built up to be this nostalgic final run for John Cena where he’d get to have a few dream matches and say goodbye to pro wrestling while basking in the adoration of fans who now cheer him. Maybe he’d get a final championship run so he could break Ric Flair’s record, then he’d ride off into the sunset. Instead, we’re getting so much more. Not only did John Cena turn heel, but he did so in the most dastardly way possible by aligning himself with The Rock. John Cena did the unthinkable and gave his soul to the Final Boss, all in the name of championship glory. There is such a fascinating story to tell, but just who will be the ones telling it?
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John Cena And The Rock Won’t Be On Live TV Much
John Cena Isn’t Scheduled For Raw Next Week Either
- The Rock won’t be competing in a match at WrestleMania 41.
- Neither John Cena nor The Rock were on the Raw after Elimination Chamber.
- The Rock isn’t confirmed yet to be at WrestleMania.
As exciting as it is to see The Rock and John Cena working as a heel tandem, there is an issue: both men are part-timers. The Rock is a very busy man and, most likely because he was just cast in a Martin Scorsese movie, he won’t be competing at WrestleMania 41. History over the last few years shows that he’ll show up every now and then, but he’s far from a regular. Cena has been used just as sparingly, and even though he’s committed to doing a few dozen dates in 2025, that’s still not a lot.
The Raw after Elimination Chamber showed the problem with such a huge angle. It was the talk of the entire show, but none of the three men involved were in the building. It’s understandable why Cody Rhodes wasn’t. He’s a SmackDown guy, and he needs to at least take a few days off to sell his injuries. But if John Cena and The Rock had been there to explain themselves, WWE could have truly capitalized on the moment. Instead, neither man showed up. The Rock had already said in the post Elimination Chamber press conference that he was leaving for Africa, and according to Fightful Select, not only would John Cena be absent from Raw on March 3, but he won’t be there on March 10 either. Fightul added:
“Most we spoke to tonight in WWE believe the Rock will be at WrestleMania in Vegas, but that was far from confirmed. We’ve heard nothing to lend to what he’d do there.”
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WWE’s Hottest Storyline Will Quickly Fall Flat Without Its Top Stars
Cody Rhodes Can’t Carry The Moment By Himself
- John Cena and The Rock can’t just appear in video packages.
- Hulk Hogan was there in person after turning heel in WCW.
- Cody Rhodes had to carry past WrestleMania stories because of Roman Reigns’ part-time status.
It’s confusing that WWE would book their hottest angle in many years and not have the biggest stars attached to it committed to being there for the follow through. Unless John Cena surprisingly shows up on SmackDown, which he isn’t advertised for, and he doesn’t appear next week on Raw, it’ll be at the very least nearly two weeks since his betrayal of Cody Rhodes when he shows up.
Cena and The Rock could both show up in pre-taped video packages, but that would feel lifeless. Remember a decade ago, when The Rock became WWE Champion, only to start sending in video segments rather than being there live in the building? It killed the buzz. Having them show up in video packages would be better than nothing, but it would still be very disappointing. John Cena’s heel turn immediately brought back memories of Hulk Hogan turning heel and forming the nWo at WCW Bash at the Beach 1996. What if Hogan then disappeared right after and didn’t capitalize on the shock he’d created?
Cody Rhodes is as over as a babyface can be, and he’s solid on the mic, but WWE can’t depend on him to sell the main event of WrestleMania 41. He’s already had to do that before thanks to Roman Reigns’ part-time status. There is a month left until The Show of Shows. That’s not much time at all. John Cena and The Rock need to be on TV as much as possible, or one of the greatest heel turns ever is going to be nothing more than a short gimmick for a PLE.