Solo Sikoa dismantled John Cena with no less than 10 Samoan Spikes as he pinned Cena in a shocking result at WWE Crown Jewel 2023.

An emotional Cena was showered with “Thank You Cena” chants in Saudi Arabia as Michael Cole teased Cena’s retirement.

Solo vs. Cena match portrayed Cena as a gunslinger in one of his final shootouts. Cena’s endurance and stamina were questioned throughout, as the announce team confronted the reality of Cena’s retirement. Cena had a few hope spots, but ultimately he was destroyed with several savage Samoan Spikes from Solo. Sikoa’s beatdown was reminiscent of Brock Lesnar’s thrashing of Cena at SummerSlam 2014.

Throughout the Hollywood strike, John Cena has been freed up to appear on SmackDown in what has been his most active schedule in years. Cena’s return has directly correlated to increases in ticket sales and viewership.

“Since he came back, they’ve had over 10,000 every single week on Friday night,” said Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t WrestleTalk). “They were always drawing well anyway, but when he came back, he is a mover, he is a difference maker.”

Cena has appeared on WWE’s Friday night flagship almost every week since September 1 and has done so in a supporting role. Cena’s first PLE of his comeback tour, at WWE Payback, set the tone for his latest run.

At Payback, Cena appeared as the host of the show, and was also the special guest referee for LA Knight’s grudge match against The Miz. Cena went on to spend much his return anointing LA Knight amid Knight’s meteoric rise as WWE’s hottest star. The John Cena co-sign is proof positive that WWE has decided to go all-in on LA Knight, possibly begrudgingly. But while wrestling matches were few and far between for the 16-time world champion, so were victories.

John Cena’s feud with Solo Sikoa told the story of John Cena in winter. Cena lamented that he has not won a televised singles match in over 2,000 days, and he looked to do so against the terrifying enforcer of the Bloodline in Sikoa. Gone are the days of Super Cena.

A Hollywood crossover star, John Cena has taken his role as a supporting actor very seriously. He has enthusiastically endorsed LA Knight all while playing the role of the spiritual underdog against the daunting Solo Sikoa. On the October 13 broadcast of SmackDown, Cena literally appeared in Knight’s corner, cheering him on as he challenged Roman Reigns for Crown Jewel.

WWE’s usage of Cena comes in stark contrast with AEW’s concerning reliance on old-timers. TNT champion Christian Cage (49) is currently one of AEW’s most-featured stars, along with Edge (50) and the soon-to-be-retired Sting (64). AEW recently signed Ric Flair (74) and the AEW Dynamite main event this week featured Billy Gunn (60, happy belated birthday!) Whereas John Cena is used in support of younger stars, WWE Hall of Famers are given a starring role in AEW, where are booked to main event AEW in 2023 as part of their pro wrestling pension plan.