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John Cena appeared to come to his senses with just over 48 hours to go before he defended the Undisputed WWE Championship against Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam in a street fight.
Cena had been the villain since he aligned with The Rock and Travis Scott in February at Elimination Chamber. He kicked Rhodes in the groin then and got Scott’s help at WrestleMania 41 to defeat Rhodes for his 17th championship reign – the most in WWE history.
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Travis Scott, and John Cena look on during WWE Elimination Chamber at Rogers Centre on March 1, 2025, in Toronto, Canada. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE via Getty Images)
On Friday’s edition of “SmackDown,” the crowd that packed the Prudential Center in Newark got a classic Cena promo. He thanked Rhodes for pulling him out of his bad-guy persona, declared that he wasn’t going to try to ruin wrestling anymore and instead wanted to take his belt with him when he left WWE, because he didn’t want the fans to forget about him.
Cena said Rhodes’ beatdown gave him the kick in the butt he needed to dig down and find himself and also had subtle shots for the Rock and Scott.
JELLY ROLL GIVES CREDIT TO WWE STARS AHEAD OF SUMMERSLAM: ‘THAT WRESTLING-IS-FAKE STUFF GOTTA GO OUT THE DOOR’
John Cena in action against CM Punk during Night Of Champions at Kingdom Arena on June 28, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE via Getty Images)
“For 25 years, day in and day out I had forged a reputation off of hard work, honestly and respect. And now I realize, five months ago, I flushed it all down the toilet chasing false glory when I bought into somebody’s idea to make shocking TV. And we did, we shocked the world, we made great TV. Then the dust settles, and everybody goes back to their normal lives and the people who were supposed to be on my team left. They left me alone to try to pretend to be somebody I’m not,” Cena said.
“Mark your calendar, Cody, August 1, 2025, in Newark, New Jersey, the day that John Cena came back to the WWE. . . . I don’t know who leaves with this on Sunday (holding up the title). But I do know who wins – each and every one of you (the fans), because I’m finally over my own BS and at long last we get to see Cody Rhodes face off against the greatest of all time at my best with something to prove in a main event street fight with no rules that you wanted. Well, if you want some, come get some. And on Sunday, the only platinum rapper showing up to whip your a– is me.”
Rhodes couldn’t help but smile.
Rapper Travis Scott faces off against Cody Rhodes during the WWE Championship match against John Cena during WrestleMania 41 at Allegiant Stadium on April 20, 2025, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
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It was Cena whom fans were familiar with. But the 48-year-old will compete in a grueling street fight with the possibility of his title reign coming to an end.
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