4 Reasons why AJ Styles is facing John Cena at WWE Crown Jewel 2025

Despite a big loss to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza, John Cena will face AJ Styles at Crown Jewel 2025. Many fans and analysts thought that the quick loss to The Beast signaled an early retirement for the 17-time champion.

Triple H assured fans that Wrestlepalooza wasn't the end of the Retirement Tour with the announcement just days after the first-time PLE.

A portion of fans were disappointed that one of Cena's coveted final appearances was used up on Logan Paul. Styles is facing Cena at Crown Jewel 2025 for any of the following four reasons.

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#4. A blockbuster attraction for Crown Jewel

Since Cena is no longer the Undisputed WWE Champion, every one of his appearances needs to be meaningful. His final dates should be featured attraction matches against other big-name stars.

Logan Paul is well-renowned outside of the company, but his standing in the industry isn't anything close to that of Styles, Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, CM Punk, and many others.

The pairing may lack a heel/face dynamic, but two consummate professionals squaring off in the ring can have a great match. Sami Zayn's Open Challenge series has been successful, just as Cena's was.

A non-title match needs a good hook, and having two of the greatest of all time square off at Crown Jewel is big enough without a title.

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#3. The fans wanted it

Any time a massive star joins WWE, it's always fun to go through the Rolodex of potential dream showdowns. Two names that usually show up on most lists are Seth Rollins and AJ Styles.

The Phenomenal One and The Visionary are often both considered the Shawn Michaels of their generations. That means both stars have great matches regardless of opponent.

Their in-ring acumen helps bring lesser stars up to their level. It's why so many NXT performers debuted against Dolph Ziggler - he rarely had a bad match.

Styles is popular, whether a heel or face, due to his in-ring ability and status in the wrestling industry. The fans love The Phenomenal One, no matter what he does.

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#2. It's a better use than his current angle

Dominik Mysterio cheated and benefited from the help of El Grande Americano to retain his Intercontinental title against Styles. It was a disappointing result since the former TNA star is more than deserving of another run with a singles title.

It was also time for Dirty Dom to drop the title. Due to El Grande's interference, Styles pivoted to battling Los Americanos alongside Dragon Lee.

To go from potentially capturing his first singles gold in more than six years to a random tag team feud was a huge misuse of Styles' talents.

Pitting him against Cena at Crown Jewel is much more enticing for those who want a big-time match instead of a throwaway tag team feud.

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#1. AJ Styles and John Cena have a history in WWE

The most important aspect of Cena's Retirement Tour was capturing the 17th Championship. He accomplished that feat at WrestleMania 41 but lost the belt at SummerSlam.

Since he was no longer defending the title, the focus shifted to marquee matches against meaningful opponents. Paul isn't exactly a legend in the wrestling business, so the clash with Cena could have been a favor to The Maverick.

In matches against Orton, Punk, and Lesnar, there were long rivalries to build off. Styles and Cena had three matches between 2016 and 2017, including a few involving the WWE Championship.

The Leader of Cenation won his record-tying 16th World title from Styles. That feud showed that he was on Cena's level and not just some guy from TNA. The two legends have a great history to sell a marquee match for Crown Jewel.