John Cena’s actions on SmackDown this week didn’t “make any sense,” says former WWE employee (Exclusive)

The main event of this week's episode of WWE SmackDown set the course for the upcoming SummerSlam PLE. The main event featured the contract signing for the Undisputed WWE Championship match between Cody Rhodes and John Cena.

Cody Rhodes won his shot at John Cena's title following his King of the Ring victory last month, and the two came face to face on this week's episode. Former WWE employee Vince Russo questioned the actions of the current Undisputed WWE Champion.

Talking about the main event of SmackDown on Sportskeeda Wrestling's BroDown, Russo claimed that Cena's actions on this week's episode didn't make any sense and blamed the writers for the same. The segment revolved around Cena trying to get out of his match at SummerSlam before Cody Rhodes took matters into his own hands and forced the champion to sign the contract.

"They're not even paying attention to what they're writing. They're not even paying attention because when something happens, something has to come out of it. You know, it needs to make sense in some way, shape, or form. Even when we get to the end of the show, that they're looking for something, but the something doesn't make any sense. All of a sudden, bro, throughout this whole run, Cena is afraid of Cody now. I mean, hasn't been phased by him, has been cocky, has been a heel, but now he's trying to back out of a match. Like, how'd that happen?" Russo said. [15:44 onwards]

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Cody Rhodes lost his title to John Cena at SummerSlam after the unseen 17 used underhanded tactics to win the belt. He wouldn't have that advantage this time around, as Rhodes announced after the contract signing that the two would face each other in a Street Fight.

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About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Rahul Madurawe