John Cena teases another match following indie star's WWE return

John Cena
John Cena's spent the majority of his farewell tour honoring the stars that made him (Credit: WWE.com)

John Cena's WWE career is nearing its end. While his next match with AJ Styles is set for Crown Jewel: Perth, the GOAT has teased another face-to-face with a ghost from his past.

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"The Last Time is Now" farewell tour has been hit or miss for fans, receiving both heavy criticism and praise for John Cena's heel turn and short time as a villain. And while the sudden about-face before SummerSlam was perplexing, it's made for some great matches.

During the farewell tour, Cena began pulling out a unique bag of tricks, signature moves of his past rivals. Cena's used CM Punk's GTS, Adam Copeland's Spear, Baron Corbin's End of Days, and even Kurt Angle's Ankle Lock and Angle Slam.

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Big Match John's final year as a professional wrestler has been a thank-you note to the fans and the wrestlers who made him. And now it seems he might be teasing a match with another big name. On NXT last night, TNA Wrestling invaded when Trick Williams defended their World Title against a non-TNA star, NXT Champion Oba Femi. Among those in the audience was the Indie God himself, Matt Cardona.

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The former Zack Ryder was shown in the stands, prepping for the attack, and received a loud reaction from fans in attendance. Cena even got in on the fun, as he shared a photo of Cardona from that event on his Instagram. This isn't the first time he mentioned Cardona on WWE programming, as his parody of Punk's pipe bomb in the summer mentioned him, Claudio Castagnoli, and Nic Nemeth.

Is John Cena teasing his next match, or is he just giving respect to another Superstar?

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John Cena's history with Matt Cardona in WWE

In one of the Chain Gang Leader's more infamous storylines, John Cena buddied up with Matt Cardona on TV at the end of 2011. At the time, Cardona, as Ryder, was riding high with a huge United States Championship win, sharing the spotlight on an episode of RAW alongside World Champion Daniel Bryan and WWE Champion CM Punk.

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Cardona ended up in a romantic storyline with Eve Torres as well. All things were riding high. Then Kane, in an attempt to anger Cena, began attacking Cardona. This led to him losing the United States Title, partly due to a kayfabe injury from Kane. The Big Red Machine's attack left Ryder in a neck brace and a wheelchair.

He'd eventually find Eve Torres planting a kiss on John Cena after the latter saved her from Kane, in what was probably the moment that fully killed what was left of Cardona's 2011 momentum. If Cardona wants one last moment with Cena, he's only got a few months left.

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Edited by Greg Bush
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