Vince Russo reveals how he’d book John Cena’s WWE retirement: “That’s what I would have done” (Exclusive)

John Cena has been the face of WWE for the last two decades. The former WWE Champion carried the promotion on his back for the majority of his career before announcing his retirement tour last year. Cena is set to hang up his boots come the end of the year, following his final run with the promotion.

Veteran writer Vince Russo recently shared his thoughts on how he'd have booked the 17-time World Champion's retirement run in WWE. The 48-year-old's retirement run has had multiple layers to it, which included him becoming a WWE Champion once again, breaking Ric Flair's record in the process, and turning heel for the first time in over 20 years.

While talking about the leader of the Cenation on this week's episode of BroDown on Sportskeeda WrestleBinge, Russo stated that if he were John Cena, he would've announced that he would retire the next time he lost a match. This would allow whoever beat Cena to be elevated to another level.

"What I would have done if I was John Cena is I would have made my comeback and I would have simply said, "The first time I lose a match in this ring, I'm retiring." You're still going to tune in every time he's on to see if that's the one. And then when he does lose that last one and somebody retires him, now you've made somebody. That's what I would have done. First time my shoulders get pinned to the mat, one, two, three, 'I'm leaving my boots in the middle of the ring," Russo said.

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With only a few matches left in his retirement tour, John Cena will be taking on a fresh talent in his next match in a never-before-seen bout. The 17-time World Champion will face Logan Paul for the first time later this month at WWE's Clash in Paris.

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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 Faiz Ahmed