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Ending the year on a high, the upcoming WWE SmackDown will showcase John Cena returning to the wrestling ring after 16 months. He unsuccessfully challenged Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship at SummerSlam 2021 in his last fight but has a chance to redeem himself on the next show.
Headlining tonight's WWE SmackDown is a blockbuster tag team match as John Cena, and Kevin Owens is set to take on Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn in an attempt to settle past scores.
On the December 16 edition of WWE SmackDown, Cena announced himself as Kevin Owens' surprise tag team partner in a video segment. He didn't look in the best shape, which led to fans questioning whether the 16-time champion could pull off the match. Also, he has been away from the ring for some time, and even his last fight on the blue brand was four years ago.
Interestingly, John Cena has participated in a mixed tag team match previously on WWE SmackDown. He teamed up with Becky Lynch to face Andrade El Idolo and Zelina Vega on 29 December 2018 in a winning cause. Note that the bout was a televised show. Cena has performed multiple dark matches on the blue brand, particularly in 2021.
The Cenation Leader teamed up with multiple other superstars after the fight. At WrestleMania 36, he tried to withstand The Fiend's onslaught in a Firefly Inferno Match but eventually succumbed.
Kevin Owens praised John Cena ahead of their match on WWE SmackDown
The history between Cena and Owens dates back to 2015. The Prizefighter made an emphatic statement when he defeated The Cenation Leader in a Champion vs. Champion Matcha at the Elimination Chamber. Their rivalry was critically acclaimed, and Owens even earned the Rookie of the Year award from Rolling Stone.
Now, the situation is different. KO is targeting Sami Zayn to snap him out of his toady behavior for The Bloodline. John Cena is back to avenge the drubbing he got from The Tribal Chief. Both have common enemies.
Speaking to the New York Post, Kevin Owens praised John Cena while also addressing their past issues.
"John and I kind of mended fences a long time ago. We haven’t been on opposite sides of the ring for awhile. He’s been an incredible valuable person to talk to about WWE and wrestling in general for so long. Even when we were rivals, if you want to call it that, he was a great sounding board for ideas and anything I could do to get better as a performer."
WWE SmackDown will emanate from the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Apart from John Cena's wrestling return, Ronda Rousey will defend her championship against Raquel Rodriguez in another blockbuster for the year.
