John Cena

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.

John Cena Eyeing Big WrestleMania Role

As WWE continues to formulate plans for the Road to WrestleMania, one name who could play a key role in the biggest show of 2020 is John Cena.

Per WrestleVotes, Cena wants to do "something substantial" at WrestleMania 36 that is "more than just an appearance."

Cena's appearances in WWE have become sporadic as he focuses on his acting career. The Cenation Leader last appeared on television for WWE at Raw Reunion on July 22 when he was involved in a rap battle with The Usos. His last match was nearly one year ago on Jan. 14 when he lost a Triple Threat match with Finn Balor and Drew McIntyre to determine the No. 1 contender for the Universal Championship at the Royal Rumble.

Cena's last significant role at WrestleMania came in 2017 when he teamed up with then-girlfriend Nikki Bella in a mixed tag team match against The Miz and Maryse that was more notable for his marriage proposal afterward.

At WrestleMania 34, Cena technically had a match against The Undertaker that lasted less than three minutes and was essentially a squash match for The Deadman.

Cena lives in the Tampa area, where WrestleMania 36 is being held, so his proximity to the event could make it easier for him to get a significant spot in WWE's most important event of the year.

Edge Denies Return Rumors

It's becoming a recurring theme that Edge has to use Twitter to shut down any talk that he may return to the ring.

The Rated R Superstar had this to say amid speculation he could return to WWE as a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble:

The rumor began Thursday when PWInsider.com's Mike Johnson answered a fan question about whether Edge would make a comeback.

"We've heard that Edge signed a new deal with WWE that has a pretty nice upside. We also reported a few months ago he was in Pittsburgh for WWE business and that's where WWE Wellness Policy head Dr. Joseph Maroon is headquartered. My gut feeling is we'll see Edge in the Royal Rumble as a surprise (as that seems like the perfect place to make a big splash with a return for Wrestlemania season) and possibly even see him do a few matches on major events."

Edge previously took to Twitter in October to state that he hadn't been medically cleared to wrestle and wasn't under contract with WWE.

Injuries forced Edge to retire from in-ring competition in 2011, just one week after he successfully defended the world heavyweight title against Alberto Del Rio at WrestleMania 27.

WWE noted he had been experiencing numbness and "uncontrollable trembling" in his arms and hands and underwent an MRI that determined he wouldn't be cleared to compete again.

Edge did have his first physical contact in August at SummerSlam when he speared Elias on the pre-show. It's unclear if that means he's been fully cleared, but it could be the first step for him to do one more match on a big show like the Royal Rumble or WrestleMania.

Ric Flair's WWE Contract Expiring Soon

Ric Flair has spent the past seven years in WWE, but the Nature Boy could become a free agent by the start of 2020.

Per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t H. Jenkins of Ringside News), Flair's deal with WWE is set to expire "right around the end of the year."

Meltzer said he expects WWE to make Flair a "good offer" to keep him but added the 70-year-old is friends with AEW President Tony Khan and invited Khan to his wedding.

Flair's situation with WWE could be complicated because he's been involved in a dispute with the company over its use of "The Man" to promote current Raw women's champion Becky Lynch.

In September, Flair told TMZ Sports he had been trying to work out an amicable agreement with WWE in which he would receive compensation for allowing Lynch to keep using the name.

One of Flair's most famous lines from his days in the ring was, "To be the man, you gotta beat the man."

He has continued to be part of WWE events, including an appearance at Crown Jewel in October, so it seems unlikely the situation would prevent him from re-signing with the company.

Flair is operating from a position of leverage because WWE likely wouldn't want one of the greatest performers in the history of the sport to show up on AEW.

A cryptic Instagram post has led to some speculation regarding John Cena appearing and competing at Sunday night's WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view.

Cena, who is known for posting bizarre photos on his Instagram without any context, posted an image Sunday that reads: "Keep calm and keep the streak going."

According to Wrestling Inc's Joshua Gagnon, "the streak" could be in reference to the fact that Cena has had at least one pay-per-view match in 17 straight years dating back to 2002. If Cena does not wrestle at TLC, that run would come to an end.

While Cena has made a few appearances for WWE throughout 2019, his only matches came on the Jan. 7 and 14 editions of Raw.

He did show up at WrestleMania 35 in April, and there was some thought that he would compete in an impromptu match, but Cena reverted to his Doctor of Thuganomics gimmick and ran down Elias in a freestyle rap instead.

Cena is enjoying a burgeoning career as a Hollywood actor, which is the primary reason why his involvement with WWE has been significantly reduced over the past year.

Even with the Instagram post, Cena appearing Sunday at Target Center in Minneapolis for TLC would be a major surprise since WWE hasn't so much as teased any involvement from the future Hall of Famer.

AJ Styles, Seth Rollins and Shinsuke Nakamura are among the big-name heels who aren't scheduled to have a match at TLC, so if there are plans for Cena to get involved, perhaps an unannounced match against one of them could be in the cards.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).

Seth Rollins appeared on Tuesday's episode of WWE Backstage on FS1 to discuss his back-and-forth with CM Punk and how fans have reacted to him recently.

With regard to Punk, Rollins suggested that he plans to abandon ship in calling out the former WWE champion and pushing for a match:

"I'm here, he's not here, and I'm not shocked about that. I think I've exhausted all of my energy on the subject. I just don't think it's going anywhere. I'm not shocked that he's not here, so I think it's time to maybe move on to something that matters. I wish he was here. I wish we could have a face-to-face, but it's not in the cards."

Punk made a shocking debut on WWE Backstage a few weeks ago and then returned the following week as an analyst. Punk noted that his deal is with Fox rather than WWE and suggested he isn't necessarily interested in returning to the ring.

Despite that, Rollins called out Punk on social media:

Punk followed that up by cutting a promo on Rollins on WWE Backstage and telling him to get off Twitter to avoid making himself look foolish.

While Rollins indicated that he is ready to move on from Punk, he is still at the forefront in WWE because of his current storyline, which has seen him lean heel by calling out Kevin Owens and the rest of the Raw locker room.

The potential heel turn was necessitated by fans turning on Rollins and booing him regularly despite being one of the company's top babyfaces. Rollins expressed his belief that it was a result of the pack mentality fans have when it comes to criticizing the top guy:

"I think it affects you, whether you want to fess up to it or not. You read the comments, you hear the small segment of the audiences. Let's be clear: this is not everywhere. I do live events all over the world, and I'm not getting booed. There's a small contingent of our audience that's very vocal on social media.

"... This is my life. I love this business. So when you put so much into it, to feel like I get disrespected, I'm going to push back. I'm not a guy, like [John] Cena, who's gonna put motivational quotes on Twitter, or like Roman [Reigns] and kind of hang back.

"It's the cool thing to do is hate me. The cool thing is to hate the guy on top. I'm not going to say I'm the first. I'm not breaking ground. Roman before me; Cena was the same thing. He may have pioneered it. Bret Hart, maybe the same thing."

If Rollins' theory is correct, then turning him heel is the right move for WWE. The company resisted doing so with Cena and Reigns, but since Rollins has already proved he can thrive as a top heel, there is every reason to go back to it.

The WWE Universe is clearly behind Kevin Owens as the top babyface on Raw, so the door is open for Rollins to fill the role of top heel whenever WWE champion Brock Lesnar isn't in the fold.

While WWE has held off on going full bore with the heel turn, it seems to be on the horizon, and that would do nothing but good for Rollins' career.

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).