John Cena

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

John Cena's Top-Secret Return

Even though there had been speculation that John Cena's return to WWE was imminent, his appearance at Money in the Bank was a surprise that only a select few people in the company knew about. 

According to PWInsider.com (h/t H Jenkins of Thirsty for News), WWE didn't include Cena's entrance on the rundown sheet for Sunday's pay-per-view and "it was kept secret from most in the company beyond a small circle."

After Roman Reigns defended the WWE universal title against Edge in the main event, Cena shocked the WWE Universe by coming out at the end of the show to have a staredown with the Head of the Table. 

The leader of the Cenation made his intentions clear on Raw. He issued a challenge to Reigns for the championship at SummerSlam in Las Vegas on Aug. 21. The universal champion will address Cena on SmackDown this week. 

Cena's return at Money in the Bank marked his first appearance on WWE television since losing to The Fiend Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 36 in a Firefly Fun House match on April 5, 2020. 

Based on how the crowd greeted Cena on Sunday night, it's safe to assume that WWE's keeping his comeback a secret was a success. 

Naomi Moving to SmackDown?

WWE's recent roster reshuffling appears to include Naomi going from Raw to SmackDown. 

Per PWInsider.com (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.), WWE has "quietly moved Naomi to the blue brand," but it's unclear when the switch will be announced. 

Naomi was listed as a Raw Superstar during her appearance in the women's Money in the Bank ladder match Sunday night.

WWE has practical reasons to move Naomi from Raw to SmackDown. The most obvious being that she's married to Jimmy Uso, who is one-half of the SmackDown tag team champions. 

From a storyline perspective, the SmackDown women's division needs more depth. Sasha Banks has been on hiatus since WrestleMania, and Bayley is out of action for nine months after injuring her knee while training. 

The babyface side of the SmackDown women's roster is bare beyond Bianca Belair. Liv Morgan is the only other one who is receiving any type of push.

Moving Naomi to SmackDown is mutually beneficial to the show and to her. She's been floundering in tag matches on Raw for months, so this will give her the opportunity for a restart. 

WWE Releases New Braun Strowman Merchandise

Despite being one of six Superstars released by WWE on June 2, Braun Strowman has new merchandise available in WWE's official online shop. 

WWE does have an alumni section in its online shop where merchandise for retired Superstars and legends is sold. 

Strowman, though, is still an active performer. He's unable to sign with another company because of the 90-day non-compete clause in his deal with WWE that expires on Aug. 31. 

It's also possible Strowman has re-signed with WWE. The company has brought back Superstars shortly after releasing them. Zelina Vega returned to SmackDown on July 2, eight months after she was cut. 

The Monster Among Men did tease a potential match with AEW star Wardlow on Twitter earlier this month:

AEW talent scout Mark Henry, who previously worked for WWE, told TMZ Sports he's got Strowman "super high" on his wish list and "there's already interest on both sides."

It's unclear where things stand with Strowman, but there will likely be an answer one way or another very soon based on when his non-compete is set to expire. 

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John Cena left no doubt about his intentions following his shocking return to WWE at Money in the Bank on Sunday night.

The 16-time world champion opened Raw and said he wants to challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship at SummerSlam. He proceeded to call Reigns an "assh--e" and expressed a desire to end his reign as The Head of the Table on SmackDown.

Reigns was in the process of celebrating his victory over Edge in the Money in the Bank main event when Cena's unmistakable entrance theme cascaded across Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.

While the legendary star didn't say anything before the pay-per-view wrapped up, no words were necessary to understand his purpose in coming back to the ring.

Reigns has run through a number of challengers since capturing the universal title at Payback last August. There aren't many realistic contenders left on the SmackDown roster, thus creating an obvious vacuum heading into SummerSlam.

Cena, on the other hand, is a genuine threat for Reigns.

Aside from getting The Rock to put his acting career on hold, Cena vs. Reigns is also the biggest single match WWE can book right now.

As Reigns was rising to the top of WWE as a singles star, Cena was beginning to burnish his profile in Hollywood. As a result, these two haven't crossed paths much in one-on-one situations. Their only PPV singles match was at No Mercy 2017.

The two exchanged personal insults on the microphone building up to the show, but the occasion didn't seem to carry the significance befitting a battle of this magnitude. It felt like WWE rushed to put the storyline together because it could see the writing on the wall about Cena's transition into major motion pictures.

Now, the promotion has a little more than a month to generate buzz ahead of SummerSlam and emphasize the stakes involved.

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

John Cena Addresses Crowd After MITB Return

It turns out the rumors were true. John Cena is back in WWE.

Cena, who had not been on WWE television since WrestleMania 36, came out at the end of Sunday's Money in the Bank pay-per-view to interrupt Roman Reigns after his victory over Edge. While there were no words said on the broadcast—only a foreshadowing of their inevitable SummerSlam showdown—Cena spoke to the crowd after the event went off air and said he's here to stay.

"I just wanted to come out here and let Roman Reigns know that I was back, and I certainly wanted to come out here and let you all know I'm back," Cena said. "I promise you, this is not a one-night-only, but what's special to me is this is the first night."

Cena is already making good on his word, as he's scheduled to make an appearance Monday on Raw. 

While it's unclear how often Cena plans to be around, it's safe to say he'll be a regular on at least SmackDown through SummerSlam and possibly longer if he unseats Reigns as Universal champion.

If the pop Cena got Sunday night is any indication, fans hope he'll be sticking around for a long, long time.

Riddle Talks Potential Goldberg Return

Cena isn't the only legend apparently set for Monday's episode of Raw. Rumors have been swirling about a potential Goldberg appearance over the last week—likely to set up a SummerSlam match against Bobby Lashley—and Riddle appeared to confirm it Sunday on The Bump.

"I heard there's somebody special coming back on Monday Night Raw this week. I'm not going to mention names and start problems. I heard a rumor. I don't know if it's true…but if it's true, I'm pretty excited," Riddle said.

Of course, Riddle and Goldberg have a longstanding issue dating back to Riddle's criticism of Goldberg's in-ring capability. The rivalry between the two boiled over in a backstage meeting at SummerSlam in 2019, and Riddle has made it clear several times that people in the locker room felt he was disrespectful.

It's unlikely WWE will use Goldberg and Riddle onscreen together, but the palpable tension between the two would be great television.

New Day Want to be Heels; Management Blocking It

Ask nearly any wrestler and they'll tell you: Being a heel is far more fun than being a babyface—even for the most successful babyfaces.

The New Day remains one of the most over fixtures on the WWE roster seven years into their run, but Kofi Kingston admitted the trio often dream of returning to their heel roots.

"To be honest, we fantasize about it all the time. I tell people that I had the most fun in my career when I was yelling at children, and threatening to ground children, and threatening children," Kingston told Metro's Alistair McGeorge.

Kingston said New Day has considered going to management and asking for a heel turn, but they know it's a nonstarter. The stable is among WWE's best merch movers and is one of the few babyface groups/stars that crowds still pop for years into the gimmick.

"A little bit of both. It’s not a realistic pitch, because usually if you go to pitch something, what you’re doing usually shouldn’t be working. Ours is working a little bit too well," Kingston said.

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WWE just authored the biggest thank you note to WWE fans possible to cap off Sunday night's stellar Money in the Bank pay-per-view. 

It didn't just run over while letting a classic story unfold in the main event between Roman Reigns and Edge. It didn't just organically write Seth Rollins into the feud, laying the groundwork for a must-see SummerSlam. 

It even brought back John Cena for the big one—and the live crowd went nuclear. 

Truth be told, much of Sunday night was fan service as something of a salute to a packed stadium after so long doing shows in front of quiet arenas. Bobby Lashley looked like a monster to set up a big SummerSlam feud. Charlotte Flair got a title back for an inevitable Becky Lynch return. Big E got his big moment, winning a briefcase that lets him cash in whenever, wherever. 

But that main event was a whole different animal. 

While it wasn't the most amazing in-ring match (there were a ton of rest holds and an expected broken-barrier spot outside), it told a good story. It even dotted all of its i's by having The Usos attempt to briefly interfere to save Reigns, only to get rebuked by the Mysterios. Rollins' multiple interferences was just good writing too, even if WWE beat fans over the head with it, telegraphing it a bit with that pre-match interviewer backstage. 

The whole thing sets the stage for what could be a historic SummerSlam on August 21, and we know all of two matches coming out of Sunday night. Rollins had a justifiable beef with Edge, who cut the line for a title shot. Now he's the heel going into a match that has been fantasy-booked by fans for more than a decade.

As a bonus, by way of the interference Sunday night, we also have the groundwork for another Rollins-Reigns feud. 

And realistically, this upcoming Cena-Reigns angle is the story WWE always wanted to tell—with this sort of fan reaction. 

Well, WWE has that reaction now and struck at the perfect time. Cena, in many ways, is still the same old guy, just with a splash of the old "absence makes the heart grow fonder" in there. It's Reigns who avoided that fate, doing the now-historic heel turn and going on a run that, even though it's nearly a year old, still manages to feel amazingly fresh almost every night out. 

So yes, a Reigns-Cena confrontation isn't exactly new, but the vibe of this one is. Reigns is the big bad boss type almost in a Lesnar-ish sense and has just been insulted by a returning legend who used to occupy a role he shook free of to amazing results. 

And to say this feud got off on the right foot is about the understatement of the century. WWE could have waited for SmackDown to roll out Cena. Instead, with the live crowd thinking they were getting a throwaway line from Reigns before the PPV faded to black, they brought out the veteran anyway. 

Cena didn't throw a punch or even threaten anyone. But when that music hit, fans just knew what time it was. He got in the ring, said you can't see me to the guy asking for acknowledgment and that was it. 

Really, that's all the feud would need. The two could not say another word to each other until SummerSlam and the match would feel like the biggest prizefight of the year. But the sheer layers to the relationship between Cena and Reigns on micro and macro levels, even real and fake, guarantee some of the most fire promos fans will see this decade. Try not to forget Paul Heyman, mic-skills legend, happens to be involved, too. 

We're maybe thinking a little too far ahead with the spitballing here, too. But if Reigns gets through Cena, this still leaves the door ajar for some stunning WrestleMania hypotheticals in time. Think, a returning Brock Lesnar with Heyman stuck in the middle, or maybe even pulling The Rock out of a soft retirement to settle a family matter. 

It's only fitting it was Cena this time, though. He's the right guy at the right time. Even his loudest detractors would probably admit that even at their lowest hype levels for him, their beef was with the stagnant nature of the character and move set—they still appreciated him more than almost anyone else (Reigns, after returns from health-related battles, can surely relate to that feeling). 

As it stands, it's Cena who swoops back in to a dramatically changed WWE, a change headlined by Reigns himself, right as the pandemic era fades and we get into whatever this new stretch will earn as a moniker. Alongside the man he passed the torch to, it's Cena who will welcome fans home to the friendly confines of the sport they love. 

All those years ago, WWE captured lightning in a bottle with Cena's rise. Let's say it knew where the bottle that contained Reigns' heel turn was, it was a matter of wanting to pop the lid off. Now it's got another possible moment like that with this feud right as fans get back in the stands after time away. 

That it's this feud at this time is a pretty encouraging thing for WWE as it slams the pedal to the floor. Matchups like this, between guys who carried the promotion on their respective backs for years, don't just happen...and normally don't happen outside of WrestleMania.

Even two years ago, another Reigns-Cena matchup would have been met with a roll of the eyes by many. But WWE has its finger on the pulse just right with this one—and it's the fans who will benefit the most. 

John Cena is back in WWE, as the 16-time world champion appeared at Money in the Bank on Sunday night following Roman Reigns' victory over Edge.

Playing the role of spoiler in Reigns' post-match celebration, Cena—whose mere presence was enough to get fans buzzing—stepped in the ring and briefly went face-to-face with Reigns.

Cena also went on to address the crowd, promising fans that he would not be returning on a "one night only" basis:

It marked Cena's first live appearance on WWE programming since he fell to "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in the well-regarded Firefly Fun House match at WrestleMania 36 in April 2020.

The 44-year-old is no longer a full-time wrestler because of his commitments in Hollywood, but he seemingly always finds a way to remain involved with WWE, especially around WrestleMania time.

His last high-profile match in front of fans came at WrestleMania 34 when he lost to The Undertaker. Cena didn't have a match at The Show of Shows in 2019, but he did interrupt a musical performance by Elias and dissed him in a rap before taking him out while portraying his Dr. of Thuganomics character.

The veteran's return to action as an active competitor came at WrestleMania 36. He returned shortly before the event, which led to The Fiend laying down a challenge.

The match likely would have been a more traditional one fought entirely inside the ring had WrestleMania occurred at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, with fans in attendance as originally planned, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced WWE to move it to its Performance Center with no crowd present.

However, that allowed WWE to get creative with the Firefly Fun House match. Although it was more of an experience and a story highlighting Cena's career and the history between him and Wyatt, it was entertaining nonetheless.

The Cenation Leader stepped away from WWE after that and returned to his acting commitments, but he resurfaced to some degree in January 2021 as part of the company's announcement for the next three WrestleManias.

The future Hall of Famer revealed that WrestleMania 39 in 2023 will be held at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

This was significant since SoFi Stadium was supposed to host WrestleMania 37, but WWE did some shuffling amid the pandemic and decided to hold this year's event in Tampa instead.

WWE still turns to Cena in big moments and gets him involved whenever possible, and now that he has returned to the fold, a huge match with Reigns could be forthcoming at SummerSlam on August 21.

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