John Cena Admits WWE Heel Turn Was A Losing Battle
By Craig Ballantyne on 1 September 2025
John Cena says that sometimes you have to give the audience what they want.
While most expected John Cena to play the hits during his final year as an active wrestler, at Elimination Chamber 2025, the star made the shock decision to turn heel for the first time in decades. At the event, the star sold his soul to The Rock by delivering a low blow to Cody Rhodes before giving The American Nightmare a brutal beatdown to close the show.
Over the following months, Cena did his best to deliver as a heel by using cheap tactics to win matches, berating fans, and promising to “ruin wrestling” for everyone. However, his fans weren’t buying the turn and continued to cheer for their hero regardless.
Eventually, just before SummerSlam, Cena abruptly returned to being a babyface to the delight of fans everywhere. On the Clash In Paris post-show, the star explained that while WWE had tried something “brave and bold” with the heel turn, it got to a point where they had to change course.
“Keep in mind, what we do is try to entertain the audience as best we can, and sometimes, that involves taking risks and sometimes, that takes being bold. You also have to listen to the audience.
“It got to a point where, Cena vs. Randy, you start hearing [cheers from the audience], Cena vs. Punk in Saudi, you start hearing the noise. Cena-Cody WrestleMania, Cena-Cody SummerSlam, it changes. Sometimes, you can make bold and brave new moves, but going against this body of energy is a losing battle. So sometimes, you just gotta listen and pivot, change course.”
John Cena Comments On Apology To Young Fan
Soon after turning heel, Cena singled out a young Belgian fan in Brussels to berate for his “dysfunctional” and “toxic” relationship with the audience. On the August 29th edition of SmackDown in Lyon, France, he was able to apologise to the same fan, something he says was a “great” moment.
“To be able to apologize to my man, it’s great. To be able to say sorry, and to be able to say I‘m sorry because I said hurtful things. I was having a bad day, so to speak. I think we’ll reflect on this a whole lot more in January.”
Do you think WWE was right to end John Cena’s heel run? Do you think it could have worked if it had been done differently? Let us know your thoughts below!
H/T to WrestlingNews.co for the above transcription.