John Cena, the most decorated wrestler in WWE history, has officially retired from the sport after making his final appearance at Saturday Night’s Main Event in front of more than 19,000 fans at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC.
The 17-time world champion brought his year-long retirement tour to a close with a loss to Gunther, tapping out for only the fourth time in his career and the first time in 21 years. Cena was placed in multiple sleeper holds by the “Ring General” and, after repeatedly breaking free, eventually looked into the camera, smiled slightly and submitted.
It marked Cena’s first tap-out defeat since 2004, when he lost to Kurt Angle.
During the match, Cena attempted several of his trademark moves, including the Five Knuckle Shuffle and
the Attitude Adjustment, but was unable to withstand Gunther’s sustained offense. After the bout, Gunther exited the ring as members of the WWE locker room poured out to honour Cena.
World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk and Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes entered the ring and handed John Cena their championship belts, allowing him to wear them one last time.
The crowd reacted angrily when WWE chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque appeared, showering him with chants of “bullst” and “You f*ed up” as fans voiced their displeasure over Cena’s farewell result.
A tribute montage followed, featuring wrestlers from across Cena’s career, including archival footage of former WWE chairman Vince McMahon. Cena then removed his shoes and sweatbands, leaving them in the centre of the ring before taking his bows and walking away.
As he made his way toward the entrance, Cena high-fived fans, took one final bow and addressed the camera for the last time.
“It’s been a pleasure serving you all these years, thank you,” Cena said, before exiting the arena as the broadcast faded to black.
The defeat marked the second retirement match Gunther has ended in 2025, having earlier beaten Bill Goldberg in his final bout.
Cena’s final match capped a dramatic year in which he turned heel for the first time in his career at Elimination Chamber in March.
He later defeated Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE title at WrestleMania, breaking the record for the most world championships in WWE history, before Rhodes reclaimed the title at SummerSlam. Cena’s final reign came after defeating Dominik Mysterio in his hometown of Boston.
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