In what could be WWE’s most aggressive move yet in the ongoing battle with All Elite Wrestling, the company is reportedly discussing moving John Cena’s final, historic retirement match to a date that would put it directly against AEW’s Worlds End pay-per-view this December.
The news was revealed by Bryan Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Live. While the plan is not finalized, Alvarez confirmed that the discussion is happening inside WWE.
He said, “Originally, the final John Cena match was going to be in early December, Saturday Night’s Main Event,” Alvarez explained. “And this is not confirmed, okay, but it does look like there is now discussion that the date will be moved so it will be head-to-head with AEW World’s End.”
This development comes after reports that WWE will run a premium live event on Saturday, September 20—headlined by Cena vs. Brock Lesnar—which will air directly opposite AEW’s All Out pay-per-view.
Alvarez previously noted that another head-to-head showdown was in the works. “We did talk about how there’s going to be one more of these before the year was out, and I think they’re going to try and put the final John Cena match on Saturday Night’s Main Event in Boston head-to-head with World’s End,” Alvarez said.
While NXT has occasionally run events opposite AEW pay-per-views, using a main roster show—especially for an event as historic as Cena’s retirement—would be a significant escalation in the rivalry between the two promotions.
Worlds End is AEW’s final PPV of the year and one of its biggest events.
As for Lesnar, he is set to return to WWE TV soon, with appearances advertised for the September 12 and September 19 episodes of SmackDown to build toward his September match with Cena.
