John Cena is poised for the obvious comeback to WWE–assuming it happens, exactly how do you book his journey?

When you paint the Mount Rushmore of Pro Wrestling, it’s easy to include John Cena. His run at the top of WWE is second only to that of Hulk Hogan, spanning a solid decade before he took a step back. Cena is synonymous with WWE, kicking off the Ruthless Aggression Era, and becoming a bankable star that people loved–or loved to hate.

Earning the respect of nearly every fan by the end of his run, John Cena has seen his sports entertainment career become a launch pad into Hollywood, appearing in major movies including this summer’s Fast And Furious 9 alongside Vin Diesel (the star for whom John Cena plays the younger brother to) and the usual crew (minus The Rock and Jason Statham).

A favorite past-time of many a wrestling writer, including myself, is booking. Be it a card, or one individual’s span of time, we love to take the pencil out of the hands of those doing it for a living and publish our own ideas. Well that’s what I am doing now, as I book John Cena from WWE SummerSlam 2021 to WrestleMania 38.

SummerSlam 2021: vs. Roman Reigns

Yes, it’s happened before, but never like this. Roman Reigns is in the “John Cena” position, as “the Head Of The Table” isn’t just a gimmick–that’s the role he plays in the entire WWE. He has taken on all comers, and done so on his own terms. Since his return, he has triumphed over Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt’s The Fiend, Drew McIntyre, Jey Uso (getting Jey higher on the card than ever before), Kevin Owens, Daniel Bryan, Edge, Cesaro, and most recently Rey Mysterio. He shows no signs of slowing down, with many expecting him to be Universal Champion going into WrestleMania 38, and possibly even WrestleMania 39.

I honestly think the better match for Cena is Bobby Lashley–and we can get there–but given the importance of the relationship between FOX and WWE, it makes more sense for John Cena’s return to happen on Smackdown. And if you are going to return on Smackdown, the most obvious opponent is also the best option, and that’s Universal Champion Roman Reigns.

For Roman Reigns to go down as one of the true greats, a win over John Cena within the current landscape is exactly what needs to happen in the main event in Las Vegas.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Survivor Series: vs. Bobby Lashley

With Cena making his return on WWE Smackdown, the inevitable WWE Draft could be a place to send him back to the red brand, WWE Monday Night Raw. Cena doesn’t “deserve” a shot against Bobby Lashley pre se, but the Almighty WWE Champion is sure to want to add Cena to his trophy case, one that isn’t as impressive as Roman Reigns’, but is starting to grow.

Winner: Bobby Lashley

WWE NXT Takeover: vs. Tommaso Ciampa

John Cena doesn’t need to go to WWE NXT, but could I see him wanting to? I sure as hell could. By this time NXT is back on the road for a Takeover, and John Cena is in the house. To me the obvious choice is Karrion Kross, but I firmly believe Kross will be on Raw or Smackdown by this time. At least he should be.

There are many stalwarts of NXT that Cena could stand against, including Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole. And as much as I would love a match with either (or Walter), the flag bearer for WWE vs. the flag bearer for NXT is the match-up we all need to see, in John Cena vs. Tommaso Ciampa.

Cena vs. Ciampa would have one hell of a build, as both men have a way of “getting real,” and pushing their opponents to the limit outside the ring. In the ring, this could easily entertain, as Cena would sell for Ciampa and Ciampa would get every ounce of sympathy out of a John Cena match.

Winner: John Cena

(I mean, I have to let Cena win at some point, right? Personally, I want Ciampa to win.)

Royal Rumble: vs. Drew McIntyre

It should be obvious by now that this is turning into a farewell tour for John Cena. I have no idea if he can truly do all of this, but it’s my fantasy booking so I am sticking with it! Drew McIntyre joins Roman Reigns and Bobby Lashley as the stars WWE is centered around these days, and McIntyre would treat this match-up with a certain level of respect that the other two can’t–for storyline and character reasons.

Cena vs. McIntyre is also a little fresher than the other two, and further cements McIntyre as one of the top stars in WWE regardless of championships (he’s already there).

Winner: Drew McIntyre

WWE NXT UK: vs. Walter

Yep, it’s time to go crazy and send John Cena to the most passionate fan base in al of WWE–the English! The UK crowd deserves another shot at John Cena, and John Cena deserves one more appearance in front of the UK crowd. While NXT UK has multiple potential opponents for John Cena, the only real choice is Walter. He can kick Cena’s ass all over the place, he can also sell for Cena. But in the end, Cena can pass the “LOLCENAWINS’ torch to the man who already has it.

Winner: LOLWALTERWINS

WrestleMania 38: vs. Edge

While Edge and John Cena had plenty of one-on-one encounters, they never got a WrestleMania singles showdown. In Dallas, we can fix that.

Bill this as John Cena’s final WrestleMania, not quite his retirement, and you have a renewal of arguably the greatest rivalry either man has had. The build would be fun, half nostalgia but half current as Edge is two years into his WWE return run and has been involved in major storylines.

Because Cena always seemed to have Edge’s number in the end, Edge gets the final win on the grandest stage.

Winner: Edge

WWE RawAfterMania: vs. Randy Orton

While it’s not currently announced as such, if WrestleMania 38 is a two-night affair, you can have Cena vs. Edge on Night 1, and on night 2 promote that John Cena will be on Raw to announce his retirement. It’ll pop a huge rating, and it’ll also bring out one last surprise…

Randy Orton.

With Edge’s (initial) career being cut short due to injury, John Cena and Randy Orton shared the ring approximately 389,472 times during their run(s) at the top of WWE. It seems fitting that Cena’s actual last match is against the man who he is most linked to in his WWE tenure in Orton.

Winner: Randy Orton

Those Who Didn’t Make The Cut

There are plenty of matches I want to see for John Cena, but we can’t have him against everyone, now can we. Here is a list of those I would selfishly love to see, in no particular order:

• Seth Rollins
• Cesaro
• Ricochet
• Adam Cole
• Johnny Gargano
• Karrion Kross
• Joe Coffey
• Matt Riddle
• AJ Styles

What do you think of the potential for one more run in WWE for John Cena? Anyone I left out? Anyone that jumps out at you? Hit me up on social media @ChairshotGreg and let me know!