17-time World Champion John Cena recently addressed why a highly anticipated match with Adam Copeland didn't occur during his 2025 retirement tour. Many fans hoped for a final showdown between Cena and Copeland (known to WWE fans as Edge). Despite fan interest, the match never materialized due to the promotional gap.
Speaking to The Takedown, John Cena has now revealed that the two remained in close contact throughout the entire farewell run. 'The Leader of Cenation' stated he only had 36 dates and couldn't face everyone, despite talking to Copeland often and having great respect for him.
I talk to Adam all the time. I have great respect for him. We refer to each other as ‘old shoe’ because Adam’s got a very special place in my heart. Now here we both are, celebrating a long living space in a wonderful business. So I talk to him often. I think both of us understood about something like (the retirement tour) it is the sports entertainment business. But then again, I only had 36 dates. I can’t work with everybody.
Cena's Retirement Tour
During his 2025 retirement tour, Cena faced rivals like Randy Orton and CM Punk. However, he said that he wanted to face Triple H, Shawn Michaels and Batista, which wasn't possible as they all have already hung up their wrestling boots.
Gosh, I had tons of fun with Khali, all of my opponents, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Batista. You name it, we could have just run the gambit of folks. I would run out of time trying to tell you the people I wanted to face,” Cena added.
Cena and Copeland refer to each other as 'old shoe' due to their comfortable in-ring chemistry. While the former 17-time World Champion couldn't face his former rival, he paid tribute to the 'Rated-R Superstar' by using the Spear in his final SmackDown match. Copeland had also returned the favor by using Cena’s Five Knuckle Shuffle at AEW All Out in Toronto.
