The John Cena Classic may finally have a date.
False Finish reports that WWE is looking at Saturday, December 12, for the show. The location has not been decided.
The timing lines up with an anniversary. Cena wrestled for the last time on December 13, 2025, at Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, DC, tapping out to Gunther’s sleeper hold at the Capital One Arena. That finish drew criticism from fans who felt it clashed with his never give up slogan.
Cena announced the Classic at Backlash in Tampa on May 9. He described it as a single event built on the same idea as his retirement show, which put NXT wrestlers against the main roster and gave early main event exposure to Oba Femi, Sol Ruca and Je’Von Evans. He has compared it to an All-Star Game and said he wants it to become a recurring fixture rather than a one-off.
A fan vote will determine the John Cena Classic Champion, and every participant qualifies regardless of results. Losing your match does not rule you out. The title is expected to be ceremonial and not defended afterward.
How the vote will work has not been explained. Cena told Us Weekly earlier this summer that he is concerned about it being manipulated.
We’ve got to figure out the fan vote. I do not want it sabotaged. I do not want it hijacked. I know there’s a lot of burner accounts out there and there’s a lot of bots out there. Audience participation is what I want, like fair audience participation.
One possibility is Club WWE, the company’s membership program, which Cena has been promoting since retiring. He remains with WWE as an ambassador.
