
John Cena kicked off Raw to a mixed reaction, with loud boos and "John Cena sucks" chants echoing through the arena. Dressed in his signature attire, he walked to the ring and placed a towel reading "The Last Time Is Now" on the mat before stepping inside.
Looks like John Cena has finally EMBRACED THE HATE!#WWERawpic.twitter.com/ftOu4r8EM1— WWE (@WWE) March 17, 2025
The crowd was divided—some in support, others against him. Cena took his time, setting down the mic before hinting at leaving. Fans erupted with "You sold out!" chants. Teasing his departure again, he responded coldly: “You are making this so easy for me.” He went on to call himself the victim of an abusive relationship, saying he had been bullied by fans for 25 years—always expected to be something they wanted him to be.
"F--- you, Cena!" they chanted. He smirked and thanked them.
"I am not a babyface. I am not a heel. I’m a human being," Cena declared. "Each and every one of you has been awful to me." He recalled how he was hated from the moment he debuted. So, he changed—to get them to like him. That wasn’t enough. He tried harder, started winning… they hated that too. He gave everything, and still, it wasn’t enough.
"Shut the f--- up!" the crowd yelled.
Cena said when he told fans he was walking away and announcing his retirement, they ruined it. The crowd responded with a mocking "Na na na na, hey hey, goodbye" chant. He told them they get nothing. "What do we get?" he asked. "Not one of you sons of bitches asked me how I felt."
He told them they had earned nothing—no new look, no new music. His time was finally now, and all they got was a long look in the mirror to see how terrible they had been to him. As fans chanted for Cody Rhodes, Cena shook his head, saying it only proved his point—they were awful people. Pointing out the few Cena supporters in the crowd, he turned on them as well. "What have you ever done for me? All you do is steal from me. I’m just an object to you, a joke about an invisible man that isn’t funny."
He mocked the crowd, saying they couldn’t buy “Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect” because they didn’t live by it. Then, he delivered his final words: "I’m breaking up with you… You’re dumped. I don’t need you. I don’t care about you. And you don’t matter to me."
Before Cena could leave, Cody Rhodes' music hit. The fans erupted, singing along as Cena stood in the ring with a scowl. "Everyone was willing to hear you out," Cody said. He argued that fans had given Cena both the worst and the best because he was special—because he could carry the weight of it.
Cena tried to interrupt. "Listen, kid—" But Cody cut him off. "It’s WWE Champion," he corrected. Then he looked Cena in the eye and asked, "Where did you go? Why are we getting this?" "This version of John Cena isn’t enough," Cody stated. "I want to wrestle the real John Cena… not this whiny bitch."
With that, Cody left. Cena stood in silence before dropping the mic and exiting as the fans sang him off.
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