(PatriotWise.com) — Wrestler John Cena announced that he will be retiring from World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) next year.
The 47-year-old wrestler-turned-actor revealed his retirement plans during WWE’s “Monday in the Bank”, prompting some in the crowd to respond with boos.
Cena told reporters at a press conference following the event that he wasn’t concerned about his legacy and while he wished he could continue “indefinitely,” he decided that he wanted to spend his time trying “to do something special for a globe of people I owe everything to.”
The 16-time WWE world champion, whose wrestling career began in 2000, said he would do between 30 and 40 wrestling events in 2025 before ending his career.
Cena, who has in the past considered retiring, told reporters in the press conference that the timing felt right.
He explained that wrestling was currently enjoying “incredible heights of popularity,” with many “big things going on,” including wrestling’s January 2025 debut on the Netflix streaming service.
Cena said he took pride in knowing that he was someone World Wrestling Entertainment could contact to work with the organization to come up with new plans or ideas.
Cena is tied with wrestler Ric Flair for the record number of championships.
In the press conference, Cena acknowledged that many wrestlers retire from the industry only to subsequently return and insisted that this would not be his plan, telling reporters that when he does retire, he would be done and would not be coming back.
Cena’s wrestling career served as a springboard to Hollywood, with the professional wrestler appearing in various movies, including the “Fast & Furious” films, last year’s blockbuster “Barbie,” and “The Suicide Squad.”
Netflix and WWE parent company TKO Group announced in January that the streaming service would begin broadcasting the WWE’s flagship weekly show “Raw” starting in 2025 in a $5 billion deal that would last for 10 years, with an opt-out after five years and an option to extend the deal for another 10 years.
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