WWE fans are gearing themselves up for the end of an era, as John Cena retires from wrestling this Saturday. John Cena’s retirement is set to kickstart a string of retirements for WWE Superstars, including the likes of AJ Styles. However, AJ Styles isn’t the only one of John Cena’s final opponents who’s looking to call it a career soon. The Never Seen 17 is making media rounds ahead of his final match, and John Cena added to speculation that Brock Lesnar will retire in 2026. Here’s the latest rumors about The Beast Incarnate’s future.
John Cena Discusses Losing to Brock Lesnar at Wrestlepalooza
As we’ve been reporting, John Cena’s retirement tour has had its fair share of snafus. Fans breathed a sigh of relief when the 17-time World Champion dropped his failed heel turn this past August. They were under the impression that he had righted the course for the rest of his retirement tour. And then Brock Lesnar returned to attack John Cena at SummerSlam.
However, Brock Lesnar demolished John Cena in a disappointing bout that topped off an abysmal debut for WWE on ESPN. Since that fateful night, many have scratched their heads as to why John Cena lost to Brock Lesnar in such a convincing fashion.
John Cena cleared the air on his 8-minute loss to Brock Lesnar when he joined Chris Van Vilet. The retiring Grand Slam Champion explained that he was putting over the next attraction on the way out.
John Cena Wanted Brock to Look Strong
It had been over two years since Brock Lesnar last wrestled in WWE when the former UFC star returned to attack John Cena at SummerSlam. At this point, we were more than halfway done with John Cena’s final year of wrestling. So, it made sense for WWE to put the returning Brock Lesnar over the leaving John Cena.
As John Cena justified,
“He’s a beast. It’s his first time back. I’ve been in this seat before. It’s like I’m always in the seat when Brock comes back. Rock after Miami, who’s the next guy, you know, SummerSlam with Roman, here he comes again. Um, after he beats Takeer for the streak. I’ve sat in this seat before.
It’s not like it’s going to hurt me. But I’m a viable commodity, and it’s a great Main Event. See these two Titans for the last time. And it’s okay. Sometimes your team gets blown out.”
While John Cena agrees that he and Brock were a big-money match for the WWE debut on ESPN, there’s more to the story. John Cena believes Brock was brought back for his final run, and The Last Real Champion was happy to be a part of it.
Brock Lesnar to Retire at SummerSlam 2026?
SummerSlam has seen many big moments for Brock Lesnar, including his first WWE Title win over The Rock and his most recent return to WWE. Next year, we might see Brock Lesnar’s last match at SummerSlam in Minneapolis, MN.
John Cena talked about how his loss to The Beast could’ve kickstarted the Minnesotan’s goodbye tour,
“You have to figure out who gets the shine that night. And if in his return, again, only my perspective, this attraction where we are going to build until he goes into the sunset…which is, I think, in Minnesota…or where, creatively, it’s very soon to create a mountain to climb for someone. You have to build the mountain, and I’m on my way out.”
With John Cena on his way out, can Brock Lesnar fill the spot for the rest of the year? Time will tell, but so far, Brock has only wrestled two matches since his return.
Brock Lesnar’s New Contract to Expire Next Year?
Brock Lesnar unceremoniously left WWE TV in 2023 after it was alleged that he worked with Vince McMahon to sex traffic former WWE employee Janel Grant. Many believed that was the end of Brock’s career, as the star was seemingly canceled. However, the former UFC Champion made a shocking return two years later to finish his story.
When Brock returned, his long-time friend, Paul Heyman, alleged that The Beast Incarnate signed a new WWE contract. If Brock Lesnar signed with WWE around SummerSlam 2025, could his contract have only been one year?
Brock signed a one-year deal with WWE when he first returned in 2012. The star left WWE in 2004 to pursue football with the Minnesota Vikings, only to become a top UFC draw. Much like his wife, Sable, Brock would enter legal battles with the company over his non-compete clause. They tried holding him to a year off of TV, much like WWE did to Andrade this year.
That said, it seemed like Brock would never return, but he did in 2012 with a one-year contract. While Brock would sign many more, it’s not unheard of for The Beast to do one-year deals at a time. With SummerSlam 2026 in Minnesota, could Brock Lesnar retire next year?