Dwayne The Rock Johnson is a big draw for WWE despite his primary focus on Hollywood. The Final Boss was involved in John Cena’s farewell tour, but not as an opponent, rather, as the catalyst for his heel turn. Interestingly, the 53-year-old recently hinted that he could face Cena in his final match.
The Rock made an appearance on the October 13, 2025, episode of the New Heights podcast. The People’s Champ was asked about who he thinks should be John Cena’s final opponent. In response, Dwayne Johnson fidgeted with his t-shirt, signaling that he should be the one to face The Franchise Player.
The Brahma Bull also highlighted that he does have some influence in the booking process. Thus, if he wants, The Final Boss could make his return and face John Cena at Saturday Night’s Main Event to retire him on December 13, 2025.
The Rock on John Cena's final WWE opponent:
"I have a tiny bit of influence in the booking of it, but it really is just whoever John wants. Really that's what it comes down to.
"It's not me or Nick Khan or Triple H. It's whoever John wants."pic.twitter.com/jIQVek0xMu
It should be noted that The Rock said these words in a lighthearted manner. Moreover, he stated that John Cena is the one who has a say in who gets to be his final opponent.
The Rock and John Cena Main-Evented Two Consecutive WrestleMania Events
The Rock and John Cena had a lot of heat between them back in 2012. The People’s Champ had returned to WWE to start a feud against Mr Hustle Loyalty and Respect, which ended up becoming the main event of WrestleMania 28
The storyline was a grand success. So much so that WWE decided to run it back once again for WrestleMania 29. This time, The Rock was the WWE Champion and put the title on the line. In an iconic showdown, John Cena defeated Dwayne Johnson to become the new champ and finally overcome one of the company’s greatest wrestlers.
Notably, The Final Boss even got severely injured during the match. Speaking about it on Terry Gross’ radio show, Fresh Air, he revealed that he tore his quadriceps and adductor off his leg while 20 minutes into the match, but still remained in the ring. However, he decided not to tell John Cena about his injury, to prevent him from ending the match early for his sake.
I didn’t want to tell him that because I know the moment I tell him, hey, something’s wrong, then knowing him the way I do, because I would do the same thing. He would want to end the match… He would have said, let’s go home. And in wrestling parlance, when we say to each other in the ring, let’s go home, that means we’re going into the finish, and within a minute, this match will end. [H/T Cageside Seats]
Thus, despite the sheer pain he was going through, The Rock continued to fight his match. He noted that he could still use his left leg perfectly, which allowed him to persevere. The Brahma Bull also highlighted that he didn’t want things to end early because he wanted Cena to have his moment of defeating him to become the new WWE Champion.
John Cena Blamed The Rock for His Heel Turn
John Cena had turned heel at the 2025 Elimination Chamber and attacked Cody Rhodes on the orders of The Rock. However, following EC, Dwayne Johnson completely disappeared from WWE’s active programming. Thus, The Franchise Player was left all alone after throwing away two decades’ worth of goodwill he had built with the fans.
The go-home SmackDown episode ahead of the 2025 SummerSlam saw Cena turn babyface once again. During his address to Rhodes and the WWE Universe, The Never Seen 17 subtly pointed fingers at The Rock for making him destroy all his rapport with the fans for a shocking TV moment.
John Cena basically saying the Rock left him alone and that he was wrong about a lof of things
Wow wasn't expecting him to say all of this tonight tbh#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/DY8jNKbtDX
John Cena noted that he never wanted to ruin pro wrestling and admitted that he actually loves it a lot. Even after these accusations, The Rock made no appearances to either clear his name or to punish Cena for going against him.
Do you think The Final Boss will resurface to play a part in Cena’s farewell tour once again? Do you with to see The Brahma Bull retire the record-setting 17-time WWE world champion? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
