Is John Cena on the Mount Rushmore of Professional Wrestling?
John Cena announced over the weekend that he would retire from the WWE at the end of 2025. He specified that his farewell tour begins in January and ends in December of next year.
WWE bills Cena as the "greatest of all time." We would dispute that label. However, the list of professional wrestlers with greater careers than Cena is short – so short that he might very well claim a spot on the always hotly contested Mount Rushmore of professional wrestling.
Let's discuss:
We start with Hulk Hogan. Wrestling would not be the billionaire industry that it is today without Hogan mainstreaming the product in the 1980s.
There's never been a more recognizable figure in wrestling than Hogan. His superhero-like red and yellow gimmick is among the best. His subsequent heel turn -- in which he donned a black beard with a white mustache while calling himself "Hollywood"-- isn't far behind.
Arguably, the two most memorable moments in wrestling history are Hogan's body-slamming of Andre the Giant and his still-appalling alliance with the villainous NWO, the latter of which just celebrated its 28th anniversary.
WWE/WWF has been the No. 1 wrestling brand in the world for nearly all of the past 40 years. We say "nearly" because, in 1996, the Hogan-led WCW topped WWE in the ratings for 83 consecutive weeks.
That leads us to the second face on the Mount Rushmore…
WWE eventually won the Monday Night War, pushing WCW out of business. Stone Cold Steve Austin is among the chief reasons why.
At their peaks, Austin moved more business than even Hogan.
Austin didn't wrestle for long – about six years in the spotlight – but he did it the best. His classic feud with Vince McMahon launched the hottest period in wrestling history: the Attitude Era.
Stone Cold was the lead character of that era.
Austin was also among the first culturally significant anti-heroes. Would there have been a Walter White or Tony Sopranos without Stone Cold preceding them? Perhaps.
But perhaps not.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is the third name on our Mount Rushmore.
Like Austin, The Rock didn't do it long. Yet, when he did it, no one quite did it like him.
His part-time, record-setting business returns against John Cena last decade and Roman Reigns this decade further solidified his case.
And he's not done.
Now a board member of WWE parent company TKO, the rumor is The Rock will return for next year's WrestleMania in Las Vegas to challenge Cody Rhodes, the biggest full-time star in the company.
Sign us up.
That leaves the fourth and final spot up for grabs. The list of potential candidates is extensive.
Ric Flair is, of course, an option. Sting and The Undertaker are in the conversation.
Roman Reigns is making a case for himself, as the catalyst of WWE's current boom period. As in-ring performers – Bryan Danielson, Kenny Omega, and Kazuchika Okada cannot be forgotten.
Randy Savage is a possibility. So is Shawn Michaels. Without the likes of Chris Jericho and the Young Bucks, AEW probably wouldn't have launched as successfully as it did.
However, we lean toward John Cena.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 7: The Rock fights against John Cena on Night Two at WrestleMania 40 at Lincoln Financial Field on April 7, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by WWE/Getty Images)
Professional wrestling was on a steep decline in the early 2000s. Then came Cena, a unique crossover between a vulgar wannabe thug and a babyface jock.
He eventually morphed into Superman.
John Cena was the protagonist of WWE's PG era, which, while not for everyone, elevated the product into a family-friendly viewing option that was undoubtedly best for business.
Cena was the face-of-the-company successor to Stone Cold and The Rock, an impossible position in which he somehow succeeded.
He is tied with Flair for the most world championships, 16. Perhaps he will break that record during his farewell tour. We hope he does.
Expect Cena to bolster his case for a spot near the top of professional wrestling's hierarchy over the next year as a key figure in WWE's new rights agreements to air Raw on Netflix and specials on NBC.
Sources within the media industry expect WWE to command record site fees for premium live events that Cena headlines prior to his retirement.
Our official Mount Rushmore: Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, The Rock, and John Cena.
Send us yours on X, @burackbobby_. Others already have.