John Cena Says WWE SNME Retirement Exceeded His Expectations

Fans heard from John Cena plenty before his retirement match against GUNTHER at Saturday Night's Main Event, but now, the 17-time champion is speaking out after tapping out to "The Ring General," a finish that many fans felt wasn't the right choice for his send-off. Cena sat down with Cody Rhodes on his "What Do You Want To Talk About?" podcast and explained his retirement tour was like the "cycle of someone facing the end of their life." He said that he envisioned something beautiful for the event, but the match surpassed that.

"Saturday far exceeded whatever was in my heart and soul," Cena said. "I know I'm out there one last time... I know it's an old wrestler's story, I'm setting the stage for why I was so filled with joy, you can't fit anymore people in there... Now I'm out there. They hate the guy I'm working with. They universally cheer me, that is f****** rare. And for the last five minutes, everything I preach about story and drama and having a conversation with the audience. The ones I love are in the front row, I know my colleagues are watching on the monitor back there. We're just in a sleep hold, man, but we're just in a sleeper, but we're having that conversation with the audience. So, as I essentially take my last breath, I have struggled."

Cena said if you thought of someone who has passed from natural causes, they struggle and hang on just long enough to make sure they say "goodbye" to those who were meaningful in their lives. He said that the entire day had been full of vulnerable, meaningful conversations.

While fans in the arena booed the finish and booed Paul "Triple H" Levesque when he led the locker room down to the ring for the post-match celebration of Cena's career, as well as the online discourse that continues about the decision for Cena to tap, the "Leader of the Cenation" is at peace. He described the finish of the bout, as well as the look on his face at the end, to Rhodes.

"You realize, 'I've connected with everybody I love. Physically, I feel great. I think it's time to take that last breath,'" Cena said, continuing his metaphor. "And that's that. That's that, I hate to keep going back morbidly to obituaries, but 'this person died peacefully...' And knowing that like, 'Man. We are in a good place. We're going to be great going forward.' The bottom of the t-shirt says, 'I gave everything. Thank you for everything.' In that one moment, that was that. Going peacefully."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "What Do You Want to Talk About?" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.