After 13 long years in the WWE, John Cena is now 38-years-old. He’s had many surgeries along the way, but the Florida-native prides himself on his work ethic, and remains one of WWE’s biggest stars.
But as we’ve seen over the years, as wrestlers begin to enter the twilight stages of their careers, they are either shown the door by Vince McMahon or if they are a big enough asset to the company, their ring time is reduce significantly. The latter seems to be inevitable for the marketable Cena.
Although very much still in the upper echelons of the WWE’s pay scale, it would be wise for Cena to think about the future. Maybe this is what forced his hand to take an extended break after his loss to Alberto Del Rio at the Hell in the Cell match for his United States Championship belt.
Cena is said to be filming a reality fitness series with FOX during his time away from wrestling. It’s been a long time since the Prototype participated in any television productions, so it will be intriguing to see if this is the first of many projects on the horizons.
Additionally, there seems to be a bit of shift in focus by WWE’s CEO Vince McMahon. While they are desperately clambering to find the next Cena, Brock Lesnar or the Undertaker the promotion is trying to build marketable assets to take them into the next generation. You only have reference NXT to see how they are trying to nurture the next slew of superstars in the wrestling world. While ex-Shield members Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose are all getting their fair share of screen time as well as the reemergence of Del Rio on the big stage.
That doesn’t mean the promotion won’t lean on Cena when they need to – because they will. His merchandise sales still beat 99% of the WWE’s rosters, and his star appeal has transcended across all forms of entertainment. But, with him getting on in years, the need to keep Cena fresh for big events seems more apparent.
With a less strenuous WWE schedule, similar to Lesnar’s and Taker’s, Cena will have the freedom to focus on other pursuits as well as his wrestling. With a less demand on his body, McMahon will be hoping Cena can extend his career in the ring for years to come. And with his fanbase very much intact, even a little downtime and the need to mentor the next lot of superstars the WWE hire, Cena will be happy to take a less active role in the company if it means prolonging the career he so dearly loves.
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