John Cena has announced his retirement from WWE.
The 47-year-old wrestler-turned-Hollywood actor made a surprise appearance at the promotion’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view event in Toronto on Saturday night.
He then announced that he will be stepping away from wrestling after a retirement tour in which he will perform at exclusive shows such as Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber and WrestleMania.
Cena said: “Why am I here? Tonight I am officially announcing my retirement from WWE.
‘I hear mixed opinions. There are probably a lot of questions, aren’t there? For example, why here? I want to talk about that for a moment. I want to talk about Toronto. In fact, I want to talk about Canada. In fact, I want to talk about Canadians.
John Cena announced his retirement from WWE at Money in the Bank on Saturday night.
‘I’ve been doing this for a while. I’ve been in WWE for over two decades and in that time I’ve seen incredible waves of prosperity like we have now. WWE is the best option in town, no doubt.
‘And I’ve also seen enormous hardship and that’s when nobody knows your name, nobody wants to be your friend and only the most dedicated and die-hard fans are on your side.
‘So in all those years one of the most important things, one of the most impressive things that I learned was that regardless of whether WWE was hot or cold, the Canadians always showed up.
‘You all built this into what it is today, which makes this, in my opinion, the perfect place to say what I have to say.
‘This farewell doesn’t end tonight. It’s full of opportunity. Everyone, RAW is going to make history next year when it moves to Netflix. I’ve never been a part of RAW on Netflix. That’s history. It’s the first time and I’ll be there.
‘In addition to this first historic milestone, we are going to build many unforgettable milestones.
‘The 2025 Royal Rumble will be my last. The 2025 Elimination Chamber will be my last and I’m here tonight to announce that WrestleMania Las Vegas in 2025 will be the last WrestleMania I compete in.
“I know, I know. It’s a lot to take in. There are probably a lot of questions, so I’m telling you now that I’m going to start the press conference right after the show and I’ll answer all the questions that have to do with my retirement.
‘I want to thank you. What an incredible gesture of kindness. I want to thank you. Thank you so much for letting me play in the house you built for so many years.
‘Thank you so much for your voice, because it’s so strong, and for your honesty, because it’s beautifully brutal. And above all, thank you so much for allowing me to be here with you tonight so that the world knows that we’re planning something unforgettable that also involves me coming back to Toronto to kick some ass.
“So if you’re watching the game at home or here in Toronto or if you’re a WWE Superstar, if you want something, hurry up and come get it because the last time is now.”
More to follow.